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Was there something on the website that was omitted in the new design? A tool/ news story etc. Maybe they were doing a lot more PR than they are now so it has resulted in less branded traffic. It does sound very strange but doesn't sound like it is a penalty because you would have lost your rankings which hasn't happened.

I'd be really careful with automation software like this, you want to have 100% control over where your links go and this won't give you that. You are better finding some quality links yourself, it may take a bit longer but at least you will know where the links are and know that they are relevant. Ask yourself, "does the service really know what a quality link is and what a useful resource is?"

The best thing would be to clean up the bad links, file a reconsideration request and then 301 the old domain to the new one...that is if you have some good links to the old domain. If you only have spammy links then starting afresh would probably be easier.

Hi Ciaran,

Welcome to the SEO world!!

Moz's ranking software shows you were you rank, the >50 you mentioned is how much it has risen/dropped since they last crawled the website. I use Advanced Web Ranking for my keywords, its not free but does as many keywords as you like. However, if you are only managing 1 account then use Moz's ranking tool

Why have you decided on this structure? In terms of usability, it could be a bit confusing. The Co-op Electrical website used to have a similar structure but they changed it a while ago to just the top navigation bar.

PR and SEO do go hand in hand though, if they have an external/internal PR agency then use the coverage they provide and use it contact bloggers, put it on social media websites etc. It's something I do for our clients and works quite well. Use various branded links in the content and push that out to websites/bloggers that will help influence customers.

As long as you know exactly where your links are going BEFORE they go live then that's fine yes. However, if they are going to take some content and distribute it to loads of directories and websites then this will do more harm than good.

Ok, you'll probably be able to get the good links for your new domain then. Good luck with it all.

Directories are unlikely to get you better rankings, many directories have been devalued in recent months. Given that many of them are freemium, you are better spending your time writing a great piece of content and reaching out to bloggers/websites to help you spread the word about your brand.

1. Always start with the onpage optimisation, without it your backlinks will mean little. Think more about site speed, URL structure and user benefit because this is what will give you a better conversion rate.

2. It is possible but as Gavo said below, it depends on how competitive the keywords are. Look at interacting with people on social media, follow them, look at how they would like to be connected with and do so. For example, if some influential in your industry is talking about a particular topic, put your spin on things and get a conversation going. This will help make you an authority in this industry.

Hi Justin,

I'd say it depends on how important the keyword is to you. If you got a grade F for something then I assume you aren't even targeting that keyword!

Look at easy/hard the fix would be as well because some of the fixes need a considerable amount of work. As long as it is a keyword and page that is going to drive traffic and sales, I'd concentrate on moving the C's to B's and B's to A's.

Why not spend your time and money on improving your own listings and content rather bidding on competitors names? The CTR is going to poor whatever you do because it isn't really what the customer is looking for.

Hi Sida,

take the URL of the post and open Google and type cache:URL you will then see if Google has cached the post and link.

Don't forget, if you keep posting to the same website the benefit will be minimal in terms of SEO because it is going to be from the same IP. However, if you are writing informational posts that will be useful for the readers then that's ok.

This is where Google gets it wrong in my opinion. The video that Matt Cutts did a few weeks ago said they were going to target key industries that are typically spammed like Payday loans but even companies on there seemed to have been missed. Also, EMD's should have been devalued but here is another example of companies dodging this.

I think the only thing to do when you operate in industries like this is to concentrate on your own website and make sure you are creating quality content to engage with customers online.

Hi Jackson,

It would be better if there was just one uniform URL for the product but for some websites that have thousands of products it is just too big a development cost so they get around it by using the canonical tag, this is perfectly fine and there aren't any issues from an SEO perspective. So if you can, I'd change it so that there is one URL per product but there is nothing wrong with using the canonical tag

Hi Andrew,

When they changed their website, did the ensure that the necessary redirects were put in place so that any authority from the old website was changed to the new one?

It may also be worth checking for any penalties, algorithm or manual. Check Webmaster Tools for any messages to double check. Have they ever ranked for their brand name? Did they rank for their old brand name?

It could be, as the other 2 comments say, just be a lack of authority and quality links but it is definitely worth checking that redirects and penalties aren't having an effect because you could be fighting a losing battle if it is one of these problems.

We have found a couple of blogs that would be good for some unique content but I suspect they may be part of a network. Apart from checking the IP and for duplicate content of them both, are there any other signs that they may be part of a network?

I think it largely depends on the industry you are in. The important thing to remember is that SEO is a long term strategy and therefore a long term commitment.

Google is always looking to refine its searches and it will get to all industries and those who are spamming will eventually get penalised. As Penguin 2.0 has only just been released, give it a few days and you will see the true effect of it. Keep the faith (even though its hard to sometimes!)

Hi pert,

I would recommend you 301 each URL to a relevant one on the new website rather than just redirect all to the homepage. As well as being the best way to do it from an SEO point of view, it is also the best for users as they will still go to a relevant page. Also if anyone has links to the old website they will be sent to a relevant page.

Hi,

It is also worth noting that, if your penalty is an algorithm penalty, you wouldn't have received any messages in Webmaster Tools.

As you have cleaned up your onsite issues then it is more than likely due to the links that point to your website. There is no perfect combination of branded, unbranded, keyword, non-keyword links. It is best to judge a link on merit, so if the link matches the website and looks natural then keep it. This usually, however, means that if you have lots of keyword rich anchor texts then this is not natural and you need to be ruthless. Imagine if you were google looking at your profile, or, would you be happy to show your link profile to Matt Cutts?!!

you need to be careful about the number of onpage links you have. I take it you have your categories or products in a drop down (or some sort of menu) in the top navigation?

I'd recommend using breadcrumb navigation so that if users get to a certain level and decide they need to go back, then they can using the breadcrumb navigation. Your SEO and link building efforts will help you drive people to the right pages so just concentrate on making the user experience as easy as possible.

I would use an internal linking strategy through the content on the page though, especially if the categories/products are similar. Or maybe a "you may also like" section.