Hello Les ~
Please remember that Google Answers Researchers are independent
contractors and not employees of Google. We are not privy to any
insider information about Google's closely-guarded algorithms. Only
Google can speak with total authority about what is happening with any
particular site.
Using Google's link:tool, that is, typing "link: www.boxes4babies.com"
(without the quotation marks) in Google's search box, I get a return
of 48 links to boxes4babies.com:
- ://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=link%3A+www.boxes4babies.com
However, when I perform a search entering "www.boxes4babies.com" in
the search box, I get your site listed and under that:
"Google can show you the following information for this URL:
Show Google's cache of www.boxes4babies.com
Find web pages that are similar to www.boxes4babies.com
Find web pages that link to www.boxes4babies.com
Find web pages that contain the term "www.boxes4babies.com"
- ://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=www.boxes4babies.com
Then clicking on "find pages that link to "www.boxes4babies.com"
produces 0 links.
While clicking on "Find web pages that contain the term
"www.boxes4babies.com" produces 176 results.
This phenomenon isn't unusual, and it usually has to do with the
quality of the links. Google usually returns links with a PageRank of
4 or higher, and most of the sites which link to yours currently have
a lower PageRank or none at all.
This phenomenon has been remarked on in Webmaster World in a
discussion thread entitled "Google site: index still broken or expect
more google algorithm changes with the next update", here:
- http://www.webmasterworld.com/forum3/17091.htm
and again here:
- http://www.webmasterworld.com/forum3/17084.htm
It would appear that this is one of the anomalies experienced in the
latest changes to Google's algorithm. While it most certainly is
distressing, it may be of some consolation to know you are not alone
and that it will most likely work itself out.
You may want to keep an eye on the discussions on Webmaster World, as
they often offer an explanation or at least a "misery loves company"
view of something you may be experiencing.
=================
Your Page Rank
=================
Here again we are seeing discussion about PageRank literally being
"all over the board", sometimes changing several times in a 24 hour
period.
Watching the Google News discussion boards, it seems there is a
perceived problem with the PageRank portion of the Google Toolbar, and
that this is all a part of another change in Google's algorithm.
There are some obvservations from the past, however, which explains
how your own PageRank is affected by the PageRank (or importance) of
pages which link to yours. You might, then, want to consider the pages
which are linking to yours.
I noticed a there were a lot of directories, lists, or compilation of
what basically amounts a list of links. There is much to be said about
the quality of links, particularly links from other sites with
relevant content (ie., infants, babies, parenting, etc.) which link to
yours within the context and in the content of their pages.
Ultimately, those types of links often turn out to be of more value
and more helpful than a list of links to your site.
Google's "PageRank Defined" explains this:
"PageRank relies on the uniquely democratic nature of the web by
using its vast link structure as an indicator of an individual
page's value. In essence, Google interprets a link from page A
to page B as a vote, by page A, for page B. But, Google looks at
more than the sheer volume of votes, or links a page receives;
it also analyzes the page that casts the vote. Votes cast by
pages that are themselves "important" weigh more heavily and
help to make other pages "important."
Important, high-quality sites receive a higher PageRank, which
Google remembers each time it conducts a search. Of course,
important pages mean nothing to you if they don't match your
query. So, Google combines PageRank with sophisticated text-
matching techniques to find pages that are both important and
relevant to your search. Google goes far beyond the number of
times a term appears on a page and examines all aspects of the
page's content (and the content of the pages linking to it) to
determine if it's a good match for your query.""
- ://www.google.com/technology/index.html
===========================
Establishing Links
===========================
You are wise to recognize the importance of links to your site. As
noted, Google's PageRank is based on the number of pages which link to
your site.
"The best way to ensure Google finds your site is for your page to be
linked from lots of pages on other sites. Google's robots jump from
page to page on the Web via hyperlinks, so the more sites that link to
you, the more likely it is that we'll find you quickly." (SEE Google's
" How Do I Get My Site Listed on Google? - 2. Submitting Your site")
- ://www.google.com/webmasters/1.html#A1
There are many practical ways of establishing links which are
beneficial to you. These methods may take time, but they also help
establish credibility and help with your page rank.
Approach like-minded or complementary businesses about linking to your
site (with a reciprocal link from your own). This works without
harming search engine positioning or page rank.
A WORD OF WARNING:
==================
Google specifically warns "Don't participate in link schemes designed
to increase your site's ranking or PageRank. In particular, avoid
links to web spammers or "bad neighborhoods" on the web as your own
ranking may be affected adversely by those links." (See Google's
Quality Guidelines - Basic principles)
- ://www.google.com/webmasters/guidelines.html
It stands to reason that what's good for Google, currently ranked as
the number one search engine is good rule to follow for other search
engines.
Articles on Link Popularity
===========================
A couple of excellent articles on how to establish the right kind of
links are available in Traffick's "Ten Steps to Building Links to Your
Site", Craig Fifield - 5/3/2002
- http://www.traffick.com/article.asp?aID=77
and "The Right Way to Improve Link Popularity", By Paul J. Bruemmer
-4/14/2002 -
- http://www.traffick.com/article.asp?aID=41
Notice both articles offer suggestions which can be easily adapted for
use on any website without resorting to link farms. They both point
out the differences and offer easy ways to get started to the kind of
linking search engines prefer.
As an aside, and certainly off the subject: I would make one aesthetic
suggestion. Your index page has that dark grey color for text, and it
is rather small in many browsers (those set at larger resolutions -
not unusual for larger monitors). I suspect a good part of your target
market are grandparents who may have difficulty reading the text as
small as it is, and you may want to change that to a slightly larger
size to accommodate the grandmas who may click away because they can't
read the text.
Summary
=========
At the moment, I wouldn't worry about the 0 PageRank for your site,
although I would work to establish links with sites more relevant than
just a list of links and with a higher PageRank, as it can only help
your own.
I *would* bookmark the Webmaster World and keep an eye on the
discussions, paying particular attention to any posts by "GoogleGuy",
who is a real engineer with Google, and whose information may be the
closest you can get to an "official" stance by Google.
And remember that Google is always striving to deliver the most
RELEVANT returns for a search query, so strive to ensure your own page
contains rich text content for those terms under which you wish to be
found.
Finally, patience is the name of the game. I think it is fairly safe
to assume from the discussions on Webmaster World that Google is
working on a new algorithm. These things do take time to sort
themselves out and to tweak to be effective. It's not pleasant, as a
webmaster or website owner, to watch one's site "bounce all over the
place", but there is some comfort in knowing others are experiencing
the same thing.
Search terms (on Webmaster World):
Google PageRank
Backlinks
In addition, I referred to bookmarks and resources regularly used in
researching questions about Google's PageRank and linking.
Best regards,
Serenata |
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