What does Google say about SEO?

Is duplicate content on category pages really a non-issue for Google?

John Mueller Jun 25, 2021 ★★

Having the same content on multiple pages (like article snippets on category pages) is not necessarily an issue. Google simply chooses one of the pages to display in the results for that common content.

Domain Age & History Content Discover & News Featured Snippets & SERP AI & SEO Local Search

Why doesn't the cached page reflect the actual indexing?

John Mueller Jun 25, 2021 ★★★

The cached page displayed by Google is not representative of what is used for indexing. It’s a parallel system updated at its own pace. It should not be used to diagnose indexing issues.

Domain Age & History Crawl & Indexing AI & SEO Web Performance

Why Doesn't Google Index All the Pages It Crawls?

John Mueller Jun 25, 2021 ★★★

It's common for almost all websites to have a large number of URLs that are crawled but not indexed. Google does not guarantee the indexing of all the pages it crawls.

Domain Age & History Crawl & Indexing AI & SEO Domain Name

Why is aiming for a server response time under 300ms crucial for your SEO?

John Mueller Jun 25, 2021 ★★★

For a large website, it's recommended to aim for an average server response time of under 200-300 milliseconds (different from page load time) to allow for effective crawling by Google.

Domain Age & History Crawl & Indexing AI & SEO Web Performance

How does the title tag really affect your SEO ranking?

John Mueller Jun 25, 2021 ★★★

The title of a page is very important for Google because it is used as the basis for the title displayed in search results and also for ranking. It is a fundamental element of SEO.

Domain Age & History Content

Does the meta description really influence your SEO rankings?

John Mueller Jun 25, 2021 ★★★

The meta description tag can appear as a snippet in search results but is not used for ranking. It remains important because it influences what is shown to users.

Content AI & SEO

Should you really focus on new meta tags?

John Mueller Jun 25, 2021 ★★

Google is reluctant to create new meta tags for new features because the ecosystem takes 2-4 years to adopt them, during which time Google may lose interest or change its technological direction.

Content

Why do SEO improvements take so long to show results?

John Mueller Jun 25, 2021 ★★★

Improvements made to a website (UX, content, external presence) take a long time to be reflected in search results. One should not expect immediate changes.

Content AI & SEO

Why does Google sometimes show content in a different language?

John Mueller Jun 25, 2021 ★★

Google weighs the language and relevance of content in search results. If little relevant content exists in one language, Google may display content from another language. It's a balance between various relevance factors.

Content Local Search International SEO

Can Google really mix up a query's intent?

John Mueller Jun 25, 2021 ★★

Google's systems can be uncertain about a query's intent (informational vs transactional) and may shift between different pages over time. It is crucial to properly link these pages together to guide users.

Domain Age & History AI & SEO

How do user feedback really influence SEO?

John Mueller Jun 25, 2021 ★★

User feedback from search results is classified and analyzed in an aggregated manner to enhance algorithms. Google does not manually process each individual report to adjust specific queries.

Algorithms AI & SEO Search Console

How do exclusionary regex filters change the game for SEO analysis?

Google Jun 24, 2021 ★★

Search Console now allows the use of regex filters with exclusion options in the search performance report, enabling more precise data filtering.

Domain Age & History AI & SEO Web Performance Search Console

What does a two-part rollout of the Google update mean for SEO?

Google Jun 24, 2021 ★★★

The June 2021 Core Update is being rolled out in two parts. Some planned improvements are not ready yet and will be released in July 2021. Ranking fluctuations may occur between the two rollouts, and changes from June could revert in July.

Algorithms AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO

How is Search Console Insights transforming our SEO content strategy?

Google Jun 24, 2021 ★★

Google is launching Search Console Insights, a new tool that allows you to understand how content is discovered by users and what reactions it evokes from the audience.

Content Search Console

How can you enhance your indexing check using a quotation search?

Google Jun 24, 2021 ★★

To verify if a page is indexed through search, use double quotation marks for an exact match search of content text. This yields a more reliable result than a simple search.

Domain Age & History Content Crawl & Indexing AI & SEO

Why Are Redirections Critical During a Website Migration?

Google Jun 24, 2021 ★★★

When migrating a website, it is essential to ensure that redirections are properly configured and that links from the old site point to the new one. Refer to the website migration documentation in the help center.

Domain Age & History AI & SEO Links & Backlinks PDF & Files Redirects

Is it true that Google Sites has no indexing issues at all?

Google Jun 24, 2021 ★★

There are no specific technical issues affecting the indexing of sites created with Google Sites. The reported indexing problems fall within the normal functioning of the system.

Content Crawl & Indexing Search Console

How do URL parameters impact indexing in unexpected ways?

Google Jun 24, 2021 ★★★

URL parameters set in Search Console behave differently depending on whether the pages are already indexed or not. Already indexed URLs need to be recrawled once for the parameters to apply, moving them to 'Crawled, not indexed'.

Domain Age & History Crawl & Indexing Domain Name Search Console

Why should you prefer canonical tags over URL parameters for effective crawl control?

Google Jun 24, 2021 ★★★

To control the crawling of URLs with parameters, it is recommended to use canonical tags on each URL instead of using the URL parameters feature. This allows Google to crawl the URLs, recognize the canonicals, and naturally optimize the crawling proc...

Crawl & Indexing Domain Name

Why does Google keep crawling your old URLs even after a migration?

Google Jun 24, 2021 ★★★

After a migration with redirects, Google periodically crawls old URLs to verify the redirects. This behavior is normal and does not represent a waste of crawl. Old URLs should not be blocked.

Domain Age & History Crawl & Indexing Domain Name Redirects