This is what happens when you don’t keep up on things. I’d almost missed that Google had put through another Panda update in October. The first time they did something like that most of my blogs took a tumble, but overall it wasn’t all that bad. However, this time it’s taken direct aim at my biggest money making site.
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I’ve talked about my site Medical Billing Answers before. It’s been generating close to $300 a month in Adsense revenue, and with the other money I’ve been earning from other sites, which isn’t much, I’d been feeling pretty good. I want it to be higher but I figured that time would help push it along.
In early October it’s earnings were right on pace and I went on to start dealing with other things. With a week to go in the month I went to look again and noticed that things had dropped off sharply, and that I might not even make $200 for the month. I did, but barely. Not only that, but I ended up not getting paid my September money, which was greatly irksome.
On that front Google did eventually send out a notice to everyone talking about their glitch and saying that most of us would get that money and our October money at the same time in November; I’m still holding my breath on that one. However, almost halfway through the month and I’ve barely passed the halfway point towards $100; what the hey?
This is the part I don’t understand. My site on medical billing issues was doing very well, and suddenly, after what I believe is its third alteration, Panda decides it has no real authority after all? And just like that it affects my income that drastically? Is that fair?
Actually, it has nothing to do with fair I suppose, but reality. I haven’t added much new to that site in about 3 months, and maybe that’s the issue with Panda; no new activity, it stops sending people your way. These days everything seems to be about activity, kind of like the topic I touched upon when I wrote about blogging frequency. I mean, while traffic on my medical billing site has fallen 32% over the last month, traffic on this site has increased 7%, on my business blog it’s up 9%, and my finance blog is also up 8%. These are sites that I’ve kept up consistently new content. The oddity is my SEO blog, which is showing a decrease of 13%, even though I have a new post every 3 days there.
I’m irked that my income stream has been interrupted, yet I also think there’s something that I should have been able to do to keep it coming in. Do I start another blog? Ugh! Nope, that’s not going to happen. I guess I just have to try to make sure to add something new there at least once a month to see if that helps get its steam back. It does prove the overall need to diversify income streams, even online. Still, I’m not happy about it overall.
Actually, Mitch and Sire, you are both right. There was new update which include changes in algorithms and PR update. I can’t be more happier from this PR update as all pages from main navigation menu jumped up without exception. I probably can say that more than 80 pages went from 0 to 3.
Mitch, I don’t think that drop in revenue have anything to do with the latest algorithm changes. Few of my colleagues reported that their traffic have also increase and their earnings from Adsense have dropped. Actually one of them mentioned something like 3% of the total for previous month and 30% more traffic, I suppose that this will be compensated somehow by Google. In my account in one particular day there were 6 clicks and it was showing 1c, a week after that I saw much higher revenue on single click, 3 times above the average which I am getting from this website.
Monday last week, I’ve tried to publish an article in one of the biggest social media blogs, actually it was rejected. Few days after that, same on another blog. The topic target generally how to reduce Google dependency and diversify strategy. Well, I guess even the “big boys” didn’t wanted to publish this, however on Friday, I get another pretty powerful blog which accepted it.
Carl, I wouldn’t be upset with a 3% drop, but the drop I’m showing is drastic. Had to be something because it was almost overnight that things changed.
Sorry, I think I didn’t wrote properly, I meant 97% drop. I will share quick trick with you, which actually is implemented already in this blog, add more images, videos and Google maps in the content where possible, for sure this will help with AdSense and PR.
Ah, that makes a lot more sense Carl, but wow, what a hit your friend took!
Hey Mitch, I did predict a PR update for Halloween but it seems it was a Panda update instead? Even so there must have been a PR update as well recently, or are the two related as most of my sites dropped down by 1.
Good thing I don’t care too much about PR these days.
I do think that Google expects regular updates and that’s probably the main reason your medical site was targeted.
Sire, I didn’t have any of my sites PR change, but like you, I just look but don’t take much stock in it. As for the other I think the content thing is probably correct, so I’ll have to see to that in some fashion.
I think Carl made a good point there regarding ‘Google dependancy’ – I get the fact that the big G are looking for sites which publish regularly, fair enough, we all know that regularly updated sites generate more activity, though that has become even more applicable.
For a medical site like this I would try to find some decent article directories that specialise in medical issues and products to create a small steady flow of traffic.
But google adsense? Is it worth it as a primary income? I don’t think so – its pocket money. Why not do a bit of digging and a offer ad space to big sites that pay more, then b Have a dig around to look for some good CPA offers.
Most CPA offers will blow your adsense revenue out of the water.
Pete, the main reason is because Adsense has paid me better than everything else I’ve done. I don’t know if you’ve seen this blog over all the years but I’ve tested a bunch of different things and written about all of them here. Adsense has been the most consistent and best payer across the board. True, they’re hinkey, but I can’t ignore the success I’ve had.
I ran into the same problem Mitch. My sites got bumped in PR ranking as well so I need to start adding new content often again. They were doing so well for the longest time too.
I sure wish they would give us some warning as to what it going to take place and why. I mean my sites are still really good and have great information on them. If they drop the PR because of certain things they don’t see happening, just tell us what and we’ll implement it. No big deal.
To me Google is treating everyone as if we are some little kid who has done something wrong and we need to be punished. That’s just not the case so that’s what I get upset about.
Oh well, back to the drawing board. 🙂
Adrienne, someone always seems to know when one of these things is coming but it’s amazing what they decide to go after. The very first one knocked my blog traffic down, and this time it gets my other site. I’ve gone and added some new content now but it’s a static site, so it won’t be one where I’ll have tons of new stuff to add. Almost makes one think they have to add a blog to every site they own; that’s not happening.
Guess, nothing has changed in my status. I’m pretty much updated with Google updates and I’m not that too affected since I’m just putting up my site. But I’ve read same reactions as yours and how they’ve cope up with it. You’ll do great in time.
Thanks Vhein; I hope things recover that’s for sure.