What does Google say about SEO?

Is hydration really the miracle solution to JavaScript SEO problems?

Martin Splitt Jan 08, 2025 ★★★

To solve SEO issues related to Client-Side Rendering, hydration combines SSR and CSR: initial content is loaded server-side (SSR) to guarantee its visibility, then subsequent interactions use CSR.

Content Crawl & Indexing AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO Links & Backlinks

Is pre-rendering really the ultimate solution for indexing JavaScript sites?

Martin Splitt Jan 08, 2025 ★★

Pre-rendering (static generation of HTML files) offers a simple, robust, and secure approach for websites, facilitating crawling and indexing by search engines.

Domain Age & History Crawl & Indexing JavaScript & Technical SEO PDF & Files

Does Server-Side Rendering really guarantee the indexing of your JavaScript content?

Martin Splitt Jan 08, 2025 ★★

Server-Side Rendering (SSR) allows search engines to receive complete HTML directly from the server, guaranteeing that content is visible and indexable without depending on client-side JavaScript execution.

Content Crawl & Indexing JavaScript & Technical SEO Links & Backlinks

Is hydration really a worthwhile technical tradeoff for your SEO strategy?

Martin Splitt Jan 08, 2025 ★★

Although hydration combines the benefits of SSR and CSR, it involves more code and more complex configuration, which can result in a less robust experience and require more maintenance.

Domain Age & History AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO

How do you choose the right rendering strategy to maximize your SEO performance?

Martin Splitt Jan 08, 2025 ★★

The choice of rendering strategy should depend on several factors: the site's function, the frequency of content changes, the types of interactions to support, and the resources available to build and maintain the configuration.

Content AI & SEO

Should You Abandon JavaScript to Optimize Your SEO for AI Crawlers?

Google Jan 07, 2025 ★★★

The Google Search Relations team recently discussed a major challenge in web development: the use of JavaScript in the context of modern search tools. While JavaScript was created to enable websites to compete with mobile applications, its excessive ...

Content Crawl & Indexing AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO Mobile SEO

Do you still need to create a blog for your startup's SEO in 2025?

John Mueller Jan 07, 2025 ★★★

Is it necessary to have a blog for your startup in 2025? According to John Mueller, it's not necessarily worthwhile unless you're passionate about your subject and have useful things to share. Danny Sullivan shares the same opinion, recommending at m...

Domain Age & History Content AI & SEO Local Search Social Media

Does Adding a Country Code to Your URLs Really Improve International SEO?

John Mueller Jan 07, 2025 ★★★

On Bluesky, John Mueller explains that adding a country code to a URL (such as mydomain.com/shoes-es) has no impact on regional search rankings. Such a modification could even lead to temporary fluctuations in rankings, with no long-term benefit. Mue...

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

Should You Really Stop Disavowing Toxic Links in 2024?

John Mueller Dec 31, 2024 ★★★

On Bluesky, Google's John Mueller strongly advises SEO professionals against wasting time disavowing so-called "toxic" links. He even goes as far as calling this practice a "waste of money."

Domain Age & History Content Links & Backlinks

Should You Block Legal Pages from Indexing to Optimize Your SEO?

John Mueller Dec 31, 2024 ★★★

John Mueller states that it is unnecessary to block the indexing of legal pages (legal notices, privacy policy). These pages do not create duplicate content issues and are not likely to affect AdSense approval. While this is not a major concern, Muel...

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

Can You Really Trust Google's URL Inspection Tool Screenshots?

John Mueller Dec 31, 2024 ★★★

On Reddit, John Mueller clarified a point regarding the reliability of Googlebot screenshots, which represent how the search engine "sees" a web page. Through the Search Console's URL Inspection tool, it is indeed possible to visualize a page's rende...

Domain Age & History Content Crawl & Indexing AI & SEO Images & Videos JavaScript & Technical SEO Domain Name Web Performance Search Console

Which HTTP encodings does Googlebot actually accept to crawl your pages effectively?

Gary Illyes Dec 30, 2024 ★★

Google Bot and Google crawlers support three specific types of HTTP encoding for compressing server responses. This information was officially documented in 2024 after being found only in scattered old blog articles.

Domain Age & History Crawl & Indexing Discover & News HTTPS & Security PDF & Files

Do AI Overviews really index your content, or do they just read it?

Martin Splitt Dec 30, 2024 ★★★

Google's AI Overviews work partly through retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), which means they rely on content that is crawlable and indexable by search engines, rather than solely on a standalone language model.

Domain Age & History Content Crawl & Indexing AI & SEO International SEO

Is JavaScript Really the Right Choice for Hybrid Websites According to Google?

Martin Splitt Dec 30, 2024 ★★

Google acknowledges that many modern websites fall somewhere between simple informational sites and complex web applications. JavaScript remains appropriate for these hybrid sites, but still requires particular attention for search engine optimizatio...

AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO

How can Google's AI white papers transform your SEO strategy?

Gary Illyes Dec 30, 2024 ★★

Google makes technical white papers available explaining how LLMs function, common problems like hallucinations, and AI principles. These resources are recommended for understanding AI interfaces in a clear and technical manner.

Content AI & SEO

Is Google finally turning those old blog posts into official documentation—and should you care?

Gary Illyes Dec 30, 2024 ★★

Google is updating its documentation in 2024 to close gaps by converting historical information from blog articles (dating back to 2005-2006) into official documentation and documenting technical details never formally published.

Domain Age & History Content Crawl & Indexing Discover & News AI & SEO PDF & Files

Is duplicate content really a search engine problem or a legal one?

Martin Splitt Dec 30, 2024 ★★

During events in Turkey, Google found that many experienced webmasters complain about copies of their content. Google clarifies that these situations are generally legal issues to be resolved through the local legal system, not through Google technic...

Content AI & SEO Local Search

Why is Google launching SEO events in underserved regions like Turkey and Malaysia?

Martin Splitt Dec 30, 2024 ★

The Search Central Live series primarily targets underserved regions where Google has not been particularly active before, such as Turkey and Malaysia, to provide SEO education and improve the overall quality of websites worldwide.

AI & SEO

Is Google really saying that most Turkish website visibility issues stem from poor content creation practices?

Martin Splitt Dec 30, 2024 ★★

During the Search Central Live event in Turkey, Google identified that many search results problems stem from how content is created on Turkish-language websites, requiring more education and documentation.

Content PDF & Files International SEO

Is Googlebot really crawling your JavaScript content? Here's how to verify it

Martin Splitt Dec 13, 2024 ★★★

Use the URL Inspection tool in Google Search Console or the Rich Results test to see if Googlebot can access a page. The tool shows the rendered HTML of the page. If you find the content in the rendered HTML by searching for it, that means it's not a...

Domain Age & History Content Crawl & Indexing Domain Name Search Console