Here today, gone tomorrow...over and over

[jeffharr]

we have a site whose index page, thetapeworks.com , has appeared on google page 2 or page 3 search results for the search term "gaffers tape" for the last month, but is gone today, although there have been no changes to the page in about six weeks.

this has happened at least three times in the last six months, with the site periodically being missing in action for a week or two and then mysteriously reappearing without us making any changes while it is mia.

we hesitate to make changes while it is appearing in search results, but don't want to make changes while it is missing either, since it has reappeared on its own on more than one occasion

during this time it has consistently appeared on page 1 in bing/yahoo search for the same search term

anybody have a suggestion on where we should start?

[Ann Smarty]

Sorry for the stupid question, but does that affect traffic dramatically? I am not sure how you are checking rankings (tools?) but that's not an easy task nowadays (I see lots of confusion because of that), so more information is needed...

Did you check Webmaster Tools for any issues Google might have accessing your site?

Update: Right now I see you on page 3.

[jeffharr]

Sorry for the stupid question, but does that affect traffic dramatically? I am not sure how you are checking rankings (tools?) but that's not an easy task nowadays (I see lots of confusion because of that), so more information is needed...

Did you check Webmaster Tools for any issues Google might have accessing your site?

Update: Right now I see you on page 3.

thank you for your quick response

traffic is impacted almost immediately (as measured through sales) when the site drops from search

our west coast office is still seeing the site index page on page 3, but not here in north carolina, so i expect that their (and your) results may be lagging what i am seeing.

there is another page from the site on page 3 of search results now for the same keywords, but it is not the index page, the one that is constantly bouncing in and out of search

i have checked my webmaster tools account ( i do that every time this happens) and see no messages, critical or otherwise

[Dr.Marie]

Any chance this is a new site? If so, it could be some sort of honeymoon affect. Sites will often bounce up and down as Google tries to figure out where they belong.

I see you on page 3 as well.

[jeffharr]

Any chance this is a new site? If so, it could be some sort of honeymoon affect. Sites will often bounce up and down as Google tries to figure out where they belong.

I see you on page 3 as well.

thank you for your input

this site actually dates from 2000-same url on same server, although it was extensively revamped in 2010.

search performance put us consistently on google page 1 for important key words until the revamp, when problems started. the page settled in on page 3 for awhile and then we started seeing the yo-yo effect we are experiencing now

regrettably, it looks like we have really fallen to page 9. since google opened a server farm near us in north carolina, we have consistently been seeing search engine results change here before those changes are reflected in results seen in our atlanta or los angeles offices

[Test-ok]

Your site is optimized more for gaff tape than gaffers tape.
just sayin

[jeffharr]

Your site is optimized more for gaff tape than gaffers tape.
just sayin

thank you for your input.

i appreciate your taking the time for an in depth look.

i am aware of the optimization and search results (page 1) for the search term "gaff tape". our real concern is about the erratic search performance of the page specifically for the search term "gaffers tape". at this point we are not as interested in moving up in search results as in having it settle down and stop acting like a ping pong ball

watching a page fall from page 3 to page 9 literally overnight when there were no changes made to it is mystifying. seeing it happen multiple times over a six month period is, to say the least, a little unsettling

[Test-ok]

You may not have changing anything, but google is and when it does, your site isn't falling with-in the new criteria. Hence the reason for the dip or dive...

[mali75]

we have a site whose index page, thetapeworks.com , has appeared on google page 2 or page 3 search results for the search term "gaffers tape" for the last month, but is gone today, although there have been no changes to the page in about six weeks.

this has happened at least three times in the last six months, with the site periodically being missing in action for a week or two and then mysteriously reappearing without us making any changes while it is mia.

we hesitate to make changes while it is appearing in search results, but don't want to make changes while it is missing either, since it has reappeared on its own on more than one occasion

during this time it has consistently appeared on page 1 in bing/yahoo search for the same search term

anybody have a suggestion on where we should start?

The impact factor for that keyword might not be high. In that case, the ordering of search results is not taken seriously by google as very few people are searching for that content. That is why you can get a better ranking with less popular keyword. I could have given you an article link for further details but can not help you because I can not post a link!
You can post to a better forum to get the answer don't expect any help from this forum because they can't even post links!
I suggest you to find an answer by posting on digitalpoint
I might get banned because every one knows that . com (without space) comes after that and forum . (without space) comes before that. Honestly I dont own digitalpoint not have any affiliation, but just trying to be helpful. I might get banned now!