Troubleshooting Drop in Rank - could it be one of these?:

[BobGW]

At nlpca(dot)com,

we've had a drop in rank of like 13 slots for our main term "NLP".

Could this be caused by?:

1. Adding keywords to title and meta tags that are not completely relevant to page. For example, "degree programs" on this page

http://www.nlpca.com/DCweb/nlp-salt-lake-city-and-bay-area

The word "degree" and "programs" do not show up on that page, but "program" does. Our courses are 'certification programs' but maybe 'degree programs' is not close enough.

2. Adding keywords to title that do not show up in page. The same keyword "degree programs" is a good example. Another example is the keyword "learn about NLP" on this page:

http://www.nlpca.com/DCweb/learn-about-nlp-techniques

3. Targeting 2 different locations (California and Utah)

4. Having our title 2 characters too big on the home page (we used to)

And lastly, Do you think our ranking drop is reversible if it's on-site SEO?

Thanks!

[josh-riley]

A lot of SEO can be undone/is reversible; the kicker is it's easier to go down faster than it is to get it back up. Changing things doesn't automatically (even when done correctly) mean you won't see a drop before a pick up. Google claims to be moving away from "exact" matches in keywords and more toward understanding content (example: degrees and certifications often have to do with acquiring knowledge and learning).

My advice? Page title is one of the most important things Google looks at; make your count. If you are trying to do multiple things with it (location/keywords/NLP), then you have to wait out to see if Google figures it out.

I have seen cases where pages can still rank even without an exact title/content match, but since you've noticed a decline, reconsider consistency across your optimization and content. BTW, as a user, NLP doesn't tell me what NLP is - only the acronym is used and that's not necessarily a good thing. (Ex: GHS? Greenfield High School or globally harmonized system.) How does Google know if your content is relevant to a searcher if it's not clear what NLP stands for?

Also, check the technical and make sure there's no weird coding or broken somethings that could also be in the way. Good luck!