What does Google say about SEO?

Do social media and social bookmarking really influence Google rankings?

John Mueller May 28, 2019 ★★

Social bookmarking services are generally ignored by Google for SEO. It's more effective to create quality content that naturally attracts links.

Content AI & SEO Links & Backlinks Social Media

Does Google My Business really need to match structured data to rank effectively?

John Mueller May 28, 2019 ★★★

It is essential to maintain consistency between the structured data on your site and your Google My Business listings, particularly for opening hours to avoid discrepancies.

AI & SEO Local Search

Does Googlebot really handle ranking, or is Google just spinning tales?

Martin Splitt May 22, 2019 ★★★

Googlebot is a program that performs three main functions: crawling, indexing, and, while not part of Googlebot, ranking. It collects online content, indexes it to understand its topic, and ranking is subsequently based on this information to respond...

Content Crawl & Indexing

Does Googlebot really adapt its crawling based on your site type?

Martin Splitt May 22, 2019 ★★★

Googlebot adjusts its crawling frequency based on the type of website. For instance, news or frequently changing sites will be crawled more often than more static sites, such as a museum. This strategy helps avoid unnecessary server load while ensuri...

Crawl & Indexing AI & SEO

Does JavaScript really delay the indexing of your pages by Google?

Martin Splitt May 22, 2019 ★★★

Googlebot executes the JavaScript of websites, but this may happen with a certain delay. Therefore, links dynamically generated by JavaScript are not immediately discovered during the first crawl but only after rendering, which can delay the indexing...

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

Should you really trust the user agent to detect Googlebot?

Martin Splitt May 22, 2019 ★★★

To recognize Googlebot, you can check the user agent that literally contains the word 'Googlebot'. This allows for optimization in how content is served, for instance, by providing pre-rendered content instead of a full single-page application.

Domain Age & History Content Crawl & Indexing

Can you really control the sitelinks that appear in Google?

John Mueller May 17, 2019 ★★★

It is not really possible to directly control the sitelinks that appear in search results. These links are automatically determined by Google and are generally based on the structure of the site and its relevance.

AI & SEO Links & Backlinks Pagination & Structure

Can a domain with a dubious history really win back Google's favor?

John Mueller May 17, 2019 ★★★

A problematic age of the domain, such as a previous use for low-quality content, can have a lasting impact on ranking. However, with quality content and sound SEO practices, the site should be able to overcome this over time.

Domain Age & History Content AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO Domain Name

Does copied and scraped content really threaten your SEO?

John Mueller May 17, 2019 ★★

Google is generally capable of ignoring copied or scraped content. However, if you notice that your content is duplicated elsewhere, it may be useful to disavow those links using the disavow tool.

Content AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO Links & Backlinks

Do 302 redirects really convey the relevance of the target content?

John Mueller May 17, 2019 ★★★

When a page is redirected via a 302 redirect, Google uses the content of the target page to evaluate its relevance in search results, rather than the original content of the redirected page.

Domain Age & History Content Redirects

Are Q&A sites really facing Google algorithmic penalties?

John Mueller May 17, 2019 ★★

Algorithmic changes can affect question-and-answer type sites. Sometimes this can be due to better relevance of other sites for the same queries, and not necessarily due to a direct penalty.

Algorithms AI & SEO

How can you permanently remove a test site from Google's results without delay?

John Mueller May 17, 2019 ★★★

To quickly remove a test site from search results, you can use the removal tool in Search Console. Additionally, ensure that Googlebot cannot access the site through means such as server authentication.

Crawl & Indexing AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO Search Console

Do multiple slashes in your URLs really sabotage your crawl budget?

John Mueller May 17, 2019 ★★★

The repeated use of slashes in URLs can lead to inefficient crawling issues. To mitigate this, it is recommended to use canonical link tags.

Crawl & Indexing Links & Backlinks Domain Name Pagination & Structure

Why does Google show automatic translation links even when your site is in the correct language?

John Mueller May 17, 2019 ★★

An automatic translation link appearing in search results does not mean that Google has misinterpreted the main language of the site. This can be due to the presence of words from another language or proper names.

AI & SEO Links & Backlinks International SEO

Does duplicate content across language versions really hurt your international SEO?

John Mueller May 17, 2019 ★★★

Google can identify duplicate content on multilingual pages, but that does not penalize the site. Google will simply display one of the variants in search results.

Domain Age & History Content AI & SEO Local Search International SEO

Can blocking CSS in robots.txt sabotage your mobile-friendliness?

John Mueller May 17, 2019 ★★★

Ensure that CSS files are not blocked by the robots.txt file to allow Google to confirm the 'mobile-friendly' nature of your pages. If the mobile compatibility test indicates that everything is fine, there's no need to worry further.

Domain Age & History Crawl & Indexing Mobile SEO PDF & Files

Why does Google only display one type of rich snippet per page even with multiple structured data?

John Mueller May 17, 2019 ★★★

It is possible to use multiple types of structured data on a page, but Google will only display one combination of rich snippets in the search results. Focus on the elements that are most relevant to your content.

Domain Age & History Content Structured Data AI & SEO Local Search

Can infographics really replace text content for SEO?

John Mueller May 17, 2019 ★★

Adding infographics can enrich your pages for users, but they will not replace the need for high-quality text on your site, especially if all the text is embedded within an image.

Domain Age & History Content AI & SEO Images & Videos

Are poorly implemented canonicals really sabotaging your link equity?

John Mueller May 16, 2019 ★★★

Google tries to follow canonical tags when implemented, but this can vary depending on the similarity of the pages. Non-indexed pages with canonicals may potentially lose links or not be maintained in the index.

Domain Age & History Crawl & Indexing AI & SEO Links & Backlinks

Should you really disavow spammy links detected in Search Console?

John Mueller May 16, 2019 ★★★

It is generally unnecessary to take measures against spammy links that appear in Search Console. However, if you want to ensure that they have no impact, you can use the disavow file, ideally based on the domain rather than individual URLs.

AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO Links & Backlinks Domain Name PDF & Files Penalties & Spam Search Console