Now that Google has made the shift to Personalized Search even when a user is not logged-in, domain owners can no longer exclaim – “I’m on the first page of Google!” Why? There is no longer a way to know if you really are on the first page of Google since every user receives different results when they search!
While you can turn-off “Web History” do you really think the average web users is going to do this?
For SEO-enthusiasts like myself this is a bit concerning as I now have no way of knowing if my site has made it to the first page of Google for a particular search query. It might show-up on the first page for me – but does it for everyone else?
Here’s an example – when I search “domain investor” I see my blog on the first page of Google. Normally I would jump for joy – but now I think…is that really what everyone else sees?
We have been developing domains with a strong focus on SEO – checking Google to see when we make the first page has become a daily ritual. Now it makes less sense to do this. Now I’m not saying Personalized Search will ruin the market – it could actually get more traffic to our properties…but we just don’t know!
So for all of you who have enjoyed telling people – “I’m on the first page of Google!” You might want to reconsider since where your site ends-up depends on who is doing the searching…
Valid point – I had noticed in recent months that my site was positioned higher (organic search) than the .COM for the domain’s keywords but still in the middle of page one below some WIKI sites and a couple of others. Just yesterday I noticed it had moved to the number one position organically. The .COM competitor is utilizing Adwords. But as you state, perhaps that isn’t the same result everyone else sees!