Cleaning up some old sites and what do I discover?

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SOME MONEY IN MY AMAZON ASSOCIATES ACCOUNT!

Over the years, I've played with this and that in the Internet Marketing World - more as a hobby to understand how keywords and ranking worked so I could do some SEO work for some larger companies.

So, here I am going through a spring clean of some of those sites. And when I say a Spring Clean ... I really mean it! I'm dusting off the cobwebs of 5 to 8 years of inactivity, resetting passwords, opening up my old Google Analytics accounts etc. (it was a wonder those old WP sites hadn't been hacked - you need to keep them up-to-date).

Here's the thing, I was lucky enough to get some good (no-scam) training in writing good content, to compliment it with natural back-links etc. and then life got in the way - and I move onto other things. Anyway, both of these small niche sites are getting about 20 visitors a day through natural referrals or search engine traffic - and one of them still had an Amazon Associates link up.

And guess what, it has been generating commissions! I log into my old unused account and there is about $5 sitting there! (Not much I know, but validating nevertheless).

What is the lesson here?

  • Same as what is being taught here - write good content around your niche!
  • Build natural back-links
5 years after the fact, these two sites (with about 15 posts each) are still generating traffic.

So here I am, thinking about re-kicking these back into life with all the new insights from WA. I don't know how Google thinks about domain age (one of the things that SEO/Keyword specialists used to talk about), but perhaps these two sites could quickly rank again?

Anyway, thought I would share.

Cheers.

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Recent Comments

24

That is so cool, think of how many Google updates they have made it through... a testimony to your quality work. Inspiring!!!

Nice site, maybe you should start adding more contents to it and create an "About me" page to attract more traffics.You already ranking might as well work on it...Nenita

kick em in the butt and get them going

Yep! I think you nailed it. Exactly the attitude. Actually. Need to kick myself in the butt and get myself going!

@excaliba, do you think it has to do anything with the site structure? It is really nice and cosy. Neat and looks good. Articles are relevant!

I am absolutely sure it is because I targeted a specific niche with relevant content - and I wrote the articles about something I used to enjoy - chess. That and quite a few back-links. So 5 years after abandoning the site - it still gets aout 20 visits per day.

Then what about SEO? Those guys are sweating with this and trying to rank high?

Sorry, I am not quite sure what you mean :-)

The example I provided was just something to demonstrate the benefits of the methods promoted here. I did exactly for the small niche I targeted what WA promotes here - but without the benefit of all the advanced tools, social back-linking and a supportive community.

That microsite is relatively well optimised in terms of SEO for the micro-niche I experimented with. And if I remember correctly, ranked well (in the first page) for the terms I went after.

The lesson for beginners (and I consider myself that still) who are targeting a small niche is to follow the path laid out here at WA - and you are likely to soon rank well in the short-to-medium term. (whether the niche is a buying niche is another question all-together.).

Just imagine though if I had continued to write even one to two articles a month for the last 5 years instead of abandoning it. I would be Chess Set King of the World ;-).

Anyway ... hope there is something useful in this for you.

DH.

@excaliba, senior members are suggesting for good article writing on a continuous basis. YOur site has proved that. They have shared experience where people have high ranking and don't have any sale. Does it mean that you stress more on writing than SEO first?

I will have a look. Just wondering if the article is so much precious for a site why people do not want to pay for good writings?

If you are curious .... here's one of them ... http://www.chesssetchoices.com/

Very interesting and encouraging!

The same thing happened to me.

Funny thing about old sites left for dead, is that all that time they were gaining authority in google! Really! Time does wonders. As long as you haven't actively damaged their reputation, I think they could rank faster and stronger than a brand new site if you start working on them now. How old are they?

Between 4 and 6 years. And I found another one that I had totally forgotten about - 10 years!

Have fun and thanks always for sharing
Have a great day!
Kymee

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