[Ryan]

*** UPDATES ***
3 month progress here



We installed vBSEO here at AF 2 months ago, and I thought it would be a good idea to let you know how it has been going thus far. We have not changed anything that we do in regards to promotion or SEO, so there is no reason that these things would affect our results at all. I also realize that it is summertime now and internet use tends to decrease in the summer, but you'll see in our charts that our decrease in search engine hits cannot be 100% attributed to the summer decrease of traffic.

Since installing vBSEO we have noticed both a decrease in traffic and a decrease in hits from search engines. Here are charts that show both. Both charts are comparing the last 2 months with vBSEO to the 2 months before without vBSEO. The blue line represents the 2 months with vBSEO and the green line represents the 2 months without it.



So, we've had 1,686 hits from search engines since installing vBSEO and had 2,410 hits from search engines before installing vBSEO in the same length of time (a decrease of 30%).

Here is how our traffic has looked



4,675 uniques since installing vBSEO and 5,635 uniques before installing vBSEO (a decrease of 17%).

My analysis? Well, we have had a considerable decrease in hits from search engines since installing vBSEO. You might be thinking "well yeah, but that's because people are on vacation and people aren't on the internet searching as much now as they were 3-4 months ago". Yes, you may be right, but look at the difference between the % of lost traffic and % of lost SE referrals. Our hits from search engines decreased 30%, but our overall traffic only decreased 17%. If use of the internet has dropped 30% during the last 2 months, then our traffic should have dropped 30% as well (or close to it).

Now, I also realize that the benefits of vBSEO are supposed to come with time. You can't expect to install vBSEO and receive more hits from search engines the next day. You've got to wait to get re-indexed. It is a slow process, and 2 months is probably too early to come to any conclusions. BUT, we've had some people who have asked for an update on our vBSEO situation so far, and here it is.

I am not saying that vBSEO has helped or hurt AF yet. It's too early to tell...but I'll come back with more updates as we make it through more months.

[Adam]

Well from what it seems, the SE are starting to pick your site back up. I think the next two months you will see an increase in traffic. I also think that the decrease has to do with the summer slow down (and me going on vacation ) and I think it should start to pickup again in a month or two.

[Ryan]

Originally Posted by Adam

Well from what it seems, the SE are starting to pick your site back up.

There really hasn't been any sign of increase if you look at the graph. In fact, here are the week by week SE hits:

Week 0: 310 (before vBSEO was installed)

Week 1: 258 (-16.77%)
Week 2: 180 (-30.23%)
Week 3: 177 (-1.67%)
Week 4: 216 (22.03%)
Week 5: 203 (-6.02%)
Week 6: 195 (-3.94%)
Week 7: 180 (-7.69%)
Week 8: 149 (-17.78%)

Last week is the worst week we've had thus far since installing vBSEO

[Brandon Sheley]

you still have another month b4 I'd expect to see any positive results

[Ryan]

Originally Posted by loco.m

you still have another month b4 I'd expect to see any positive results

Ok, I'll hold you to that

[demojames]

Thanks for sharing, I am curious on membership also, how many have joined in those same periods.

I know that my demo forum has performed very well since installing vBSEO and I am only 1 week behind AF, but I also agree 2 months is too early for a "true" sense of what is going to happen.

[Ryan]

Originally Posted by demojames

Thanks for sharing, I am curious on membership also, how many have joined in those same periods.

I don't think that's a very good measure of vBSEO performance, because there are so many different things that influence registrations, but nevertheless, here you are. Pay attention to the numbers, not the size of the bars, because the scales are different.

Before:


After:


Total before: 163
Total after: 125
% change: -23.31%

[Toucan42]

This is interesting and probably not at all what the folks at vbSEO were expecting to see. I think the liklihood this will remain the case is low else this product could never have gotten as far as it has. Perhaps for a site as large as AF it takes some amount of time to re-index the entire site. Does analytics allow you to see what the landing pages were? I wonder if those results are using the new URL's.

[demojames]

Originally Posted by Ryan

I don't think that's a very good measure of vBSEO performance, because there are so many different things that influence registrations, but nevertheless, here you are. Pay attention to the numbers, not the size of the bars, because the scales are different.

Total before: 163
Total after: 125
% change: -23.31%

I know that I was just more curious then anything.

[Ryan]

Originally Posted by Toucan42

Does analytics allow you to see what the landing pages were? I wonder if those results are using the new URL's.

Yeah, here's a PDF of the top 100 landing pages since vBSEO was installed:

http://www.adminfusion.com/public/vbseo_2mo_01.pdf

Although, I don't think that's accurate, because when you follow one of the old links, you are redirected to vBSEO's new link...and I have a feeling that's what Analytics records, because there's no way we have all of those vBSEO landing pages so soon.