{"id":2512,"date":"2024-03-20T12:30:14","date_gmt":"2024-03-20T12:30:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ewebtoolz.com\/blog\/website-traffic-down-maybe-its-not-your-fault\/"},"modified":"2024-03-20T12:30:14","modified_gmt":"2024-03-20T12:30:14","slug":"website-traffic-down-maybe-its-not-your-fault","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ewebtoolz.com\/blog\/website-traffic-down-maybe-its-not-your-fault\/","title":{"rendered":"Website Traffic Down? Maybe It&#8217;s Not Your Fault"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"\">\n<p>If your site has lost traffic, it\u2019s natural to wonder what you\u2019re doing wrong. But what if it\u2019s not your\u00a0fault?<\/p>\n<p>Let\u2019s be real. Most of the time, it\u2019s likely that it <em>is<\/em> your fault in some way. You may have site or content quality issues you were unaware of or low-quality links dragging down performance.<\/p>\n<p>However, assuming it\u2019s always your fault can be harmful. If you try to \u201cfix\u201d issues that aren\u2019t really there, it can backfire and do more harm than good. Sometimes, losing traffic is truly not your fault and is genuinely out of your control.<\/p>\n<p>Here are the top three reasons for traffic losses that aren\u2019t your fault and how you can respond to\u00a0them.<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-nav-link clearfix\" id=\"section1\"><a class=\"subhead-anchor\" data-tip=\"tooltip__copielink\" rel=\"#section1\"><svg width=\"19\" height=\"19\" viewbox=\"0 0 14 14\" style=\"\"><g fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><path d=\"M0 0h14v14H0z\"\/><path d=\"M7.45 9.887l-1.62 1.621c-.92.92-2.418.92-3.338 0a2.364 2.364 0 0 1 0-3.339l1.62-1.62-1.273-1.272-1.62 1.62a4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.885 5.884l1.62-1.62L7.45 9.886zM5.527 5.135L7.17 3.492c.92-.92 2.418-.92 3.339 0 .92.92.92 2.418 0 3.339L8.866 8.473l1.272 1.273 1.644-1.643A4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.897 2.22L4.254 3.863l1.272 1.272zm-.66 3.998a.749.749 0 0 1 0-1.06l2.208-2.206a.749.749 0 1 1 1.06 1.06L5.928 9.133a.75.75 0 0 1-1.061 0z\" style=\"\"\/><\/g><\/svg><\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"link-text\" data-anchor=\"1. Google is stealing your traffic\" data-section=\"google-is-stealing-your-traffic\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a id=\"post-173198-_hpxx5rd351ct\"\/>1. Google is stealing your traffic<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>If your top competitors are all experiencing similar traffic losses to you, then this is your first clue Google might be stealing your traffic.<\/p>\n<p>To see if this is happening, plug your website into <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/site-explorer\">Site Explorer<\/a> and add your main competitors to the organic search traffic graph in the Overview report.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image is-resized\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1150\" height=\"466\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/word-image-173198-1.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-173199\" style=\"width:590px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/word-image-173198-1.png 1150w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/word-image-173198-1-680x276.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/word-image-173198-1-768x311.png 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1150px) 100vw, 1150px\"\/><\/figure>\n<p>If the graph looks like this, then Google is favoring an emerging competitor:<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"796\" height=\"324\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/graph-of-a-competitors-traffic-growing-as-another.png\" alt=\"Graph of a competitor's traffic growing as another website's traffic declines.\" class=\"wp-image-173200\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/graph-of-a-competitors-traffic-growing-as-another.png 796w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/graph-of-a-competitors-traffic-growing-as-another-680x277.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/graph-of-a-competitors-traffic-growing-as-another-768x313.png 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 796px) 100vw, 796px\"\/><\/noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"796\" height=\"324\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/graph-of-a-competitors-traffic-growing-as-another.png\" alt=\"Graph of a competitor's traffic growing as another website's traffic declines.\" class=\"lazyload wp-image-173200\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/graph-of-a-competitors-traffic-growing-as-another.png 796w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/graph-of-a-competitors-traffic-growing-as-another-680x277.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/graph-of-a-competitors-traffic-growing-as-another-768x313.png 768w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 796px) 100vw, 796px\"\/><\/figure>\n<p>If this is what you\u2019re seeing, Google is <em>not<\/em> stealing your traffic. You need to do some <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/competitive-intelligence\/\">competitive intelligence<\/a> and figure out what your competitor is doing better than\u00a0you.<\/p>\n<p>But if you see a graph like this where most, if not all, competitors\u2019 traffic drops at the same time as yours, that\u2019s a good sign Google is stealing your traffic:<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"795\" height=\"325\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/graph-comparing-four-websites-in-the-same-industry.png\" alt=\"Graph comparing four websites in the same industry with unanimous traffic losses and improvements.\" class=\"wp-image-173201\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/graph-comparing-four-websites-in-the-same-industry.png 795w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/graph-comparing-four-websites-in-the-same-industry-680x278.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/graph-comparing-four-websites-in-the-same-industry-768x314.png 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 795px) 100vw, 795px\"\/><\/noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"795\" height=\"325\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/graph-comparing-four-websites-in-the-same-industry.png\" alt=\"Graph comparing four websites in the same industry with unanimous traffic losses and improvements.\" class=\"lazyload wp-image-173201\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/graph-comparing-four-websites-in-the-same-industry.png 795w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/graph-comparing-four-websites-in-the-same-industry-680x278.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/graph-comparing-four-websites-in-the-same-industry-768x314.png 768w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 795px) 100vw, 795px\"\/><\/figure>\n<p>To double-check that this is the case, you need to dig a little deeper by asking these questions:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Has Google changed the visibility of ads above the\u00a0fold?<\/li>\n<li>Has Google introduced a new organic SERP feature above organic results?<\/li>\n<li>Has Google pushed organic results further down on mobile searches?<\/li>\n<li>Has Google changed the design of organic results which may affect click-throughs?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>If you answered yes to any of these, then Google is likely pinching your traffic.<\/p>\n<p>If you\u2019re not sure if any of these may be at play, here\u2019s how to find out. Start by entering your main keyword into Ahrefs\u2019 <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/keywords-explorer\">Keyword Explorer<\/a>. Let\u2019s use \u201cgardening\u201d as the example keyword.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1144\" height=\"433\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/example-of-entering-a-keyword-into-ahrefs-keyword.png\" alt=\"Example of entering a keyword into Ahrefs' keyword explorer.\" class=\"wp-image-173202\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/example-of-entering-a-keyword-into-ahrefs-keyword.png 1144w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/example-of-entering-a-keyword-into-ahrefs-keyword-680x257.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/example-of-entering-a-keyword-into-ahrefs-keyword-768x291.png 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1144px) 100vw, 1144px\"\/><\/noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1144\" height=\"433\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/example-of-entering-a-keyword-into-ahrefs-keyword.png\" alt=\"Example of entering a keyword into Ahrefs' keyword explorer.\" class=\"lazyload wp-image-173202\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/example-of-entering-a-keyword-into-ahrefs-keyword.png 1144w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/example-of-entering-a-keyword-into-ahrefs-keyword-680x257.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/example-of-entering-a-keyword-into-ahrefs-keyword-768x291.png 768w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 1144px) 100vw, 1144px\"\/><\/figure>\n<p>Then, scroll to the SERP comparison view. Enter two dates to compare, ideally from a few days before the drop vs a few days after, though you can choose any timeframe that makes sense for your analysis.<\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s an example with a year-over-year comparison:<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1238\" height=\"814\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/doing-a-year-over-year-analysis-for-a-keyword-usin.png\" alt=\"Doing a year-over-year analysis for a keyword using Ahrefs' SERP comparison tool.\" class=\"wp-image-173203\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/doing-a-year-over-year-analysis-for-a-keyword-usin.png 1238w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/doing-a-year-over-year-analysis-for-a-keyword-usin-646x425.png 646w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/doing-a-year-over-year-analysis-for-a-keyword-usin-768x505.png 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1238px) 100vw, 1238px\"\/><\/noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1238\" height=\"814\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/doing-a-year-over-year-analysis-for-a-keyword-usin.png\" alt=\"Doing a year-over-year analysis for a keyword using Ahrefs' SERP comparison tool.\" class=\"lazyload wp-image-173203\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/doing-a-year-over-year-analysis-for-a-keyword-usin.png 1238w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/doing-a-year-over-year-analysis-for-a-keyword-usin-646x425.png 646w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/doing-a-year-over-year-analysis-for-a-keyword-usin-768x505.png 768w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 1238px) 100vw, 1238px\"\/><\/figure>\n<p>Make note of any changes to the SERP features present and the order they appear in. For instance, from the above example, you can observe all of the following UI changes Google has\u00a0made:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Removal of the local search pack<\/li>\n<li>\u201cTop stories\u201d bumped down to position 3<\/li>\n<li>\u201cPeople also ask\u201d bumped down to position 4<\/li>\n<li>Shopping results taking up above-the-fold real estate<\/li>\n<li>Prominence of more images in the\u00a0SERPs<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>You can also go a little deeper here by checking the visual layout of the\u00a0SERPs.<\/p>\n<p>For instance, you can do some sleuthing in <a href=\"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20210211225702\/https:\/\/www.google.com\/search?q=gardening&amp;gws_rd=ssl\">Wayback Machine<\/a> to get a feel for what the search results looked like with the local\u00a0pack:<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1115\" height=\"767\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/historical-serp-results-on-google-showing-a-local.jpg\" alt=\"Historical SERP results on Google showing a local map pack alongside a knowledge panel for the keyword &quot;gardening&quot;.\" class=\"wp-image-173204\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/historical-serp-results-on-google-showing-a-local.jpg 1115w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/historical-serp-results-on-google-showing-a-local-618x425.jpg 618w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/historical-serp-results-on-google-showing-a-local-768x528.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1115px) 100vw, 1115px\"\/><\/noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1115\" height=\"767\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/historical-serp-results-on-google-showing-a-local.jpg\" alt=\"Historical SERP results on Google showing a local map pack alongside a knowledge panel for the keyword &quot;gardening&quot;.\" class=\"lazyload wp-image-173204\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/historical-serp-results-on-google-showing-a-local.jpg 1115w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/historical-serp-results-on-google-showing-a-local-618x425.jpg 618w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/historical-serp-results-on-google-showing-a-local-768x528.jpg 768w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 1115px) 100vw, 1115px\"\/><\/figure>\n<p>Admittedly, there will be some data gaps here as not every keyword search is recorded by the Wayback Machine, but many popular, evergreen terms should have some historical snapshots.<\/p>\n<p>You can then compare these to the live SERPs, especially the above-the-fold region, which for the \u201cgardening\u201d example now looks like\u00a0this:<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1163\" height=\"724\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/current-serp-results-on-google-for-the-keyword-ga.jpg\" alt=\"Current SERP results on Google for the keyword &quot;gardening&quot; showing product results.\" class=\"wp-image-173205\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/current-serp-results-on-google-for-the-keyword-ga.jpg 1163w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/current-serp-results-on-google-for-the-keyword-ga-680x423.jpg 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/current-serp-results-on-google-for-the-keyword-ga-768x478.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1163px) 100vw, 1163px\"\/><\/noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1163\" height=\"724\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/current-serp-results-on-google-for-the-keyword-ga.jpg\" alt=\"Current SERP results on Google for the keyword &quot;gardening&quot; showing product results.\" class=\"lazyload wp-image-173205\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/current-serp-results-on-google-for-the-keyword-ga.jpg 1163w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/current-serp-results-on-google-for-the-keyword-ga-680x423.jpg 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/current-serp-results-on-google-for-the-keyword-ga-768x478.jpg 768w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 1163px) 100vw, 1163px\"\/><\/figure>\n<p>What\u2019s even more interesting is that instead of each product tile linking off to the website it displays, Google opens up a panel in its own interface instead:<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"525\" height=\"1412\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/word-image-173198-8.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-173206\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/word-image-173198-8.jpg 525w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/word-image-173198-8-158x425.jpg 158w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 525px) 100vw, 525px\"\/><\/noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"525\" height=\"1412\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/word-image-173198-8.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"lazyload wp-image-173206\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/word-image-173198-8.jpg 525w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/word-image-173198-8-158x425.jpg 158w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 525px) 100vw, 525px\"\/><\/figure>\n<p>If your site ranked in local results for this keyword, that\u2019s a traffic loss you won\u2019t be able to recover, no matter how much effort you put into\u00a0it.<\/p>\n<p>Likewise, if you feature in the \u201cTop stories\u201d or \u201cPeople also ask\u201d sections, it\u2019s likely difficult to reclaim your traffic since they\u2019ve been bumped so much lower on the page (which correlates to a lower click-through rate).<\/p>\n<p>And even for the supposed \u201cwinners\u201d in this situation\u2014the ecommerce brands with products featured in the new SERP results\u2014Google is inserting itself in the conversion process and directing less traffic to their product pages to keep more people on its platform.<\/p>\n<p>So if you\u2019re losing traffic to Google, it\u2019s likely to be difficult for you to reclaim this traffic because:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>It\u2019s difficult to show up for every new feature Google releases.<\/li>\n<li>Many times, new features won\u2019t make sense for your business model.<\/li>\n<li>Google is increasingly inserting itself in the middle of more conversion journeys.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Rather, you may be better off looking at Google\u2019s bigger-picture objective and aligning with that. In the gardening example, it would be a case of accepting traffic losses for this specific keyword but then finding the topics and content formats where there is new growth potential instead.<\/p>\n<p>To do this, you can check out the keyword forecasts for topics in Keywords Explorer and isolate content angles that are a good fit for your business.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"646\" height=\"620\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/word-image-173198-9.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-173207\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/word-image-173198-9.png 646w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/word-image-173198-9-443x425.png 443w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 646px) 100vw, 646px\"\/><\/noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"646\" height=\"620\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/word-image-173198-9.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"lazyload wp-image-173207\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/word-image-173198-9.png 646w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/word-image-173198-9-443x425.png 443w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 646px) 100vw, 646px\"\/><\/figure>\n<div class=\"post-nav-link clearfix\" id=\"section1\"><a class=\"subhead-anchor\" data-tip=\"tooltip__copielink\" rel=\"#section1\"><svg width=\"19\" height=\"19\" viewbox=\"0 0 14 14\" style=\"\"><g fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><path d=\"M0 0h14v14H0z\"\/><path d=\"M7.45 9.887l-1.62 1.621c-.92.92-2.418.92-3.338 0a2.364 2.364 0 0 1 0-3.339l1.62-1.62-1.273-1.272-1.62 1.62a4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.885 5.884l1.62-1.62L7.45 9.886zM5.527 5.135L7.17 3.492c.92-.92 2.418-.92 3.339 0 .92.92.92 2.418 0 3.339L8.866 8.473l1.272 1.273 1.644-1.643A4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.897 2.22L4.254 3.863l1.272 1.272zm-.66 3.998a.749.749 0 0 1 0-1.06l2.208-2.206a.749.749 0 1 1 1.06 1.06L5.928 9.133a.75.75 0 0 1-1.061 0z\" style=\"\"\/><\/g><\/svg><\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"link-text\" data-anchor=\"2. People\u2019s wants and needs change\" data-section=\"peoples-wants-and-needs-change\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a id=\"post-173198-_bmxplzix95kg\"\/>2. People\u2019s wants and needs change<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Many people use the same phrases but are looking for different things. When this happens en masse, it could trigger an intent switch where Google changes the layout and types of results returned.<\/p>\n<p>For example, let\u2019s look at the topic of \u201cconservatorship.\u201d Before Britney Spears\u2019 legal drama became a popular topic for gossip magazines, people mainly searched for this term looking for legal definitions and advice.<\/p>\n<p>The top of the SERPs looked like\u00a0this:<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"744\" height=\"408\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/above-the-fold-search-results-on-google-for-the-ke.png\" alt=\"Above-the-fold search results on Google for the keyword &quot;conservatorship&quot; including a Wikipedia entry and People Also Ask results.\" class=\"wp-image-173208\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/above-the-fold-search-results-on-google-for-the-ke.png 744w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/above-the-fold-search-results-on-google-for-the-ke-680x373.png 680w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 744px) 100vw, 744px\"\/><\/noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"744\" height=\"408\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/above-the-fold-search-results-on-google-for-the-ke.png\" alt=\"Above-the-fold search results on Google for the keyword &quot;conservatorship&quot; including a Wikipedia entry and People Also Ask results.\" class=\"lazyload wp-image-173208\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/above-the-fold-search-results-on-google-for-the-ke.png 744w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/above-the-fold-search-results-on-google-for-the-ke-680x373.png 680w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 744px) 100vw, 744px\"\/><\/figure>\n<p>But when Britney was going through her legal drama in 2021, the top of the SERPs looked like this with the Top Stories feature taking priority:<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1113\" height=\"685\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/qdf-affected-serp-results-for-the-keyword-conserv.png\" alt=\"QDF-affected SERP results for the keyword &quot;conservatorship&quot; during 2021 showing news results about Britney Spears.\" class=\"wp-image-173209\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/qdf-affected-serp-results-for-the-keyword-conserv.png 1113w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/qdf-affected-serp-results-for-the-keyword-conserv-680x419.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/qdf-affected-serp-results-for-the-keyword-conserv-768x473.png 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1113px) 100vw, 1113px\"\/><\/noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1113\" height=\"685\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/qdf-affected-serp-results-for-the-keyword-conserv.png\" alt=\"QDF-affected SERP results for the keyword &quot;conservatorship&quot; during 2021 showing news results about Britney Spears.\" class=\"lazyload wp-image-173209\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/qdf-affected-serp-results-for-the-keyword-conserv.png 1113w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/qdf-affected-serp-results-for-the-keyword-conserv-680x419.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/qdf-affected-serp-results-for-the-keyword-conserv-768x473.png 768w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 1113px) 100vw, 1113px\"\/><\/figure>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/seo\/glossary\/query-deserves-freshness-qdf\">Query Deserves Freshness (QDF)<\/a> model is responsible for this. It\u2019s a re-ranking model that changes SERPs at the last minute to deliver the most current information.<\/p>\n<p>In situations like this, if your site remains on the SERPs and the content is relevant to the new intent, you may see a temporary traffic spike. However, if your content is not relevant to the new intent or it\u2019s dropped from results altogether, that\u2019s where you may experience traffic losses.<\/p>\n<p>So, how do you respond if there\u2019s an intent switch on your keywords?<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>If you think it\u2019s a QDF event that will pass<\/strong>: You could just wait it out until the rankings re-stabilize.<\/li>\n<li><strong>If it\u2019s a minor intent change or something that still aligns with your brand<\/strong>: You could update your content to reflect the\u00a0shift.<\/li>\n<li><strong>If the new intent does not align with your brand<\/strong>: There isn\u2019t much action you can take. It\u2019s best to be transparent with stakeholders about why traffic was lost and how reclaiming it is beyond your control. Instead, show where the new strategic benefits lie and how you\u2019ll be pivoting the strategy.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div class=\"recommendation\">\n<p>Here\u2019s another reason intent switches can happen: Google\u2019s understanding of what users want improves<\/p>\n<div class=\"recommendation-content\">\n<p>This is actually what happened in the gardening example I used above. Between both dates I checked, there\u2019s been a predominant informational intent in the organic listings. However, Google shifted the features above the fold from prioritizing local services and gardening news to showcasing ecommerce products instead.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"916\" height=\"298\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/annotated-version-of-the-year-over-year-analysis-u.png\" alt=\"Annotated version of the year-over-year analysis using Ahrefs' SERP comparison tool.\" class=\"wp-image-173210\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/annotated-version-of-the-year-over-year-analysis-u.png 916w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/annotated-version-of-the-year-over-year-analysis-u-680x221.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/annotated-version-of-the-year-over-year-analysis-u-768x250.png 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 916px) 100vw, 916px\"\/><\/noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"916\" height=\"298\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/annotated-version-of-the-year-over-year-analysis-u.png\" alt=\"Annotated version of the year-over-year analysis using Ahrefs' SERP comparison tool.\" class=\"lazyload wp-image-173210\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/annotated-version-of-the-year-over-year-analysis-u.png 916w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/annotated-version-of-the-year-over-year-analysis-u-680x221.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/annotated-version-of-the-year-over-year-analysis-u-768x250.png 768w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 916px) 100vw, 916px\"\/><\/figure>\n<p>As Google gets better at understanding what people want, it will continue to make changes like\u00a0this.<\/p>\n<p>In this scenario, as it isn\u2019t a QDF event that will pass, you either need to update your content to reflect the shift or admit defeat and communicate reasons for your traffic loss to stakeholders.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"post-nav-link clearfix\" id=\"section1\"><a class=\"subhead-anchor\" data-tip=\"tooltip__copielink\" rel=\"#section1\"><svg width=\"19\" height=\"19\" viewbox=\"0 0 14 14\" style=\"\"><g fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><path d=\"M0 0h14v14H0z\"\/><path d=\"M7.45 9.887l-1.62 1.621c-.92.92-2.418.92-3.338 0a2.364 2.364 0 0 1 0-3.339l1.62-1.62-1.273-1.272-1.62 1.62a4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.885 5.884l1.62-1.62L7.45 9.886zM5.527 5.135L7.17 3.492c.92-.92 2.418-.92 3.339 0 .92.92.92 2.418 0 3.339L8.866 8.473l1.272 1.273 1.644-1.643A4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.897 2.22L4.254 3.863l1.272 1.272zm-.66 3.998a.749.749 0 0 1 0-1.06l2.208-2.206a.749.749 0 1 1 1.06 1.06L5.928 9.133a.75.75 0 0 1-1.061 0z\" style=\"\"\/><\/g><\/svg><\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"link-text\" data-anchor=\"3. People\u2019s browsing habits are changing\" data-section=\"peoples-browsing-habits-are-changing\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a id=\"post-173198-_iutmtrg6wsft\"\/>3. People\u2019s browsing habits are changing<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>As users become more tech-literate and adept at using other platforms, their search behaviors and expectations change.<\/p>\n<p>More people these days are bypassing Google and turning directly to other platforms like:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>ChatGPT for conversational searches<\/li>\n<li>YouTube for video content<\/li>\n<li>Reddit for user-generated responses<\/li>\n<li>TikTok for snackable, entertaining content<\/li>\n<li>Amazon for product searches<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>If Google wants to stay relevant, it needs to make changes that keep younger audiences engaged. As such, these changes can also lead to traffic declines that are beyond your control.<\/p>\n<p>A prevalent example of this, taking place in SERPs right now, is how Google includes user-generated content and forum sites in prime organic positions. There was an <a href=\"https:\/\/blog.google\/products\/search\/google-search-discussions-forums-news\/\">announcement in 2022<\/a> launching the \u201cForums and Discussions\u201d feature, but many changes have since been made to include more UGC content in\u00a0SERPs.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"742\" height=\"342\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/googles-announcement-launching-the-forums-and-dis.png\" alt=\"Google's announcement launching the Forums and Discussions SERP feature in 2022.\" class=\"wp-image-173211\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/googles-announcement-launching-the-forums-and-dis.png 742w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/googles-announcement-launching-the-forums-and-dis-680x313.png 680w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 742px) 100vw, 742px\"\/><\/noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"742\" height=\"342\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/googles-announcement-launching-the-forums-and-dis.png\" alt=\"Google's announcement launching the Forums and Discussions SERP feature in 2022.\" class=\"lazyload wp-image-173211\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/googles-announcement-launching-the-forums-and-dis.png 742w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/googles-announcement-launching-the-forums-and-dis-680x313.png 680w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 742px) 100vw, 742px\"\/><\/figure>\n<p>Sites like Reddit and Quora are now pinching traffic from digital publishers and niche site owners in millions of SERPs where they were not featured before.<\/p>\n<p>Let\u2019s look at Reddit\u2019s traffic trend for the last two years in Ahrefs:<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1376\" height=\"704\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/reddits-organic-search-traffic-trend-in-ahrefs-s.png\" alt=\"Reddit's organic search traffic trend in Ahrefs' Site Explorer.\" class=\"wp-image-173212\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/reddits-organic-search-traffic-trend-in-ahrefs-s.png 1376w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/reddits-organic-search-traffic-trend-in-ahrefs-s-680x348.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/reddits-organic-search-traffic-trend-in-ahrefs-s-768x393.png 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1376px) 100vw, 1376px\"\/><\/noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1376\" height=\"704\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/reddits-organic-search-traffic-trend-in-ahrefs-s.png\" alt=\"Reddit's organic search traffic trend in Ahrefs' Site Explorer.\" class=\"lazyload wp-image-173212\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/reddits-organic-search-traffic-trend-in-ahrefs-s.png 1376w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/reddits-organic-search-traffic-trend-in-ahrefs-s-680x348.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/reddits-organic-search-traffic-trend-in-ahrefs-s-768x393.png 768w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 1376px) 100vw, 1376px\"\/><\/figure>\n<p>Overall, Reddit has seen\u00a0a:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>24.5% lift in organic keywords<\/li>\n<li>81.5% lift in organic traffic<\/li>\n<li>47% lift in its Top 3 keywords<\/li>\n<li>87.2% lift in Traffic Value (this one blew my\u00a0mind)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>And Quora\u2019s performance follows a similar pattern:<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1382\" height=\"706\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/quoras-organic-search-traffic-trend-in-ahrefs-si.png\" alt=\"Quora's organic search traffic trend in Ahrefs' Site Explorer.\" class=\"wp-image-173213\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/quoras-organic-search-traffic-trend-in-ahrefs-si.png 1382w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/quoras-organic-search-traffic-trend-in-ahrefs-si-680x347.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/quoras-organic-search-traffic-trend-in-ahrefs-si-768x392.png 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1382px) 100vw, 1382px\"\/><\/noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1382\" height=\"706\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/quoras-organic-search-traffic-trend-in-ahrefs-si.png\" alt=\"Quora's organic search traffic trend in Ahrefs' Site Explorer.\" class=\"lazyload wp-image-173213\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/quoras-organic-search-traffic-trend-in-ahrefs-si.png 1382w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/quoras-organic-search-traffic-trend-in-ahrefs-si-680x347.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/quoras-organic-search-traffic-trend-in-ahrefs-si-768x392.png 768w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 1382px) 100vw, 1382px\"\/><\/figure>\n<p>Quora has seen\u00a0a:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>16.7% lift in organic keywords<\/li>\n<li>72.3% lift in organic traffic<\/li>\n<li>26.7% lift in its Top 3 keywords<\/li>\n<li>85.5% lift in Traffic Value<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Unless Google makes a change, there\u2019s no chance that publishers and brands that lost traffic will be able to reclaim it easily.<\/p>\n<p>Now, it\u2019s not always going to be the case that absolutely nothing can be done. I encourage you to think outside the box here and find creative ways to make winning content in the face of such changes.<\/p>\n<p>For example, many SEOs are now posting on Reddit and leveraging Reddit\u2019s existing rankings to get more eyeballs on their content.<\/p>\n<p>Changes in user behavior can also often bring about opportunities for new content formats that are untapped and have very little competition. The aim of the game here is to adapt and show up where your audience is searching, even if that\u2019s beyond Google.<\/p>\n<p>SEO in its purest form is platform agnostic; it\u2019s not just about Google, and I think many SEOs have forgotten this.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a id=\"post-173198-_n4jljiqcwtdd\"\/>Final thoughts<\/h2>\n<p>In general, it\u2019s best to hold off taking action until you\u2019re certain of the root cause of your website\u2019s traffic loss.<\/p>\n<p>Tweaking your content or throwing links at a site rarely helps recover traffic you lost for any of the above reasons.<\/p>\n<p>But if you feel like there\u2019s more you can be doing, check out our guide on <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/google-ranking-dropped-dramatically\/\">how to recover if your traffic has dropped dramatically<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>If you\u2019ve got any questions or have examples of other reasons why sites have lost organic traffic when it\u2019s not their fault, feel free to share them with me on <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/seomeetsdesign\">X<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/despina-gavoyannis\/\">LinkedIn<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><br \/>\n<br \/><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/website-traffic-down\/\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If your site has lost traffic, it\u2019s natural to wonder what you\u2019re doing wrong. But what if it\u2019s not your\u00a0fault? Let\u2019s be real. Most of the time, it\u2019s likely that it is your fault in some way. You may have site or content quality issues you were unaware of or low-quality links dragging down performance. [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2513,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2512","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-seo"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ewebtoolz.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2512","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ewebtoolz.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ewebtoolz.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ewebtoolz.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ewebtoolz.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2512"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ewebtoolz.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2512\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ewebtoolz.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2513"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ewebtoolz.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2512"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ewebtoolz.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2512"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ewebtoolz.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2512"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}