Website traffic going down? Here's how to fix it quickly.

Noticed a dip in your website traffic? ?? PANIC TIME ??, right?

Things already start to go sideways...

• Your exec team wigs out, demanding answers & a game plan NOW.
• Tracking is wonky or broken, making your analysis unnecessarily harder.
• You're stressed & embarrassed as the channel owner, and are praying it's nothing YOU did.
• You have a hunch you want to follow (it's that thing you've been TELLING them to fix! Or a thing someone else broke...)
• Or, you scramble, unprepared, and unsure what to look at.

Then?

You identify something - ANYTHING - declare this is it!

Then work on that fix.

Then wait for magic to happen.

... then, 2 to 4 weeks later, the panic cycle starts again.

Like in any emergency situation, this panic and lack of preparation aren't working in your favor.

So what should you do instead?

Time to put on your favorite Inspector hat and dig in: a Gray Dot Company thread.

SEO Traffic Investigations should be a measured, methodical process, with you as a separate, 3rd-party observer.

Why?

• The causes vary (or there can be several!): algorithm updates, changes in user behavior, increased competition, technical issues, to name just a few.
• If you can't separate the work from your ego, that bias will show in results - it's too easy to find something and just... stop.
• It's too easy to forget everything you should check, period.

And everything is worse when you are stressed out.

How do we do all this? Where should we start?

1. Validate The Issue ?? First, determine if your traffic drop is actually a traffic drop... or just broken tracking. Faulty analytics tracking accounts for ~15-20% of traffic drop cases we've seen, and it's typically a quick fix.
2. Analyze Your Data ?? Review your web traffic AND conversion data. Looking for patterns for where traffic drops occur (all from 1 page? Or 1 page type? Or all related to 1 keyword cluster, or media type, or SERP feature, or.... ?)
3. Investigate On-Site SEO Factors ?? Sometimes, your website is the issue; an ongoing concern, or something that was broken. Mobile disparities, website quality problems, accidental content changes, and technical SEO issues can harm your traffic. It's SEO Audit time!
4. Investigate External SEO Factors ?? From algorithm updates and Google penalties to SERP changes and critical lost backlinks (typically at scale)... can affect your traffic.
5. Investigate Competition Factors ?? Did a competitor step up their SEO efforts? Undergo a huge and successful rebranding? Or engage in a massive, nationwide advertising campaign? Some traffic losses are due to the competition standing out, while your brand stands still.
6. Investigate User-Behavior Factors ?? Seeing any shifts with your target audience? Easy Example: During COVID, some product categories skyrocketed, while others plummeted. Don't forget that market conditions (big and small) impact SEO - just like any other channel.
7. Investigate Big Brand/Business Changes ?? Conversions - and traffic - can be impacted based on actions your business takes - or fails to take. Have a bad earnings call (or 2?) Run out of stock for your major best seller? Stopped running major ad or PR campaigns suddenly?
8. Investigate Brand Traffic Changes ? Is brand traffic down? It might be a result of a shift in brand or channel-level strategy. No matter the channel, the impact on organic traffic will probably show up as brand traffic. The less people see, the less people search. These can all impact your organic bottom line. Further reading: https://www.dhirubhai.net/posts/varangouli_seo-business-activity-7155969771031707649-BLlm/
9. Decide if It Matters to You ?? Assess the impact of the traffic drop on your business. Consider your goals and audience. Is it worth investing time and effort to resolve the issue? Don't forget that organic traffic ≠ (inherently) mean conversions. In other words, conversion drops are much more concerning than traffic drops. Fix conversion-related traffic issues before non-conversion traffic issues!
10. Create a Roadmap To Recovery (and Beyond) ??? The steps to resolve traffic drop - and conversion drop! - issues depend on the root cause. Fix tracking, improve site quality, address penalties, collaborate with developers, or compete better.

Identifying and understanding real business problems - without your ego involved - is key to resolving website traffic drops.

If you need assistance, reach out to Gray Dot Company for help.

We hope this guide helps you recover your traffic! ??