Is it Possible to get Traffic Without Rankings? - Content, Content, Content
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I talk about content a lot, and I write about it more. I give it various names; I write it, I edit it and I read it. I am fascinated with its various forms: multimedia, image and text (if I had only a passive interest in content I wouldn't be in search optimization). I sincerely believe that the best thing you can give any one apart from a library card is an Internet connection; now of course you can get both for the price of a library card.
All the sites I mentioned above give their users unique and proprietary content, which is similar to what is done here at Developer Shed. Content attracts users, links from other sites and bots. Your keyword density is all well and good, but you need to ensure that your content is readable to your target audience and is not just spider food.
The point here is that sometimes people forget the reason search engines were created. They're just a means of retrieving information from the Internet. Search engine help people find "content," and are not the point. A purely organic site which is a resource would get listed no matter the means or portal by which it is retrieved. And it would always be found on the web; someone or the other will link to it, or will know about it if asked. People take the SERPs as the whole point, when the main point is getting your resource to the people who need it. Webmasters love proprietary content; your hardest job would be to watch for scrapers.
One thing is sure: bots notice activity. Bots notice when a site is getting linked to and they notice traffic (especially if you have open server logs). Now note that Google have admitted to as many as 200 different factors that are factored into their algorithms. Traffic coming down the lanes could very well be one of them. It's certain that you cannot escape getting high rankings on the search engines if you get traffic referred from other sites.
The Good Parts
Google has spent the better part of its time between April 2006 and now making small changes to its ranking algorithm, for reasons ranging from bugs to lack of server space. What used to be number one a few months ago on the Google SERPs may no longer be on the first page. These are just the results of small changes (and major changes are the norm with Google).
Contrary to popular opinion, it is not common for you to get top rankings on the search engines via SEO and go off to sip margaritas in Miami. More likely than not you will come back to see a definite change. Some site owners whose sites rank high on the SERPs watch Google like a hawk, simply because a large percentage of their site's traffic comes from the search engine.
A site that generates traffic organically is sure to thrive in bad seasons and in good seasons. And even if there are dips in traffic, the basic shape of the site will make it evolve appropriately no matter what method is used for information Retrieval.
In conclusion let's look at two tech news aggregators, www.slashdot.org and www.digg.com. Slashdot.org came first but Digg.com is more successful. Does this mean Digg.com is killing off Slashdot.com? Traffic has not declined for Slashdot.org, registered members are not moving anywhere and Slashdot's readership shows little or no signs of declining. There are a lot of people searching for content out there on the net, and synergy (mutual support and linking) instead of competing may actually grow the market instead of just chasing the "declining" numbers of users.
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