New Google algo change (Oct 10th) - A good one for me!

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  1. PaulGoodman67 profile image96
    PaulGoodman67posted 11 years ago

    Looks like Google made another algo change earlier this week.  My traffic rose about 25% on my main HP account around this time, so I'm guessing the update was the cause. 

    My traffic is still low by historical standards (down  by more than a third from the start of the year), but I am counting this an HP success - people moan about all the HP changes, but I personally am cautiously optimistic for the future! 

    Let's hope that we're at the beginning of a long crawl back upwards!

    1. dannycarrey profile image67
      dannycarreyposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      See that's the problem with making money on HP - all depends on how or when google will change their algorithm. Now HP is winning but in two weeks all can change drastically. Can you estimate how much money did you loose on it?

  2. janiek13 profile image77
    janiek13posted 11 years ago

    I sure hope so, looking forward to it!

  3. lorddraven2000 profile image91
    lorddraven2000posted 11 years ago

    I have noticed a slight decrease in my adsense earning and my hub traffic. I am trying to get it all sorted out but time is never on my side in October.

  4. Tosch profile image60
    Toschposted 11 years ago

    You're giving us old news. That update was announced back in January this year- http://www.webpronews.com/google-page-l … om-2012-10

    That update has hit hard the websites that had low and less content, and comparatively more ads (Think where HubPages fits into that).

    They have announced, via a tiny twitter feed, that they have tweaked the existing update. That means stricter quality control. It's no good news. My main account on HubPages has suffered drastic traffic loss. Don't know how did you manage to find luck. Don't go to make rash conclusions. My 60% traffic has vanished. Even the featured hubbers I personally know, are suffering tonnes of visitors each day.

    1. jponiato profile image88
      jponiatoposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Well, my traffic for the last 2 days is back to what it was a few weeks ago, after having tanked by 50%.  So I'm thinking some of the tweaks in the last 2 days were good ones.

      FWIW, I did make one change during the last few days, and that was to add the 'rel="author"' attribute to my G+ link on my profile.  I don't think that is the reason for the sudden return to previous traffic volumes, but can't rule it out.

      1. Pavlo Badovskyy profile image74
        Pavlo Badovskyyposted 11 years agoin reply to this

        Can you , please, advice how exactly to add Author attribute to your G+ link? I am not that good in such things, though try to do my best smile Thank you !!

    2. Greekgeek profile image79
      Greekgeekposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      The article you linked to is old news, but that's not the update the original poster is talking about. Just like Panda, the Page Layout / Top Heavy algorithm gets changed from time to time.

      This wasn't simply a data refresh, like many Panda updates; it changed what criteria the algorithm uses to evaluate pages, which can result in more SERPs reshuffling.

      Top Heavy 2 Update (a.k.a. "Page Layout" algorithm) Oct 9, 2012.

      Hubpages admins had mentioned that there was something wrong with our profiles which they fixed. It is also possible that their fix actually helped, as my traffic started creeping back up before "Top Heavy 2" was launched.

      1. JayeWisdom profile image89
        JayeWisdomposted 11 years agoin reply to this

        It's frustrating for me to read that other hubbers' traffic is improving when mine is not!  My articles have relevant, original content, and I'm a good writer. Also, I updated my hubs to keep the dreaded 'ZZZZs' away and don't know what else I can do. I also have essays and fiction hubs, so I depend on my non-fiction article to pull in traffic. The hub that's formerly pulled more than half my traffic still has page one ranking on Google Search, so I cannot understand why its traffic has dropped to less than half--on some days about a third. I am not technologically inclined....

        1. JayeWisdom profile image89
          JayeWisdomposted 11 years agoin reply to this

          That's "...non-fiction articles (plural) to pull in traffic."  (I hate it that the forum format doesn't allow a preview and editing, when the Q&A format does.  Why is this???)

          1. jacharless profile image75
            jacharlessposted 11 years agoin reply to this

            Hi Jaye.
            The drop in traffic appear to be coming more from internal changes to how//when hubs are indexed, categorized, pending and Zzzed versus organic traffic from Bing, Google. I had a one in Zzz that was my 3rd top traffic//commented hub. It was still pulling steady traffic from several google country based searches {.ca, .de, .nl, .il} even under on-site deep sleep mode.

            Yes, though, is kind of frustrating making heads//tails of these rapid-fire changes. If my guess is correct, HP's core algorithm, yield build, is learning about Hubber habits {publishing topics, style, grammar, enhancements, images, etc and should at some point level off. If the categories and relevant hub links match up, should boost traffic across the board for everyone. Again,just my [un/over]educated guess.

            James.

            1. JayeWisdom profile image89
              JayeWisdomposted 11 years agoin reply to this

              Thanks,James, for trying to keep this tech-challenged writer up to speed. 

              I just went into my (formerly) best hub and proofed it to within an inch of its life!  There was nothing wrong, but I made some minor edits to enhance it. Most of the photos are my own, and others are properly attributed. The topic was popular for months, and most of the traffic was external from Google.  Most readers seem to enjoy my writing style, and I'm like a closet English teacher with regard to grammar and spelling. Ha-ha. In short, I can't find a thing wrong with it, so there's nothing to do but wait and see what happens. Oh, yes, though some hubs are getting no traffic right now (versus the light traffic of before), I have no dreaded "Zzzzzs."

              1. JayeWisdom profile image89
                JayeWisdomposted 11 years agoin reply to this

                Another question, James:  Will the fact that at least half of my hubs are creative writing (mostly short fiction, but some essays and a few poems) cause HP to penalize me for not having all non-fiction content articles during this period of "...learning about Hubber habits...?"

                Jaye

                1. jacharless profile image75
                  jacharlessposted 11 years agoin reply to this

                  It really depends on the Topic, here on Hub Pages, and how they view creative writing. Am assuming because this is one of their Topical Categories, would be treated fairly. If HP's brainchild penalizes fiction/non-fiction for their own Topical arena, they seriously shooting themselves in the foot and turning the site into an abysmal Product Wiki or How-to only factory.

                  Creative non-fiction or fiction is always in-demand, as it is the stuff of self-publishing. Especially in young adult or woman's issues areas. Spring & Fall are hot times, post-holiday {spring} and pre-holiday {autumn} bookworms//consumers.

                  Externally, the engines appear to be looking for such subjects but tend to favor ebooks, ebook//article reviews of said writing. I suppose HP creative writing would be considered the same on many levels. One fellow here has nearly an entire book -chapter by chapter- published here. And good stuff too. So, here's hoping they do smile upon your work and other likewise.

                  James.

                  1. JayeWisdom profile image89
                    JayeWisdomposted 11 years agoin reply to this

                    You explain these issues where I can understand them, so I'm beginning to rely on your expertise, James.  I hope you won't mind me tacking on another question. If the engines are looking for fiction, should the URL begin with the word "fiction" or phrase "short fiction" before the title in order to stand a better chance in search?  Thanks in advance...Jaye

                    Jaye

              2. Greekgeek profile image79
                Greekgeekposted 11 years agoin reply to this

                What you did there is improve the writing quality. However, sadly, writing quality is only a minor factor in search engine algorithms. They are most concerned with finding webpages and sites that satisfy what their users are searching for.

                Consider how you most often use Google. Do you search for something good to read? (If you do, how do you specify what sort of reading material you'd like, and how likely is it that Google would pick a hub instead of something from all the sites dedicated to fiction and/or poetry?)

                Usually, you're searching for something specific, like a piece of information, a product review, or a favorite subject. Google then has to find the most useful, relevant pages covering that subject. Well-written is important, yes, but people using Google aren't searching for great literature; they're searching for something brief and clear that satisfies their needs as quickly as possible.

                So, to be really successful in gretting search traffic, you have to learn and study how people tend to search for the tnigs you write on, what terms they tend to use to look up the things you write on, and what, exactly, they're looking for that you can give them. Also, you have to learn how to phrase and structure content to make it easier for search engines to identify your topics and file your content under the search terms it's relevant for. This art is called search engine optimization. Some people do it to trick search engines into ranking their content well for something it doesn't really cover, but good SEO is like good research paper writing: you're not trying to mislead, but to be clear and to make your content as useful and as findable as possible for the particular audience that's looking for.

                Do that by using Google's keywords tool to find the words and phrases people tend to use when looking up your topic. Incorporate those into your writing where they make sense. Divide articles into sections with headers that employ nouns and terms that help nail down and specify topics. Use images and use specific language in their captions to say what's in the images. SEO writing is specific writing, spelling things out, rather than using puns and poetic titles that don't state the topic. ("Manatees: Amazing Mammals" not "Gentle Giants of the Seas," for example: a search engine couldn't guess that the srcond title is a page about manatees.)

                We can do a lot to fix the on-page optimization of our articles, but unfortunately there's also factors Google looks at which lie outside our control: factors found on the site where we publish. Do its articles tend to hsve unspammy, useful, relevant content that satisfies the needs of searchers looking up those topics? Are pages easy to read, or do ads push content down past the first screen? Do pages load quickly?

                The September 27-30 Google update, code named "Panda," was one of the routines Google uses to evaluate whole websites. Hubpages as a whole took a pretty significant traffic drop from that update, impacting all of us. If our content is particularly relevant to searches, we can overcome that headwind -- so my own traffic has recovered somewhat -- but as a whole, if you check Quantcast.com's records of Hubpages' overall traffic, it's still struggling right now.

                1. janderson99 profile image54
                  janderson99posted 11 years agoin reply to this

                  I think its unfortunate that HP pushes "capsule stuffing" as a recipe for success via the  "Stellar Hubs" model => 1500+ words in 5+ capsules; 5+ photos, 1+ video, 1+ Map, 1+ Table, 1+ Poll and 1+ Quiz. When you do a simple search using terms such as "chicken recipes hubpages" or "getting organised hubpages" most of the articles on the first page are not "capsule stuffed" and many of them are very simple and very short, but on topic and not cluttered. Yet HP has stated that the way to get articles featured on the topics pages is to follow this approach. The proof is in the pudding!

                  PS: Simple use of autosuggest shows what people are searching for and the order of words generating the most traffic - may not be competitive, but it is a good start.

                2. JayeWisdom profile image89
                  JayeWisdomposted 11 years agoin reply to this

                  Thanks, greekgeek, for your thorough explanation.  Sometimes I do use Google search to look for short fiction, but that's because I write it and like to compare other short stories to my own style. I doubt many people type "short story" or "short fiction" or even "short suspense fiction" into the Google search box.  If someone uses keywords to search for something that is a theme in one of my short stories, they are more than likely looking for concrete information about that topic, not a story....Jaye

                3. TIMETRAVELER2 profile image86
                  TIMETRAVELER2posted 11 years agoin reply to this

                  GreekGeek:  I have done every single thing you mentioned here but when my work took a massive hit on Aug 20, it never came back.  This is very depressing, especially since I wasn't getting great page views to begin with...I was approaching 190 a day and now am lucky to get 85...and my CPMs are horrible.

          2. Aficionada profile image79
            Aficionadaposted 11 years agoin reply to this

            Jaye, the Forum format does allow a preview and editing, but it has a limited - though still generous - window of opportunity.

            I practically always use Chronological View for forums, and in that view the Preview button for a post is located just to the right of the Submit button, below the Reply box. The Edit button is one of the blue links at the bottom of a posted message.

            I have looked at Threaded view a few times, and I realize that the format is different, but I do forget exactly how it differs. If you need to edit a posted message, just switch to Chronological View (button at the top right of the page) and you should be fine. You can switch back to Threaded afterwards, if that's what you prefer.

            EDIT: I am adding this portion in Threaded View.  Look at the bottom of your own posts. You should see "More" there. Click on it, and you will see the Edit link, if it is still active. Usually the Edit function remains viable for an hour or so, but definitely not forever.

            1. JayeWisdom profile image89
              JayeWisdomposted 11 years agoin reply to this

              Thank you, Aficionada, for generously sharing this knowledge with me. I'd never noticed the "Chronological" button before or even paid attention to the "more" after a post.  You've probably saved me from embarrassing myself!

              Jaye

              P.S.  I checked it, and it works!  Terrific!

              1. Aficionada profile image79
                Aficionadaposted 11 years agoin reply to this

                Super! I'm so glad. There are many details here that I'm still learning. I get used to doing things one way, and then I'm surprised that there's more.  I'm glad this worked for you.

        2. Angie Jardine profile image69
          Angie Jardineposted 11 years agoin reply to this

          Ditto, Jaye … my traffic has suddenly plummeted so much I hardly dare come out from behind the sofa!

    3. aa lite profile image85
      aa liteposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Personally I would love to suffer tonnes of visitors every day

  5. Entourage_007 profile image57
    Entourage_007posted 11 years ago

    I definitely look forward to some positive changes as my hub traffic has been down.  However, I am still receiving a fair amount of traffic.  I am sure that hubpages has maintained its reputation as an article directory with very reputable authors.  Thanks for the update

  6. Rachel Roodhardt profile image87
    Rachel Roodhardtposted 11 years ago

    Yes, I've written about this in a few hubs, there's actually been four algorithm changes since Sept 27th, and I do believe that Hubpages was affected, first negatively, and then again positively.

    The biggest thing I've taken from the whole experience is the importance of Google Authorship.

    1. dannycarrey profile image67
      dannycarreyposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Can you please explain more about the Google Authorship?

      1. jacharless profile image75
        jacharlessposted 11 years agoin reply to this

        Google Authorship is actually a pilot program that links your G+ profile with specific domains you publish on. It falls in line with the Exact Domain algo enforcement, recently issued.  In short, your author name appears in the search as a snippet pulled from your G+ profile. If you have a G+ account, you can apply for the Authorship program. The concept behind Authorship is validity and recognition as the author of x-publications. Again, the key is that the links point to the exact domain from your G+ profile.

        As some are aware, there has also been a major change in the meta content="" tags, where author, keywords, description, etc have been depreciated in preference for Page Map and Page Layout methods. Part of this is for microdata and html5  compatibility//compliance for W3C coupled with an effort to reduce content farming, authority theft and duplicity. In essence, Google now looks at the structured data of the page and for specific elements of page map attributes.. Both items: PageMap and Authorship work under the same premise//produce nearly the same result.

        Authorship Snippet {note the thumbnail & author name as link}
        http://s2.hubimg.com/u/7262169_f248.jpg

        PageMap Snippet {note the updated date}
        http://s2.hubimg.com/u/7262173_f248.jpg

        Page Map v Meta Content {note attribute name= replaces meta content= }
        http://s1.hubimg.com/u/7262176_f248.jpg

        1. TIMETRAVELER2 profile image86
          TIMETRAVELER2posted 11 years agoin reply to this

          When you use this procedure, do you have to use your real name, or can you continue to use your alias.  It seemed to me when I looked at my Google + account that I had to use my real name.  This is not something I wish to do.  Am I correct?

          1. Judi Bee profile image91
            Judi Beeposted 11 years agoin reply to this

            Pretty sure it has to be your real name - plus a recognisable head shot for the photo if it's to appear in results (I was a bit miffed that they didn't recognise my HP photo as a proper head shot - most unkind!)

          2. jacharless profile image75
            jacharlessposted 11 years agoin reply to this

            Your Google+ account is connected using your real name or assigned identity. You cannot use a "brand name" like Joe Hub Pages to verify authorship, as brand names can be "spoofed". If you have a Gmail account, it will use the name you registered with to validate the identity, else will not allow activation or will request a name be entered. As for headshot, if your Gmail has a photo, this is the image that will be used as thumbnail for authoring.

            James.

    2. IzzyM profile image87
      IzzyMposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Yeah, I'd like to know too. What is the importance of Google authorship?

      I had it all set up, but moving to the new profile broke the link, and I haven't bothered fixing it.

      My traffic, which had been noticeable for its absence for over a year, suddenly came back.

      Google can stick its authorship because from what I can see, it never did me a blind bit of good.

      1. theherbivorehippi profile image65
        theherbivorehippiposted 11 years agoin reply to this

        Yay Izzy!!! Your traffic is coming back from last year? That's awesome! There is hope! I'm still down on this profile close to 60 percent from last year. It has climbed a bit since I deleted 35 hubs a few weeks ago, but I don't think this profile will ever see the traffic it used to last year. So glad one of us is seeing an improvement though!!! smile

        1. IzzyM profile image87
          IzzyMposted 11 years agoin reply to this

          Just saw this - I got a new FreeSat TV system installed and have been playing with it for hours - yeah traffic came back, but not anything like it was before. Well it might have been heading that way, but then this account got hit by the Panda update two days later (why am I not surprised? lol).

          But it is lovely to see hubs getting traffic again, hubs that did not see a Google view in over a year.

          To others on here, (seeing I have actually read to the end of the thread), if you have hubs that previously got decent traffic from Google and now don't, its either an algo thing or you have been slapped.

          Hopefully your slap won't last long, but Greekgeek gives some great advice a couple of posts back.

          There is a method to writing for the search engines, but even if you write stellar hubs that are fully optimized they will not see traffic if Google decides to demote it, or all of your hubs, as they did to me.

          You know Google hates you when you put a long-tail hub title into the search engine and every copy that has been plagiarised from you shows above your original hub.

          I had this problem for 13 months.

          Now I'm back on top, but for how long? Who knows! I'll never ever get excited about a hub doing well again. Just enjoy it while it is there, because it could be gone tomorrow.

      2. David 470 profile image81
        David 470posted 11 years agoin reply to this

        That's great news!

  7. brakel2 profile image73
    brakel2posted 11 years ago

    It puts pic by some articles. I just got on. Maybe good maybe bad. Traffic not great.

  8. brakel2 profile image73
    brakel2posted 11 years ago

    Congrats Izzy for traffic. You deserve it.

    1. IzzyM profile image87
      IzzyMposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Thanks, but its still just a shadow of its former self.

      For the longest time, Google totally ignored my whole subdomain. At least it is sending some traffic again...

      Two days after it returned traffic to this account, it buried my newer subs! How lucky is that? lol

  9. brakel2 profile image73
    brakel2posted 11 years ago

    I'm sorry. Hopefully things will get better Izzy. For authorship new profile. I followed instructions from Geekgreek. I don't know if you want it now

  10. PaulGoodman67 profile image96
    PaulGoodman67posted 11 years ago

    GreekGeek is right, this is the PageLayout algo update which Google mentioned some time back, but only introduced a few days ago.  It looks like HP was ready for it.

    1. David 470 profile image81
      David 470posted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Wait what do you mean Paul? HubPages was ready for the Google Alg?

    2. janderson99 profile image54
      janderson99posted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Yeah Right!
      http://www.a1niches.com/hpoct.jpg

      1. PaulGoodman67 profile image96
        PaulGoodman67posted 11 years agoin reply to this

        That graph shows a drop before the Page Layout ago change.  There are multiple ago changes - I was referring to a specific one.  There are other threads catering for general moans about HP. smile

    3. UnnamedHarald profile image93
      UnnamedHaraldposted 11 years ago

      Well, due to a few outsiders linking to one of my articles, I've seen days with 10 to 20 times my normal traffic, which isn't due to Google changing algorithms. What I have experienced is the CPMs collapsing on my busiest days. Rethinking.

      1. PaulGoodman67 profile image96
        PaulGoodman67posted 11 years agoin reply to this

        Yes, CPMs are frustrating when they are low, especially as we've got no control over them.  I'm hoping that they might get better as Christmas approaches?

        1. janderson99 profile image54
          janderson99posted 11 years agoin reply to this

          Hey! There's life in the old dog yet - look at the surge on Quancast - seems to be universal - Squidoo surged up through 1M people a day!.
          My last CPM was a record high. Hope springs eternal.

          http://s4.hubimg.com/u/7273411_f248.jpg

          1. PaulGoodman67 profile image96
            PaulGoodman67posted 11 years agoin reply to this

            Wow, that's great news for the site, janderson - just in time for Christmas?  smile

            (Although to put the Quantcast graph in perspective, traffic is still below where it was 2 or 3 weeks ago - but I agree with you that it gives hope!)

            1. janderson99 profile image54
              janderson99posted 11 years agoin reply to this

              There are other places to whine and whinge - Toochee!

              1. PaulGoodman67 profile image96
                PaulGoodman67posted 11 years agoin reply to this

                Well, I could've just given you no response, rather than my non-whining, measured one?  wink

                The main reason I posted this thread, to be honest, was to see if the page layout algo update had affected others in the same way as it had me.  The Quantcast data would suggest that something has caused an upswing, but whether it was the algo update that caused it, who knows?

                It's a forum, so people say whatever they want to say (including the sock puppets!), but I didn't really want it turning into yet another thread of people moaning, it's already been firmly established that HP has been struggling for about 10 months and took yet another hit 2 or 3 weeks back...

                Having said that, I still have strong hopes that HP have already and will continue to take the necessary action to save the site.  (If they don't , it would be a big pity, but I would learn to live with it.)  smile

    4. Mark Ewbie profile image82
      Mark Ewbieposted 11 years ago

      http://s3.hubimg.com/u/7274074_f248.jpg

      1. IzzyM profile image87
        IzzyMposted 11 years agoin reply to this

        Brilliant!

      2. PaulGoodman67 profile image96
        PaulGoodman67posted 11 years agoin reply to this

        big_smile

      3. janderson99 profile image54
        janderson99posted 11 years agoin reply to this

        Pity the exhausted Hewlett Packard Mice

        http://s1.hubimg.com/u/7274440_f248.jpg

    5. JayeWisdom profile image89
      JayeWisdomposted 11 years ago

      I wish I could tell you that my more-than-fifty-percent loss of traffic reversed, Paul, but if I did it would be a lie.  I'm still looking at those horrid stats every day and wondering if they'll ever go back up.

    6. fpherj48 profile image59
      fpherj48posted 11 years ago

      Paul.....I wonder if you wouldn't mind explaining something to this hubber, who is rather lost and confused most of the time about alot of the "lingo"...and various tricks of our trade.   OK, I'm admitting I am not at all savvy about things around here........What exactly is an algo?   When you say, "main HP account," what do you mean?  You have others?  I'm under the impression we have an HP account...and that's it. Period.......I need some education!

      1. wilderness profile image96
        wildernessposted 11 years agoin reply to this

        algo=algorithm=the program google uses to rank our hubs in the search results. 

        I don't see your reference, but main HP account probably refers to HubPages as a whole, although many hubbers do have multiple accounts on here and could refer to one of them as their main account.

        1. PaulGoodman67 profile image96
          PaulGoodman67posted 11 years agoin reply to this

          As Wilderness said, the algo is a very complex math equation that Google uses to calculate how high web pages are ranked in the searches.  When they change it, your page/hub may go up or down in the rankings.  The higher you are, the more traffic/views you get from Google.

          I have 3 HubPages accounts, you can have as many as you want.  2 of my accounts are doing very badly at the moment, the other (this one) has picked up a little, but it is still not very good, if you compare it with where it was last year.

          (You learn a lot on here.  There are people who know much more than me, but I probably have a reasonable grasp of the basics!  However, the internet is constantly changing...)  smile

          1. fpherj48 profile image59
            fpherj48posted 11 years agoin reply to this

            I appreciate you taking the time to explain these things to me.  You speak very plainly and clearly too....which is what I need, as opposed to more techno lingo that I'm unfamiliar with... I realize that all I need is the time to get into some reading up on all of this information....the problem is, "Time."   Thanks again.  You're a sweetie!!

            1. PaulGoodman67 profile image96
              PaulGoodman67posted 11 years agoin reply to this

              The HP Learning Center has lots of good info in it and is worth checking out.  The forums can be very good, but there is also misleading info spouted too - you have to take an educated guess as to what is good advice.  There are also individual hubbers, like GreekGeek, who write informative hubs on these types of issue in clear and easy to understand language.

        2. fpherj48 profile image59
          fpherj48posted 11 years agoin reply to this

          Thanks so much for stepping up to help me understand...very nice of you and I'm most appreciative.  I NEED to start some heavy studying...........

    7. donotfear profile image83
      donotfearposted 11 years ago

      Interesting.....I've had a rise in traffic the last 2 weeks, but has suddenly gone up the last few days. 
      I don't know what Algor is or any of that stuff, I just know I'm getting what appears to be more views.  In addition, one of my hubs made  it to a 100 score for 24 hours for the very first time.  I'm impressed.

    8. janderson99 profile image54
      janderson99posted 11 years ago

      The loss of 20% of traffic due to the last Panda hit has been confirmed as sustained.
      Hope lies in the next update at end of the month (small rise last week)
      Not all subs hit in the same way, but a sad outcome for HP

      http://www.a1niches.com/hp27.jpg

    9. janderson99 profile image54
      janderson99posted 11 years ago

      I guess HP is looking at improving overall quality via pending and idle - may take some time to be effective - Clearly a Panda hit. The elimination of the 'latest', 'hot' and other directory links should make the subs more independent - some hubbers are seeing traffic rises despite falls overall.

      1. aa lite profile image85
        aa liteposted 11 years agoin reply to this

        Wow! I hadn't noticed that the directory structure is gone.  When did this happen?  How come there wasn't an announcement, or did I miss it?

        On the one hand, if my subdomain was being pulled down by being connected to the 'bad stuff' this should be good.  On the other hand, I worry that loosing HubPages links (some from high PR pages) might weaken the subdomain.  If the subdomains become completely independent (which they are not yet), then I'm not sure what the advantages of writing here would be rather than say on blogger.  The point of revenue sharing sites is that you get their authority, for which you exchange revenue.

        Incidentally, after a dismal 3 weeks today my traffic has returned to pre-sept 27th levels (which are actually still pretty dismal).  I took absolutely no action and I don't know whether it will last, or is site wide or just my subdomain, but right now it feels quite nice.

        1. janderson99 profile image54
          janderson99posted 11 years agoin reply to this

          The main topic directory is still there - but the 'latest', 'hot' etc. are now gone. I personally wish they got rid of the main one as well and simply provided the functionality via searches. This would make the subs truly independent IMO.

          Incidentally there is no search facility in the topics OR even in your own profiles which is silly - how are users supposed to find what they want. The main search window is pretty bad and searching within topics would provide much better outcomes. Even adding Google type searches within the topics would be a vast improvement and are simple to implement. (with ads!!!!).

          1. janderson99 profile image54
            janderson99posted 11 years agoin reply to this

            I just checked - at the bottom of the topics page is a message "Rendered by...." Perhaps these pages are rendered on the fly from the database and there is no hard-wired directory as such - not sure about the site-map and how that is structured.  My guess is that these changes have made the subs more independent. My own traffic used to mirror that of the site overall - this no longer occurs - I did not lose 20% of traffic after 27 Sept.

      2. David 470 profile image81
        David 470posted 11 years agoin reply to this

        Has the Latest, hot and other directory links been gone since they changed layout?

        What is the reason this has been removed? Will it help or hurt us? I am hoping I can get back to where I was earlier this year/last fall.

        1. janderson99 profile image54
          janderson99posted 11 years agoin reply to this

          It happened on 9 Oct see: http://blog.hubpages.com/2012/10/topics-and-hubnuggets/

          The aims were:
          1.Create a great browsing experience for Hubbers and casual visitors alike
          2.Better showcase our community and make it easier to both discover great content and connect with the authors who created it
          3.Create pages that are better designed to drive traffic from search engines to your Hubs
          Has this worked??

          1. janderson99 profile image54
            janderson99posted 11 years agoin reply to this

            If you are not on the first page for a topic or one scroll down - no one will find you by this means!! TOO BAD - there has been debate elsewhere about how the priority for the listings are determined - yet another secret formula!!!!

     
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