What does Google say about SEO?

Is Google finally fixing its confusing Webmaster Guidelines—and what does it mean for your SEO?

Gary Illyes Jan 20, 2022 ★★★

Google plans to restructure its Webmaster Guidelines by separating technical directives from quality directives, clarifying language, adding concrete examples, and removing outdated content dating back 15 years.

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Does Google really tolerate geographic cloaking without penalties?

Gary Illyes Jan 20, 2022 ★★★

Serving different content to Googlebot and users for legal or compliance reasons (such as geographic restrictions) is technically cloaking, but Google will very likely not penalize this practice if the content is equivalent.

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Are multi-location websites doorway pages or a legitimate SEO strategy?

Gary Illyes Jan 20, 2022 ★★

Having one website per US state because you own physical stores there can technically match the definition of doorway pages, but isn't necessarily a violation if the intent isn't to manipulate search results.

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Will desktop Page Experience signals be a game-changer for your SEO rankings?

John Mueller Jan 20, 2022 ★★★

Page Experience signals will be rolled out for desktop search results (scheduled for around April-May 2022). This rollout is separate from mobile-first indexing: what gets indexed and what measures speed are two different things.

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Will Google crawl your site less often in the name of sustainability?

Gary Illyes Jan 20, 2022 ★★

Google is working to optimize the frequency of its refresh crawls (revisits of already-discovered URLs) to reduce its environmental impact. The goal is to better estimate when to return and crawl a page based on its actual update frequency.

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Does HTTPS and page speed really matter for Google indexing, or is it just hype?

Gary Illyes Jan 20, 2022 ★★★

HTTPS and loading speed are not part of the basic requirements for indexing in Google Search. These elements should not appear in the Webmaster Guidelines that define minimum prerequisites.

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Is dynamic rendering really risk-free for Google?

Martin Splitt Jan 20, 2022 ★★★

Serving a static version of content to bots and a dynamic JavaScript version to users is not considered manipulative cloaking if the content is identical. This practice will not be penalized.

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Does a simple trailing slash really trigger a complete site migration according to Google?

John Mueller Jan 18, 2022 ★★★

Any change to URL structure, even minimal ones like removing a trailing slash, is considered by Google as a complete site migration. This isn't a simple technical change but a major operation for search engines.

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Why does changing a URL cause you to lose a page's entire SEO history?

John Mueller Jan 18, 2022 ★★★

Google stores its index page by page, based on URLs. When a URL changes, that page's data must be transferred to the new URL, otherwise it's lost.

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Can a rushed URL migration destroy your search rankings before you even realize what's happening?

John Mueller Jan 18, 2022 ★★★

Before any URL migration, it is recommended to research available options and analyze potential effects. The timing of the migration must be carefully considered because these changes take time and have effects on your rankings.

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Should you really document every single URL during an SEO migration?

John Mueller Jan 18, 2022 ★★

It is essential to create a list documenting all old URLs and their new correspondences. This list allows you to track and verify changes after the migration.

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Should you really redirect EVERY single URL when migrating your website?

John Mueller Jan 18, 2022 ★★★

During a URL migration, you must set up 301 redirects from all old URLs to the new ones. This is an essential step in the migration process.

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Do you really need to update ALL internal elements after a URL migration?

John Mueller Jan 18, 2022 ★★★

You must update all internal elements of the site: links, forms, structured data, sitemaps and robots.txt file so they point to the new URLs.

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Is Google Search Console really essential for a successful site migration?

John Mueller Jan 18, 2022 ★★

The migration must be monitored in Google Search Console reports. You need to verify redirects for all pages to ensure the transfer is happening correctly.

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Does Google really treat all URLs the same way during a migration?

John Mueller Jan 18, 2022 ★★

Google rapidly processes the most important pages during a URL migration, then progressively reprocesses the rest of the site. This differentiated process enables a phased transition.

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How long does a URL migration really take before Google fully processes it?

John Mueller Jan 18, 2022 ★★★

A complete URL migration can take several months before being fully completed and Google has reprocessed the entire site.

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Should you really keep 301 redirects live for a full year or more?

John Mueller Jan 18, 2022 ★★★

301 redirects must remain active for at least one year following URL migration. This is the minimum duration recommended by Google to ensure a complete transition.

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Does a bloated robots.txt file really hurt your SEO rankings?

John Mueller Jan 14, 2022 ★★

A very large robots.txt file (over 1500 lines) has no direct negative SEO impact. However, it makes maintenance more difficult and increases the risk of accidental errors that could cause problems.

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Do H1-H6 heading tags really still impact Google rankings?

John Mueller Jan 14, 2022 ★★★

Google uses heading tags (H1, H2, etc.) to better understand the context of different content sections on a page. A structured hierarchy can help, but the primary effect concerns accessibility for users with screen readers.

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Is a strict heading tag hierarchy really necessary for SEO rankings?

John Mueller Jan 14, 2022 ★★

It is not mandatory to use a strict hierarchical structure of heading tags for SEO. Google recommends structuring them well, but it is not an absolute technical requirement for ranking.

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