Attracting traffic to the website is a tedious task. Well-designed SEO strategies need to be used for this purpose. And after getting so much done, a sudden drop in organic traffic is definitely a matter of concern.
This is not something that happens to some websites. It is a general phenomenon and every website has to go through it once or more in its lifetime.
You need to keep track of the website traffic on regular basis and whenever a drop in organic traffic is noticed, it must be handled immediately without any delay.
Today we will have a look into various aspects of organic website traffic, why a website faces a sudden drop in organic traffic, and how it can be handled. Let us check out:
What is Organic Website Traffic?
When the users visit the website through search engine results, the traffic is called ‘Organic Website Traffic.’ In other words, in the case of organic website traffic, the website gets traffic from natural sources and not from paid ads.
There are different kinds of website traffic but organic website traffic is most important because, in this kind of traffic, the users learn about the website on their own and are considered to be much more interested in the content of the website. They are not directed to the website through any paid advertisement. Thus it shows their will to reach you and their interest in you.
To get an increase in organic website traffic the business must go for well-designed SEO so that the website gets higher rankings and the visibility of the website in the search engine results can be increased.
Why there is a Drop in Organic Website Traffic?
It is important to monitor your website traffic regularly. Whenever you notice any drop in it, it must be investigated thoroughly and necessary steps should be taken to handle it. There can be several reasons why you can see a drop in organic website traffic. These are:
- Updations in Google Search Engine’s Search Algorithms:
Google keeps on updating its search algorithms on regular basis. If the website is not updated accordingly, then there are chances that it is not shown in the search engine results and it will cause a drop in organic website traffic.
- Technical Problems in the Website:
There can be certain technical problems in the website like broken links, 404 errors, the slow loading speed of the pages, server issues, increased website downtime, URL issues, etc. These technical issues can negatively impact the performance of the website and will result in a drop in organic website traffic.
- Increase in Competition:
There are so many websites in the same field. A sudden drop in your organic website traffic can be the result of increased competition and better SEO of your competitors’ websites. Their content can have much more relevant keywords and information. This can negatively impact your organic website traffic.
- Poor Quality of Website Content:
Poor quality content or outdated website content can negatively impact the rankings of the website because search engines give priority to those websites that have relevant content for the users. So having poor quality or outdated content on the website can drop organic website traffic.
- Deletion of Valuable Website Content:
Sometimes there is some valuable content on the website and it gets deleted deliberately or by chance. This was the content that was driving maximum traffic to the website. So deletion of such valuable content can result in a drop in organic website traffic.
- Poor Redesigning of Website:
From time to time the website needs to be redesigned and it may happen that at the time of redesigning proper care is not taken and the resultant website has a poor design. The poor redesigning of the website can cause a drop in organic website traffic.
- Low-Quality Backlinks:
Getting high-quality backlinks can increase the ranking of the website. But in case you lose high-quality backlinks and get lower-quality ones, then it will impact your organic website traffic.
- Penalization by Search Engines:
If your website is found to be indulging in using black-hat SEO techniques, such as keyword stuffing, buying backlinks, etc., the search engines will find that and the website will surely be penalized for it.
- Bug in Google Analytics Tool:
There can be problems with the Google Analytics tool and that can result in inaccurate reporting of organic traffic. With this, it will become difficult to find out the real cause of the drop in organic website traffic. For this, monitoring on regular basis and troubleshooting the issues is a must.
Solutions to Fix Drop in Organic Website Traffic:
A drop in organic website traffic is definitely a matter of concern for any website owner. Here are certain methods to find a drop in organic website traffic and solutions to fix it:
- Check the Issues with the Website:
Check if there are any technical issues with your website, like broken links, 404 errors, slow-loading pages, server problems, website downtime, URL issues, etc. These issues can be checked with the help of website auditing tools. Keep your website scanning from time to time with these tools and fix the issue immediately the moment it is detected.
- Check Warnings given by Google Search Console:
Google search console is a tool that is used to keep track of the performance of the website, like its traffic, rankings, etc. Whenever traffic to the website is decreased, a warning is issued by this tool. The warnings can be about penalties, crawl errors, security problems, etc. These can impact the rankings of the website. So you must keep on checking the warnings given by the Google search console and detect and fix the causes immediately.
- Keep Track of Google Analytics Results:
This tool is used to keep track of various analyses about the website like how much traffic it is getting, what is the conversion rate, what is the user behavior, etc. By keeping track of these analyses, the reasons behind the sudden drop in organic website traffic can be detected and fixed.
- Keep Track of Updates in Google Search Algorithms:
Google keeps on updating its search algorithms from time to time. You must keep track of the changes done. And according to those changes, necessary updations in the website should be implemented so that the rankings of the website do not get affected and also the website traffic does not see any drop.
- Find out if there are any Bugs in Google Search Console:
Sometimes there can be bugs or glitches in Google Search Console. During this time, the data and reports produced may not be correct. So, keep an eye on the Google Search Console’s announcements and forums. It might happen that any report about a drop in website traffic is a wrong report.
- Keep Track of Google Trends:
With the help of Google trends, you can find out what search terms are trending over time. By using the relevant terms as keywords in your website, you can improve the visibility as well as the traffic of the website.
- Make Use of SEO Tools:
There are so many SEO tools available that can be used to keep track of a website’s performance, do an audit of the website, find out the technical issues, etc. Some tools are freely available while others are paid. Make good use of these tools to determine the issues and fix them accordingly.
- Review for Outdated or Poor Quality Content:
When there is a drop in your traffic, check the content of the website. The website may contain outdated or poorly written content. Such content should either be eliminated or rewritten.
- Review Deleted Content and Duplicate Content:
There can be the case that the content you deleted during content auditing was attracting the maximum traffic. So if you see any drop in the website traffic, review the content you deleted and if you find any valuable content then include it again. Also, look out for any duplicate content on the website and remove it if you find any.
- Check for Changes in Backlinks:
Backlinks are the links that are present on other websites and point back to your website. Keep track of any changes in the backlinks and fix them, if any issues are found. Also, there must be high-quality backlinks, otherwise, the reputation of the website will get affected.
- Keep Track of Your Competitors:
There can be many websites in the same field and the competition among the websites can affect the rankings as well as traffic to the website. So you must keep track of the performance of your competitors’ websites and keep your website updated accordingly.
- Check Issues with Redesigning of Website:
The website needs to be redesigned from time to time to keep it afresh. At the time of its redesigning utmost care is required and redesigning must impact the website in a positive way. So after redesigning if you notice any drop in the organic website traffic, immediately find and address the issues.
- Check Issues with Migration:
Sometimes a website needs to be migrated from one server to another to get better and pocket-friendly services. If the migration process encounters any errors, the website functionality will get affected and as a result, the traffic to the website gets dropped. So if any drop is noticed after the migration of the website, check out if there are any issues related to migration.
- Check for Crawl Errors:
Crawl errors happen when search engine bots are not able to access and index some pages on your website. These errors can impact the rankings of the website and lead to a drop in website traffic. Keep checking for such errors using SEO tools and fix them without any delay.
- Look out for Penalties by Search Engines:
Search engines like Google can penalize the website for not following the guidelines and engaging in bad practices like keyword stuffing, buying backlinks, etc. These penalties can affect the website rankings badly and you will see a sheer drop in website traffic.
You will be warned if any such breaking of the guideline is noticed by Google before it will penalize you. Keep checking for such warnings and go for a website audit in case any warning is received. In some cases, you may need to submit a reconsideration request to Google to lift the penalty.
Once the reasons are determined, fix the issues with no delays as delaying will impact your website traffic negatively in long run.
