I would like to know, what is the reason that our page
www.madeiragamefish.com does'nt shows on the Google searchengine
anymore for the keyword "madeira fishing" ?
Here the background information which could help:We own 3 domains;
madeiragamefish.com ; madeirafishing.com and madeirasportsfishing.com.
Our old page was on madeiragamefish ,madeirafishing had an redirect to
our page and madeirasportsfishing is under construction. We decided to
change our host. Last October a new page was made, we changed to a new
server and everything was fine. For several keywords we had a page
rank within the first 3 to 5.In March our page disappeared completely
from Google. We learned this might have been due to a possible server
problem at the time the crawl was made. We resubmitted madeiragamefish
to the searchengine and the directory and in May we was listed again.
By the beginning of July our page disappeared again. After a lot of
researching we have taken the automatic redirect from
madeirafishing.com of because we thought this could cause our problem.
Last week madeiragamefish was listed in pr 5. A look at google-dance
showed the same position on all servers. But only a few hours later
our page disappeared. For the following two days the results were
alternating. Sometimes madeiragamefish was up on rank 5, most times
only the directory link. This situation seems to be stabil now, just
listing the directory link. The difference to the situation in March
is that we are still listed for other keywords like "fishing madeira".
We also noted that madeirafishing.com seems to be linked to our main
competitor on the Goole cache for some time.
How we can change this and the most important question,what can we do
to get madeiragamefish.com listed again in a good ranking position ?

Hello th1602 ~

I want to tell you how much I enjoyed my visit to your English pages
(www.madeiragamefish.com). The photos were exciting and the
descriptive content captivating!

I understand your concern about your placement results (SERPS) in
Google; you certainly want to reach the appropriate market looking for
your services, especially at this time of year!

Please understand that Google Answers Researchers are independent
contractors and as such, we are not privy to inside information about
Google. We do not have access to any information about Google's
closely-guarded search engine algorithms.
 
What I can do is offer you an answer based on convincing evidence and
knowledge gleaned from reputable sources, including Danny Sullivan's
"Search Engine World",
  - http://searchengineworld.com 

Webmaster World, 
  - http://webmasterworld.com 

and other knowledgeable and reliable search engine optimization (SEO)
resources.


===========================
THAT WAS THEN, THIS IS NOW
===========================

You stated, "For several keywords we had a page rank within the first
3 to 5.In March our page disappeared completely from Google. We
learned this might have been due to a possible server problem at the
time the crawl was made. We resubmitted madeiragamefish to the search
engine and the directory and in May we was listed again."

It has been acknowledged that there was a major change in Googlebot's
algorithms about the time you started experiencing the discrepancies.
In fact, many people found themselves listed, then not listed, then
listed again with a lower or higher page rank and position under
certain search terms.

There have been numerous discussions (including a lot of speculation)
about these changes on Webmaster World's Google News Discussion
Boards, which can be found here:
   - http://www.webmasterworld.com/forum3/

Most of the discussions concern the rather abrupt and discernible
changes in search engine placement and Page Rank, with a noticeable
enforcement of Google's Guideline suggestions and recommendations.

What this means to you is that what may have worked before is
obviously not working now.

Therefore, let's start with the basics, the first page of your site
(and the only page NOT within a frameset.


==================
YOUR LANDING PAGE
==================

The first page of your site, index.html, which is what you get when
you type in the URL www.madeiragamefish.com/.

Here's what the Googlebot sees:

1. Title Tag -

The contents of the title tag are "Big Game Fishing,Madeira,fish for
marlin tuna wahoo on Our Mary".

The title does not contain the term you want for searching, "fishing
madeira", and since you have delimited the title using the commas with
no space between them, that phrase isn't likely to show, because you
aren't searching for "fishing,madeira".

While your keyword meta tag does contain those words, little, if any,
weight is given by Google any longer on keyword meta tags, although
other search engines (such as Inktomi) do rely on meta tags.

The content within your description meta tag, "Come and enjoy the
exiting fishing around this Atlantic island famous for it's Blue
Marlin,Tuna and Wahoo," does not contain those words, either.

2. ALT Tags -

A look at your ALT Tags describing the graphics on the page likewise
do not include the words or terms "fishing madeira", so while the
Googlebot can crawl and pick up the text, it is STILL not the text you
are referring to in your question for your search term.


3. Page Content -

There is very little 'content' in the form of text on your page which,
combined with the ALT tags referring to dolphins, tuna, marlin, etc.,
leave little to be indexed and displayed.


*** Solution *** 

1.) Change your description and keyword meta tags to reflect the
search terms you want your page to be found under.

2.) Include graphics on the page in which you can add ALT text to
reinforce the phrases and terms used in your meta tags.

3.) Include actual text content using those terms as well, again
reinforcing the use of those terms and increasing your chances of
being listed in a more desirable location for those terms.

What you presently have may have worked before, but it isn't working
now. Making changes to enhance your SERPs makes sense.

Google states in its Webmaster Information - Design and Content
Guidelines:

  "* Create a useful, information-rich site and
    write pages that clearly and accurately
    describe your content.
  * Think about the words users would type to
    find your pages, and make sure that your
    site actually includes those words within it.
  * Try to use text instead of images to display
    important names, content, or links. The
    Google crawler doesn't recognize text
    contained in images.
  * Make sure that your TITLE and ALT tags are
    descriptive and accurate."
   - ://www.google.com/webmasters/guidelines.html

Do the same for the German version of your site.


===============================
GOOGLE WEBMASTER INFORMATION
===============================

Frames, Generally
-----------------

You are using frames for your site. Here is what Google states about
the use of frames:

"Your page uses frames. Google supports frames to the extent that it
can. Frames tend to cause problems with search engines, bookmarks,
emailing links and so on, because frames don't fit the conceptual
model of the web (every page corresponds to a single URL). If a user's
query matches the site as a whole, Google returns the frame set. If a
user's query matches an individual page on the site, Google returns
that page. That individual page is not displayed in a frame -- because
there may be no frame set corresponding to that page.

If you are concerned with the description of your site as seen by
search engines, please read "Search Engines and Frames" [
http://www.searchenginewatch.com/webmasters/article.php/2167901 ]. It
describes the use of the 'NoFrames' tag, which is used to provide
alternative content. If, instead of providing alternative content, you
use wording such as "This site requires the use of frames" or "Upgrade
your browser", then you are excluding both search engines and people
who use browsers with frames turned off. (For example, audio web
browsers, such as those used in automobiles and by the visually
impaired, typically do not deal with frames, which are a visual
mechanism.) You can read about NoFrames in the HTML standard here:
http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40/present/frames.html#h-16.4"


Use of Frames,
Your site in particular
------------------------

Your site is still listed in Google, which is good.

So let's examine your frameset with regard to the information and the
suggestions from Google with regard to frames.

Here is the only text the Googlebot encounters: "Sorry,this page uses
frames,but your browser doesn't support them". As noted above, there
is little, if any, weight given to either your description or your
keywords meta tags; and therefore, an absolute certainty this will not
be found using your preferred search terms.

You do make use of ALT tags for your graphics, which are links, but
they're limited to the words on image themselves, such as "team",
"madeira", "boat", etc., which is no help.

*** Solution ***

1.) Eliminate the frames.

The only reason to choose using frames vs. not would be for faster
display of content pages, as "fixed" elements (in this case, your
navigation buttons) don't have to be downloaded by the users' browser
over and over. There are other methods which are friendlier to both
your visitors and to search engines to accomplish the same goal,
especially since most browsers cache the contents of a web page and
the navigation graphics would be fed locally from the visitor's cache
instead.

2.) Utilize the <noframes> convention.

This will help get your current framed content indexed. Remember,
though, that the <noframes> tag's primary purpose is to provide both
search engine robots and human visitors with a way to access the
inside pages of the site, without the use of frames, which again,
isn't really needed, as the frameset (your navigation) can be loaded
from cache using other design means.

If you *really* feel you must use the frames, do read Danny Sullivan's
tutorial, "Search Engines and Frames, December 5, 2000," to explain
how to maximize the site for search engines and browsers which don't
support frames.
   - http://www.searchenginewatch.com/webmasters/article.php/2167901


You have excellent content, which compels your visitor to look at your
site. What you don't have is a search engine friendly site, which
makes it difficult to get your site indexed as you would like.

Since getting indexed by search engines using frames is difficult, and
since your visitors aren't fond of them, using alternative design
methods, such as cascading style sheets (CSS) or server side includes
(SSI) in the design of the static parts of your site would make more
sense.


=========================
WHAT YOU ARE DOING RIGHT 
=========================

1.) DOCTYPE Declaration & Title Tags -

You are making good use of your DOCTYPE Declarations and your <title>
tags.


2.) meta tags -

You also have good description in your keywords and description meta
tags. I would separate the terms with a space after each comma, to
make it easier to index for all search engines, and I would also make
sure that the search terms you desire for that page are included in
the meta tags as well as in the content of the site.


3.) Links to your site -

You have good links to your site, and it would never hurt to add more.
A word of caution, though. Make sure you do not participate in linking
schemes or link farms, as that will hurt your ranking and SERPs in
Google.


=================================  
UNDERSTANDING THE SEARCH ENGINES  
=================================  
  
It's a fact of life that just about the time one figures they have
this search engine optimization thing all figured out, the search
engines will change their algorithms enough to make it all confusing
once again.
  
To keep up with the "thou shalts" and "thou shalt nots" of search
engine optimization, check in with both Danny Sullivan's Search Engine
Watch -
 - http://www.searchenginewatch.com  
  
and Webmaster World -  
 - http://webmasterworld.com  
  
In addition, Shari Thurow's book, "Search Engine Visibility", with a
forward by Danny Sullivan of Search Engine Watch, is available on
Amazon or Barnes & Noble. Her accompanying website to use in
conjunction with the book is here:
  - http://www.searchenginesbook.com/  
  
The Link Exchange Digest, one of the first and longest-running
Internet marketing and search engine/linking newsletters, is an
excellent tool with information beneficial to most website and small
business owners. It is free to subscribe, and there is always some
helpful information to be derived from each issue. You can subscribe
by mailing to led-join-request@list.audettemedia.com.
  
The Adventive lists have been taken over by Andrew Bourland under his
new enterprise, Up2Speed. Andrew Bourland who also started ClickZ and
other informative websites. The I-Sales, I-Search and I-Design lists
currently have search engine discussions going, and you may want to
subscribe to those lists to help stay current. The Up2Speed
subscription page is here:
  - http://www.up2speed.com/  
  
You may be pleasantly surprised with how many ideas and new "friends"
eager to lend a hand that you may find by becoming a subscriber to
those lists. The average subscriber is usually the type of
entrepreneur who would enjoy booking a fishing jaunt on Our Mary, too.
  

I realize this may be more information than you required. Please
remember that no one can guarantee a high placement in search engine
results, although we can point out what seems to be holding you back,
as I have done above.

A general rule of thumb is that what is good for the visitor is good
for Google, so the easier you make it, the better it becomes to reach
good placement under those search terms you desire.

 
================== 
Search Strategies 
================== 
 
  - Google + frames 
  - search engine + frames

I also relied on personal bookmarks, including recent discussions from
those lists mentioned above and formulated this answer based upon my
own experience as a web designer/developer, working with search engine
optimization specialists.
 
If you have any questions about the information, suggestions or links
provided herein, please, feel free to ask.

Best wishes for better search engine placement,
Serenata

---

Request for Answer Clarification by th1602-ga on 05 Aug 2003 13:10 PDT

Hi serenata-ga
Thanks for answering our question.
Your answer was most informative and we have already made changes to
our index page.There are just 3 more things we would like to know:
1.As regarding the ALT text - is there a maximum of letters to be used
or is the length unlimited ?
2.As regarding Link farming - How do we identify a link farm ? What is
the difference between a link farm and a wide collection of links
which is still tolerable ?
3.Why the search results could alternate from hour to hour ?
Thanks very much for your help.
Our sincere best wishes.
th1602

---

Clarification of Answer by serenata-ga on 05 Aug 2003 15:10 PDT

Hi again th1602 ~

Thanks for giving me the chance to help with your other questions. I'm
happy to clarify those for you.

1.As regarding the ALT text - is there a maximum of letters to be used
or is the length unlimited ?

There isn't a maximum placed on what can go within an ALT tag. But
remember, the 'room' for the text is only the same size of the
graphic. Anything else won't show and literally gets chopped off in
most browsers.

You've "seen" ALT text, I bet. It's that "test" that pops up if you
put your cursor over an image. Or, if you have a slow internet
connection, it's that text that shows until the graphic is actually
downloaded from the server and presented by your browser.

As a for instance, let's take an example of one of the photos of a
marlin (one of the smaller "button-type" graphics). A decent ALT tag
would/could be "marlin caught fishing on Our Mary" or something
similar.

It's a decent size, explains the graphic, and gets the words "marlin",
"Our Mary" and "fishing" in there.

-----

2.As regarding Link farming - How do we identify a link farm ? What is
the difference between a link farm and a wide collection of links
which is still tolerable?

The answer to this question can be a bit trickier. Think of it this
way, and you should be okay.

Link to and from services which make sense in context with your site.

Sites like Madeira-related businesses or links would most probably be
okay. The same is true for anything related to fishing, fishing
charters, country-related, etc.

To recognize a link farm or linking scheme, be leery of any site that
seems to have no 'theme' or real content EXCEPT links. That means
watch link exchanges, free for all links, etc., those are very
obviously nothing but linking schemes.

Google says, "A good rule of thumb is whether you'd feel comfortable
explaining what you've done to a website that competes with you.
Another useful test is to ask, "Does this help my users? Would I do
this if search engines didn't exist?" ("Quality Guidelines - Basic
principles")
   - ://www.google.com/webmasters/guidelines.html

-----

3.Why the search results could alternate from hour to hour?

That's a honest question with an involved answer! Google explains it
this way:

"Multiple indices

    We update our index about every four weeks. If you happen to enter
the same query repeatedly while we are in the process of posting the
index at our various data centers around the country, it might seem
like you are seeing inconsistent results from Google. What is actually
happening is that you are seeing a result from an 'old' version of our
index one time and a result from a 'new' version the next. Due to the
size of our index, we can not simultaneously post a new index at all
of our data centers, which may result in this behavior for a short
period of time."
   - ://www.google.com/webmasters/2.html

I think this is a gross oversimplification of the multitude of PCs
connected at ten different data centers, located around the world. The
amount of computers at the datacenters must be amazing to hold over 3
billion pages of data, balance internet traffic loads and deliver the
content within a relatively fast amount of time to Google's users.

You probably never notice if your closest Google data center is
overloaded with traffic and you've been seamlessly passed off to
another datacenter for results, but with the Googlebots crawling
continuously and feeding the data centers, it stands to reason the
results may show up differently as the various data centers are trying
to catch up.

I'm alway amazed things work as well as they do.

There is a tool out there, offered by SEO Chat called the "Google
Dance Tool". This tool is not related to Google and I do not recommend
using this to check on your own site - it may be interpreted as using
one of those automated checking systems Google doesn't like. But it is
an excellent illustration of how a particular search term may return
different results as the 'dance' is going on by giving you the
opportunity to observe the returns from all the data centers at one
time.

You can find it at:
   - http://googledance.seochat.com/preferences.php

I'll repeat, do not use this often - it causes unnecessary strain on
the system, which as you can imagine doesn't tickle Google. It is more
an illustration than a really useful tool.

Thanks again, th1602. I hope this answered your questions.

Regards,
Serenata