Just after Xmas I changed my title headers to their current wordings.
I had a different description on each page, about ten pages in all.
For two weeks after the site was registered with the new title headers
I received lots of enquiries for my business (I am a musician and band
leader) Then it all went quiet. On checking my site I noticed that
Google had put my pre Xmas title page header back in place even though
when the site is opened people see the new title headers. Have I done
something wrong in Googles opinion? I want to maximise my results and
ranking as it is of prime importance to my business but I obviously
don`t want to fall foul of Google. Have I been spammed and can I make
changes that will satisfy Google or has some technical error taken
place?

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Request for Question Clarification by jbf777-ga on 13 Feb 2003 11:07 PST

Could you supply your site's name?  That would help in investigating this.

Thanks,

jbf777-ga
GA Researcher

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Clarification of Question by pig-ga on 13 Feb 2003 12:04 PST

Hi, my web site address is www.jazznotjazz.co.uk

When I punch my web address into google the first word on my site
description is jazz. This then changes to London when the site is
clicked on and the web site opens. This is what it is doing when I
click on anyway. Many thanks. Jeff

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Request for Question Clarification by jbf777-ga on 13 Feb 2003 12:34 PST

Hi -

You are aware that your exposure is not keyword driven, right?  Google
uses a PageRank system that is based on voting from other links to
your site.  More links to your site, greater prominence.

jbf777-ga
GA Researcher

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Clarification of Question by pig-ga on 13 Feb 2003 15:04 PST

Mmm, I`m not very good at this . Let me explain first of all that I
have no knowledge of computer language and will have to try and
express myself in my own way. I appreciate your patience. Thank you.

I understand that a/. I have no links and b/. links have a baring on
ranking with Google. However I spent night after night sitting down
looking at high ranking sites in my area of business and they all had
one thing in common. The words I punched in to bring up a selection of
Jazz agency sites ie..Jazz bands in london, Jazz Bands for Weddings,
Jazz agency etc. etc. correspond with the  words in the title headers
on their home page and tend to be featured as cached words on their
first paragraph of their first/home page. Bingo I thought! With this
in mind I used about ten of my title headers out of a total of about
sixteen pages and put in a selection of phrases I anticipated
potential clients would type in to bring up sites like mine. It worked
like a dream for about two weeks. I was getting enquiries every day
then suddenly it dried up.

 When I looked at my site the first thing I noticed was that the
search engine wasn`t picking up my new title headers. In the two weeks
I was doing well, and it was picking up the new headers, I was number
three in the world for jazz agency. I was number one for Jazz band for
Henley. I was number 1,2 and 3 in the UK for London Jazz Agency. I
noticed that when my site was coming as part of a list of ten, it had
the old title header. When the site was clicked on, up came the new
title header at the top of the home page. When I walked through the
site there were all the new title headers in place. I then went to the
official google search engine and punched in my web address. Up comes
the address of my site along with the first ten words or so of the old
title header. I open the site and up comes my site with the old title
header on the front/home page too. I walk through the site and it
changes to the updated stuff.

What I think I am trying to say is: Has the Google Bot looked at my
site and decided I have too many key phrases in the title headers and
automatically reverted them back to the previous title header? Can I
make some minor changes to the title headers that will satisfy Googles
criteria when I re submit/register the site? Thanks again. Jeff

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Request for Question Clarification by justaskscott-ga on 13 Feb 2003 19:05 PST

I'm fairly sure I understand what is happening, but the timing
confuses me a little.  When you say that you changed the title headers
"just after Xmas", when exactly do you mean?  Did the changes first
appear on your web pages in December or in January?  (January seems
more likely, given my understanding of what happened.)  If you can
remember as close as possible to the exact date and time that the
change appeared, it would be helpful.

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Request for Question Clarification by justaskscott-ga on 13 Feb 2003 19:07 PST

Incidentally, when I say I believe I understand "what is happening", I
mean to say that I believe I understand why your old title shows up on
the Google search.  But the timing is important to my understanding.

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Clarification of Question by pig-ga on 14 Feb 2003 01:46 PST

I think the new title headers were put in place the second or third
week of January. Thanks again for your work and patience. Jeff.

Hello pig-ga,

I should note at the outset that, as a Researcher for Google Answers,
I cannot speak on behalf of Google.  I have no inside knowledge; I
only have the results of my research.

This research indicates that what you have experienced is a common
phenomenon.  The new title will most likely appear on Google's search
results and cached version after the next deep crawl, which will
probably be in late February or early March.

The fundamental answer to your question is contained in this
information from Google:
 
"When you update information on your site it does not automatically
update instantly in Google's index.  Rather, Google's index is updated
approximately once a month after our robots have crawled more than 3
billion web pages.  This process is totally automated, so updated or
outdated link submissions are not necessary.  Changes to your site's
content will be noted by the next crawl.  Due to the volume of sites
in our index, we cannot manually update pages on an individual basis."
 
"Webmaster Info: Incorrect Listing" 
Google 
://www.google.com/webmasters/3.html 

There has been one deep crawl since you changed the titles of your
pages; it began on January 25, 2003.  (I was concerned that my
explanation would be incorrect if your had made the changes prior to
the earlier crawl on January 1, 2003; but your clarification indicates
that you made the changes after the first January crawl but before the
second one.)

"Google Update History", by Brett_Tabke
WebmasterWorld
http://www.webmasterworld.com/forum3/2657.htm

If this schedule holds true to form, the next crawl should be in late
February or early March.

But the (approximately) monthly crawl is not the only time that Google
searches for pages.  Google also indicates that it "refreshes millions
of web pages every
day to ensure that Google users have access to the most current
information".
 
"Google Press Release: Google Offers Immediate Access to 3 Billion Web
Documents" [under heading "The Latest News and Fresh Content"]
Google 
://www.google.com/press/pressrel/3billion.html 

It appears that your site was visited by the daily crawl (a/k/a
"Everflux" or "Freshbot") after you changed the titles.  As several
people explain in the following threads on WebmasterWorld (a site
often recommended in the answers of my fellow Google Answers
Researchers), they too had new titles or content on Google for a short
while, but soon realized that Google had reverted to the old titles or
content.  The commenters in these discussions explain that changes
made by the "Freshbot" are temporary; the changes that will
subsequently be made during the monthly crawl are long-lasting.

One of these commenter (jdMorgan) notes specifically that a change to
the title or content can take up to 60 days / two months to become
permanent -- in other words, at the time of the next crawl after the
one following the change.  (This accords with the information from
Google, cited above, that "changes to your site's content will be
noted by the next crawl.")

"Google Update using my old Info" (Dec 4, 2002)
WebmasterWorld
http://www.webmasterworld.com/forum3/7473.htm

"Need some answers and tips" (Nov 24, 2002)
WebmasterWorld
http://www.webmasterworld.com/forum3/7137.htm

"Refreshing Google's Cache" (Aug 5, 2002)
WebmasterWorld
http://www.webmasterworld.com/forum3/4625.htm

Here are several more discussions indicating that what you have
experienced is quite normal:

"Google Cache Update" (Dec 31, 2002)
WebmasterWorld
http://www.webmasterworld.com/forum3/8033.htm

"Google Cache Two Week Old Page" (Dec 16, 2002)
WebmasterWorld
http://www.webmasterworld.com/forum3/7751.htm

"How do I get Google to index new site title? (Nov 26, 2002) 
WebmasterWorld
http://www.webmasterworld.com/forum3/7177.htm

"New cache in serps, but old title in domain.com search" (Nov 20,
2002)
WebmasterWorld
http://www.webmasterworld.com/forum3/7036.htm

"old internal pages titels re-index" (Sept 9, 2002)
WebmasterWorld
http://www.webmasterworld.com/forum3/5316.htm

There is no indication in these or other similar discussions that
Google might penalize a site by showing the old title or content
rather than the new one.  It seems that the consequence of
intentionally misleading behavior is removal of the web page entirely.
 As Google notes, "certain actions such as cloaking, writing text that
can be seen by search engines but not by users, or setting up
pages/links with the sole purpose of fooling search engines may result
in permanent removal from our index."

"Webmaster Info: My Web Pages Are Not Currently Listed" [scroll down
to "Other reasons", final paragraph]
Google
://www.google.com/webmasters/2.html

While Google also states here that it does "not offer an exhaustive
list of practices that can cause removal", the point is that your page
was not removed -- it is just appearing with an older title. 
Moreover, the text of your home page (as well as your other pages)
does not appear to rise to the level of something designed to mislead
the search engines.  (Please keep in mind, as I stated initially, I
have no ability to speak on behalf of Google.)  You are describing
your service, rather than doing something like putting "jazz jazz
london jazz agency jazz" in hidden text so as to fool the search
engines.  Indeed, while Google is displaying the old title in the
search results and cache, it is also displaying the text that you are
concerned about.

So I recommend that you should not worry about this situation. 
Hopefully, by the time the next update is completed at some point in
the next few weeks, your new title will show up on Google.

I hope that this information is helpful.

- justaskscott-ga


Search terms used on Google:

"old title" google site:webmasterworld.com
"old titles" google site:webmasterworld.com
"old page" google site:webmasterworld.com
"old pages" google site:webmasterworld.com
"old version" google site:webmasterworld.com
"old versions" google site:webmasterworld.com
"old content" google site:webmasterworld.com
"old cache" google site:webmasterworld.com
"google update history" site:webmasterworld.com

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Request for Answer Clarification by pig-ga on 14 Feb 2003 13:16 PST

Right, I think I`ve got it. This will hopefully take a one word answer
from you if I have understood you correctly.

There will be a big trawl through sites end of this month/beginning of
next month which will put my "successful" title headers back in the
equation.

Just after the title headers were changed in January...the 13th to be
precise....a tempory "bot"came round and, for a brief time, gave me a
taste of what I hope to expect when the big official change happens at
the end of the month...beginning of next. As far as you know, based on
your research, there is nothing in my site which could be percieved as
spam?

Thanks Scott for your time, effort and knowledge. You have put my mind
at rest. I will just have to be patient and wait for some improved
rankings once the bot comes back. Have a good weekend. Jeff

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Clarification of Answer by justaskscott-ga on 14 Feb 2003 15:25 PST

One-word answer: yes.  In other words, you've summarized the material
in my answer well.  I'm glad I could put your mind at ease.

Hi there,

The cached copy of your site, which is the version that Google uses
for determining search results, is dated Dec 2,2002.

I have never heard of Google deliberately reverting to older versions
of sites. It appears to be nothing more than a software glitch, and I
would expect everything to return to normal at the end of the month.
You have done nothing wrong. Resubmitting your URL cannot do any harm.

robertskelton-ga