What does Google say about SEO?

Should You Use Product or LocalBusiness Structured Data for a Service-Based Website?

John Mueller Feb 20, 2023 ★★★

John Mueller answered a question about which structured data to implement on a website offering services whose prices may vary depending on the quote. Google's emblematic figure recommends not using structured data dedicated to products, but rather f...

Content Structured Data E-commerce AI & SEO Pagination & Structure PDF & Files Local Search

Can You Really Use a 301 Redirect Between Pages in Different Languages?

Gary Illyes Feb 20, 2023 ★★★

In a brief conversation posted on Mastodon, Gary Illyes from Google indicated that the 301 redirect (permanent redirect) was required when two URLs are almost identical. So far, nothing new. But where things get more interesting is when he specifies ...

Content AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO Domain Name Redirects International SEO

Is Google Really Changing Its Rules or Just Repackaging Them With Search Essentials?

Google Feb 16, 2023 ★★★

Google has renamed its Webmaster Guidelines to 'Search Essentials'. This change represents an official overhaul of the reference documentation for best practices in natural search optimization recommended by Google.

AI & SEO PDF & Files Redirects

Should you really delete problematic elements instead of fixing them for SEO?

Google Feb 16, 2023 ★★

A pragmatic SEO approach recommended by Google: if an element causes problems and isn't essential, the best solution may simply be to delete it. A missing element cannot cause problems.

AI & SEO

Should you really start your SEO audit with your browser and Search Console?

Google Feb 16, 2023 ★★

Google recommends using your web browser combined with Google Search Console tools to perform a first quick and efficient analysis of your website before diving deeper into other SEO aspects.

AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO Search Console

Are Google Search Console's bubble charts really revolutionizing your SEO analysis?

Google Feb 16, 2023 ★★

Google Search Console offers visualizations in the form of bubble charts to analyze your site's performance data. These visual tools enable a more intuitive analysis of search metrics.

Images & Videos Web Performance Search Console

Why have image dimensions in HTML become essential for fixing CLS problems?

Google Feb 16, 2023 ★★★

To fix Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS) problems related to images, you often just need to include the image dimensions (width and height) directly in your HTML markup. This practice improves user experience and Core Web Vitals.

Domain Age & History Images & Videos Web Performance

Are you really unlocking the full power of Google Search Console data to boost your SEO performance?

Google Feb 14, 2023 ★★

Google is launching a third season of Search Console Training focused on data analysis. The series will cover different methods to export, analyze, and visualize Google Search Console data in order to improve data analysis skills and increase the cha...

AI & SEO Search Console

Is it absolutely necessary to migrate to JSON-LD for your structured data?

Google Feb 13, 2023 ★★★

Google has updated its online documentation regarding structured data markup and reminds us that the 3 available formats (JSON-LD, Microdata, and RDFa) are "equally accepted by Google, provided they are valid and implemented in accordance with the fe...

Structured Data AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO PDF & Files

How does an HTML redesign actually impact your SEO rankings?

Gary Illyes Feb 13, 2023 ★★★

Gary Illyes explained on LinkedIn that when launching a website redesign that affects the HTML code of pages, this will certainly have an influence on the site's rankings in search engines afterwards. His advice: "try to use semantically similar HTML...

Domain Age & History AI & SEO Links & Backlinks Redirects Social Media

Do your JSON files really need to be indexed?

Google Feb 09, 2023 ★★

For resource files (like JSON files used by JavaScript), there's no need to make them directly accessible via URL if Google can read them through JavaScript. There's no need for specific configuration or adding noindex tags.

Crawl & Indexing AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO Domain Name PDF & Files

Why Doesn't the Event Data Structure Guarantee Rich Results?

Google Feb 09, 2023 ★★★

Even if the data structure for events is correctly implemented and validated in Search Console, it does not guarantee that rich results will appear in the search results. This is the normal behavior of the system.

Domain Age & History Structured Data Featured Snippets & SERP Pagination & Structure Local Search Search Console

Why should you keep old URLs in the sitemap after a 301 redirect?

Google Feb 09, 2023 ★★★

When changing URLs with 301 redirects, it is advisable to keep the old URLs in the XML sitemap until they disappear from Google's index. Once they are indexed under their new URL, they can be removed from the sitemap.

Domain Age & History Crawl & Indexing AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO Domain Name PDF & Files Redirects Search Console

Is it true that the order of tags in an XML sitemap doesn't matter to Google?

Google Feb 09, 2023 ★★

In an XML sitemap, the order of tags (URL, last updated date, frequency, priority) is not important. Only the URL is mandatory. If Search Console processes the sitemap correctly, there are no issues even if the format differs from the official exampl...

Crawl & Indexing AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO Domain Name PDF & Files Search Console

Is simplifying hreflang implementation the key to successful international SEO?

Google Feb 09, 2023 ★★★

For the hreflang attribute on international websites, it is better to use a simplified implementation (such as en-US, fr-FR) rather than an overly granular notation that does not conform to the specification. Codes that are too detailed are not guara...

AI & SEO International SEO

Should you really align hreflang and lang HTML?

Google Feb 09, 2023 ★★★

The hreflang attribute and the lang HTML attribute have entirely different roles and specifications. It is not advisable to try to align them or use the same values for both. Each should adhere to its own specification.

International SEO

Could removing obsolete URLs from your sitemaps actually boost your SEO?

Google Feb 09, 2023 ★★

It is recommended to gradually remove obsolete URLs from XML sitemaps instead of keeping them indefinitely. This facilitates management and reduces the size of sitemap files over time.

Crawl & Indexing AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO Domain Name PDF & Files Search Console

Does Googlebot really ignore scrolling and user interactions?

Google Feb 07, 2023 ★★★

Googlebot does not interact with pages, which includes not only clicking but also scrolling. JavaScript code that depends on scroll events will therefore not be executed by Googlebot during exploration.

Domain Age & History Crawl & Indexing AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO

Does your browser's DOM really show what Google actually indexes?

Google Feb 07, 2023 ★★★

The DOM (Document Object Model) visible in your browser's developer tools is the closest equivalent to the rendered HTML as displayed in Google Search Console tools.

JavaScript & Technical SEO PDF & Files Search Console

Are HTTP response headers sabotaging your search rankings without you knowing it?

Google Feb 07, 2023 ★★

The Network tab in developer tools allows you to see all request and response headers, which lets you verify the presence of elements like the X-Robots header that influences SEO.

Pagination & Structure