Google has always dominated Alexa ranking as the most visited website in the world but that changed just a couple of weeks ago when Facebook, which was at the second place, suddenly overtook Google. Thinking it was a temporary thing or just a glitch in Alexa ranking system, most tech guys following the trend patiently waited for Google to come back to the first position. Up till this very moment, Facebook stays at number one and obviously, nothing is wrong with Alexa ranking system and it ain’t no mistake after all.
Must read: Nofollow & Dofollow Backlinks: A Guide To Blog Commenting
So, what’s happening to Alexa then?
Now this raise the question whether Alexa ranking can really be trusted. Like I once said on a blog post advising bloggers and site owners not to worry too much over Alexa ranking, the statistics is very in accurate, I mean very very inaccurate.
Even a noob can tell Google is the most visited site in the world. Almost everyone uses Google but certainly, not every one of us of us owns a Facebook account.
Those Breaking there heads for Alexa Ranking… See this:
http://xxxxxxxxxx.com/ was created for a client not upto a month old – only essential pages, about, product & services etc..
it ranks 894 in Nigeria and 499,000 in the world, with only two backlink.. ..HOW COME?
http://www.alexa.com/siteinfo/xxxxxxxxxx.com
Alexa is on crack
That’s the exact words of a friend who was surprised seeing a month old site ranking so high.
Must read: 10 Tips to Drive Traffic Effectively to a New Blog
Google vs Facebook
Trying to figure out what made Facebook jump to number one and trying to find reasons to justify the whole thing made me jump to a conclusion. It could be because Google has different domains for different countries. For example google.com.ng for Nigeria, google.co.uk for the United Kingdom, google.co.in for India and so on. Google.com is the most widely used Google domain but users from different countries often see different domains.
On the other hand, Facebook has no other domain except facebook.com and all its users use this domain. This may be responsible for it’s higher Alexa ranking but this is only a speculation and nothing more but my personal opinion. I still maintain that Alexa ranking system is inaccurate.
The secret you probably didn’t know
Now let me tell you something: the fact that a site has a very good Alexa ranking doesn’t mean the traffic is that good. Some bloggers and webmasters do use softwares that boost Alexa ranking and there are websites offering that service. These softwares and services send hits to your site to boost your ranking and you may notice a significant increase in your ranking within just a month.
Must Read: 7 Rules you should Follow for Off Page SEO
Should you be worried over your poor ranking?
That’s a question with two answers: yes and no. Cant understand what I mean? Well, you should be worried over your poor ranking and work harder to make it better because ranking low gives the impression that your site receives little or no traffic. Potential advertisers too may be discouraged from contacting you for business.
On the other hand, you shouldn’t be bothered over this ranking thingy because:
i. it’s inaccurate
ii. it can be faked
However, this doesn’t mean you shouldn’t work on it but even if you’re going to do this, it shouldn’t be at the expense of other things. Working on your organic traffic eventually increases your Alexa ranking. That’s what works for me… I guess it should work for you too.
Twitter: mavtrevor
says:
Sincerely i dont understand Alexa’s algorithm at all…Facebook making it to number one spot aint only the reason for me to be worried, my blog has jumped front and back massively recently i sensed a mistake somewhere but now i think its been fixed am still watching it to see if it reoccurs again.
Nwosu Desmond recently posted..How to share Pdproxy or Sandwich VPN and other VPNs with wireless devices
Ironically, you Alexa ranking may be going down with your traffic increasing. I’ve even seen a blogger telling me that Google analytics is reporting a drop in his daily traffic and page views but with Alexa ranking going higher.
Twitter: Cyracksjay
says:
The same thing is happening to me too. My traffic has drop by 20% but alexa ranking increases a little bit. Facebook has recently recorded over a billion active users, so i think they worth number one for now but i can still see Google claiming the number one spot back in a matter of time because its their birth right.
Maybe they will… maybe they won’t.
Twitter: worldwebsurfers
says:
Don Caprio sir, You said it all. I agree with u when you stressed the fact that Google has different domain names. that can be a reason why Facebook is on the top and not because facebook is globally used than google, Alexa analysis are done by programmed softwares but if human analysis comes in, Google will simply be the number one.
Doncaprio.com will always be bookmarked as one of my favorite sites.
Emmanuel recently posted..The Safest Way to Check if a "Domain Name" is Available.
You hit the nail right on the head. It may be fully automated and things like this are to be expected. I think that’s why alexa.com itself isn’t included in the ranking system
Twitter: corjiakor31
says:
I cann’t really said the number one among them. The two sites are popular http://www.orjiakor.com
Ernest recently posted..MTN Smooth Talk Tariff Plan Fully Explained
It’s true that Google is the most widely used but come to think of it. You surf not less than 20 facebook pages a day while a simple google search( one page view) is enough for the day with Google
Yes, but mail.google.com is used like all the time, same with plus.google.com and the rest of them. Somehow, someway, you just gotta be using a Google service.
Other Rankings confirmed Facebook really outranked Google for the past 3 months and I honestly believed Facebook deserved the position — it’s all about page-views and how long users stay on site, many Facebook users stay almost all day long on the site, giving Facebook close to 2 trillion page views in a month!
Alexa remains the most trusted and most respected open source web ranking that no webmaster in his right sense should ignore! Advertisers rely heavily on Alexa to make decisions, likewise customers.
The reason why your Alexa ranking may be going high while your current traffic is decreasing may be because, Alexa rank according to 3month data.
Dan recently posted..Online Business, The Beginners Guide to Success
Thanks for the post…… I like this post Don…..
Geetanjali Panda recently posted..How to Compare 2 Websites: Which Loads Faster
You’re welcome, Geetanjali. Thanks for dropping by.