Ranking Number 1 On Google is Pointless

1. 71

   WryLiltposted 9 years ago

   Have I got your attention? Good! I see so many forum posts about people saying they rank Number 1 on Google. Let's clear something up:
   
   If you rank number one for something that ZERO people search, that still equals ZERO traffic.
   
   For instance if I rank number one for "Poem About My Dog Basil" in Google, that is, as Darkside would say, a pointless keyword victory. Why? Because no one, anywhere, is likely to be typing the exact words "Poem About My Dog Basil" into Google.
   
   You can rank #1 and #5 and #20 in Google for the exact same hub, depending on what people Googl.
   
   No one types the exact TITLE of a hub into Google - how can they, if they've never seen your hub, and don't know the title?
   
   Google decides how close search terms are to titles. So for instance, if you have an article about "20 Ways to Store Dried Flowers", you are equally likely to get traffic from people Googling any of the following:
   
   How to store dried flowers.
   Storage for dried flowers.
   Store dried flowers ideas.
   Dried flowers store ideas.
   And so on....

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      NateB11posted 9 years agoin reply to this

      Absolutely correct, a point I wanted to make, glad you did. I don't see the point in a "good" position in the SERPs if traffic doesn't follow. If no one is looking for it, no traffic will come.

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   2. 73

      makingamarkposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      Excellent point - and one that needs to be made repeatedly to those new to writing online.
      
      Ranking #1 on Google is meaningless - it's what it means in terms of traffic that converts that matters
      
      The critical issue for those wanting to make money when writing online is about
      1) how content generates traffic from people who are genuinely interested in the topic - who stay a long time on your site etc
      2) from people who want to buy items of relevance to the topic
      
      For those who still think ranking #1 on Google is really important this video by Matt Cutts will help
      https://youtu.be/b7W0o65tTIQ

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   3. 71

      somethgblueposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      You're correct to a point but there are more factors that go into the situation than what you explained, so although you're technically correct, the information is a little misleading.
      
      Let's take my leading Hub article in terms of page views (Pineal Gland The God Organ, 30,000 page views [PVs] and consistently climbing everyday) for instance. Because I use Pineal Gland for the first two words in my title I get constant readers that simply Google those two words and no one will ever Google the full title.
      
      It has spent time ranked number one for those two words alone but again your right, the specific title means nothing as far as rankings go. The point I'm trying to make is that, if we are more concerned about PVs then staying in the first five pages is important.
      
      Three main factors contribute to this articles success, the way it was written, the title and the subject matter.
      
      However since Google put the hammer down on how they rank HP articles the PVs on this article alone have dropped dramatically and that doesn't even take into consideration that HPs has double the length of time a reader has to stay on an article to get  PV.
      
      So while I agree with the premise that being ranked number one is pointless for the specific title, being on page one through five is not pointless for the subject matter.
      
      As you may know I don't write for money that isn't what motivates me but I do write to share information and the more people that read my articles the easier it is for me to share my often abstract ideas and concepts.
      
      As usual you are spot on but let's get real the point is pretty much self explanatory.

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      1. 71

         WryLiltposted 9 years agoin reply to this

         The point is far from explanatory, unfortunately.
         
         That said, you're right, ranking number one in Google is a FANTASTIC place to be, and much of my content ranks there for high traffic keywords. But that's the point - they're high traffic.
         
         Ranking highly for a keyword which literally NO ONE Googles, is pointless.

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         1. 71

            somethgblueposted 9 years agoin reply to this

            Agreed, perhaps if the discussion could be geared in the direction of how to make that happen and what tools or tactics to use it would lend itself to helping hubbers learn what it takes to enjoy the success you have here.
            
            You've certainly had your share and I for one salute your success!

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            1. 71

               WryLiltposted 9 years agoin reply to this

               About the only hubs I write noawadays are on that topic Google suggest is a big one, and using lists.

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               1. 71

                  somethgblueposted 9 years agoin reply to this

                  The only topics I write about is revealing disinformation, uncovering a wide range of conspiracies designed to keep humanity ignorant of their true potential, both spiritual and intellectual.
                  
                  Eric Snowden is merely the tip of the iceberg, the amount of disinformation is so big and so all encompassing that most people aren't even aware they have been lied too.
                  
                  Recently David Petreaus (ex-director of the CIA and retired 4-Star General), revealed that every electronic device sold after 2006 has software embedded into it that sends ELF waves (electronic low frequency that operate at the same frequency as the human brain) messages directly into the human subconscious and listens to all verbal communication.
                  
                  When I say electronic device I mean anything that runs on electricity, your refrigerator, light fixtures, dishwasher, cell phone, car, computer, coffee maker, television and smart meter for your house, I mean everything get my point . . . they listen to everything and send messages constantly.
                  
                  These messages are stuff like eat more sugar, don't finish that project, watch TV, go online, don't read books, your a failure, your fat, you'll never get married, play video games, smoke cigarettes and because people don't know this they don't even realize they're being manipulated.
                  
                  Anyway it is an endless chore to educate people but hey they alternative is to do nothing and well that just ain't me.

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                  1. 71

                     WryLiltposted 9 years agoin reply to this

                     I said it's the only topic I write about on here - my own websites are dedicated to putting my SEO into action on important topics. Different that yours though - mine are about the many medical issues in pregnancy and birth. My pregnancy website receives around 11,000 visits per day. Most of that is based on using lists or Google suggest to nab topics that no one else is writing about.

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                     1. 71

                        somethgblueposted 9 years agoin reply to this

                        Here is another important factor to consider, we only have Hub Pages word on how many people click on our articles.
                        
                        I have tried tracking some of my articles through other sources that record traffic and for the most part the numbers are five to seven more times than what HP considers a PV.
                        
                        Consider how HP gets paid and how we get paid and you will understand that HPs screws their writers, no doubt about it.

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                           makingamarkposted 9 years agoin reply to this

                           That's because different 'counters' count in different ways. It all depends on the interval you determine as to when another visit should be counted as different

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                        2. 71

                           WryLiltposted 9 years agoin reply to this

                           The most accurate way to track PV is through Google Analytics.
                           
                           Hubpages data is a rolling 24 hours, plus includes any view as a view (even if it's you refreshing ten times).

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2. 45

   Pacesetter Abbeyposted 9 years ago

   Yeah, that's a good point you made. Actually, it's not about the number of people that read your post that matters, what matters is the number of people that learnt/gained one or two things from your writing. But sometimes a high traffic is good because it motivates you to write more.

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   1. 71

      WryLiltposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      High traffic often converts into good money too - that's why I like traffic

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         Pacesetter Abbeyposted 9 years agoin reply to this

         Hmmm... Yeah, that's true.

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   Gymterestposted 9 years ago

   Yep I agree, it's all about finding a balance; long-tail keywords, which have a nice amount of monthly traffic. I find between 4-10k is the sweet spot, where it is not too competitive but still brings in a healthy amount of visitors.

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   1. 71

      WryLiltposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      I detest the Google keyword planner, lol! I never check traffic anymore. I'm far too lazy

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      1. 61

         Gymterestposted 9 years agoin reply to this

         Haha you're right it is inaccurate, google suggest is better. Start typing in a sentence and it has a few suggestions, some of them are gold!

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            WryLiltposted 9 years agoin reply to this

            Yup. I currently have 118 topics to write on from Google suggest - all with no competition. Win!

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               Gymterestposted 9 years agoin reply to this

               Whoa that's a lot of articles!

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            2. 69

               Elsie Hagleyposted 9 years agoin reply to this

               I'm still learning, this post has a lot of good advice. I do understand about Googles suggestion, how do you find out that there is "no competition".

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               1. 73

                  LeanManposted 9 years agoin reply to this

                  Do the suggested search Elsie and see what actually turns up on the search page..
                  
                  Are the pages actually targeting the phrase or is the phrase just mentioned somewhere within it, is the page one of many targeting the phrase, are the top slots owned by specialized websites that have been around for a long time, etc..

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                  1. 69

                     Elsie Hagleyposted 9 years agoin reply to this

                     Thanks for a quick reply I will certainly take note of what you said.

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               2. 71

                  WryLiltposted 9 years agoin reply to this

                  I have a hub on how to check competition. Here's an example though...
                  
                  Search term "How do I cut my hair" (Let's just pretend no one else has thought to write about this.)
                  
                  If the first few results are for articles such as "How to wash your hair", "How I dyed my hair", then they're not specifically answering the question.
                  
                  If there are results which say "How do I cut my hair" but they're all on sites like Yahoo Answers and forum threads on haircare sites, then they're low competition (because they're not real articles).

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                  1. 69

                     Elsie Hagleyposted 9 years agoin reply to this

                     Thank you Wrylilt, you explained it very well.
                     I will copy and paste this in my notepad and follow what you wrote.
                     Sometimes I forget what to do as I'm doing it, once I get used to it I will remember.
                     It's now up to me to improve my hubs.

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4. 68

   Chriswillman90posted 9 years ago

   There's a lot of great tips on here that I have yet to use. Google Suggest is pretty good though I'm still having a lot of trouble finding the perfect balance between original and search worthy titles.

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5. 53

   paradigm searchposted 9 years ago

   I have just been informed that Australia doesn't exist. It's all some kind of reality trick. Is that true?

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   1. 71

      WryLiltposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      Well as an Australian, it makes sense. I always thought I was in Narnia.

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         paradigm searchposted 9 years agoin reply to this

         Ya made me look up "Narnia". And now I'm desperately trying to find a former hub of mine, Emerald City.

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6. 53

   paradigm searchposted 9 years ago

   Found it. An emotional piece it was. Never got traffic. Every title I came up with always had irrelevant associations that buried it. I'm going to post it at the infamous WWNN. The title? "Untitled". I kid you not. Sometimes ya just got to have fun.

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7. 81

   Solarasposted 9 years ago

   For those who still think ranking #1 on Google is really important this photo will explain why it is not
   
   
   Larry Page and Sergey Brin seem like cool and nice guys!

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