What does Google say about SEO?

Is duplicate content across multiple TLDs really safe with hreflang?

John Mueller Aug 24, 2018 ★★★

Having identical content across multiple TLDs does not lead to an automatic penalty for duplicate content, especially if the hreflang tag is used to define specific target audiences.

Content Domain Name International SEO

Are 301 redirects always necessary for an HTTPS migration?

John Mueller Aug 24, 2018 ★★★

Google strongly recommends using 301 redirects when transitioning from HTTP to HTTPS to indicate a complete site move. This facilitates the transfer of signals and avoids individual URL processing.

Domain Age & History HTTPS & Security AI & SEO Domain Name Redirects

Could the overall quality of your site be hurting your top pages?

John Mueller Aug 24, 2018 ★★★

Google attempts to rank pages individually, but the overall quality of the site can affect how they are indexed. A gradual improvement of the entire site is recommended for better long-term results.

Domain Age & History Crawl & Indexing AI & SEO

Are 503 errors really going to penalize your indexing?

John Mueller Aug 24, 2018 ★★★

A 503 error is appropriate for signaling temporary unavailability and does not affect long-term indexing if used correctly. Adding a Retry-After header is a good practice but not mandatory.

Crawl & Indexing AI & SEO

Should you disavow an author with a bad reputation to protect your SEO?

John Mueller Aug 24, 2018 ★★

Removing the mention of an author with a bad reputation does not require specific actions for Google. These changes should be treated as organic modifications to the site, with no automatic impact on rankings.

Content AI & SEO

Why could your HTTPS migration disrupt your Google indexing?

John Mueller Aug 24, 2018 ★★★

HTTPS migrations are independent of algorithm updates. They must be performed properly with clear 301 redirects page by page to avoid indexing fluctuations.

Algorithms Domain Age & History Crawl & Indexing HTTPS & Security AI & SEO Redirects

Does switching to HTTPS really boost your Google rankings, or is it just an SEO myth?

John Mueller Aug 24, 2018 ★★★

The effect of transitioning to HTTPS on rankings is very slight. It does not compensate for significant algorithmic changes or correct substantial traffic drops.

Algorithms Domain Age & History HTTPS & Security AI & SEO

Is duplicate content really harmless for your SEO?

John Mueller Aug 24, 2018 ★★★

Technical duplicate content is not penalized as long as it is in a technical form. Google tries to index the best URL when the same content is available on multiple pages.

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

Can an algorithm update really avoid targeting anything specific?

John Mueller Aug 24, 2018 ★★★

The August 2018 update was a general ranking change, not specific to the medical sector, and there are no specific guidelines to manage it.

Algorithms AI & SEO

How can altering canonical and robots tags with JavaScript harm your SEO?

John Mueller Aug 24, 2018 ★★★

Modifying tags such as canonical or meta robots with JavaScript can cause conflicting signals and should be avoided to ensure clarity.

Crawl & Indexing JavaScript & Technical SEO

Should you really remove empty sitemaps from your site?

John Mueller Aug 24, 2018 ★★

Submitting sitemap files without URLs is not problematic but not optimal. It is advisable to remove these sitemaps during a code review.

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

Are recycled expired domains really facing manual penalties from Google?

John Mueller Aug 24, 2018 ★★

Expired domains that reuse poor content may be subject to manual actions from the webspam team to counter negative impact.

Content AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO Domain Name Penalties & Spam Web Performance

Can Google really read the graphs on your web pages?

John Mueller Aug 24, 2018 ★★★

Google does not attempt to interpret graphs on a web page. It is advisable to include textual descriptions to provide understandable context.

Domain Age & History Content

Does Google really rank singular and plural differently?

John Mueller Aug 24, 2018 ★★

Google can process singular and plural queries differently because they may involve different search intents.

AI & SEO

Do direct visits really influence Google rankings?

John Mueller Aug 24, 2018 ★★★

Direct visits to a site are not taken into account for Google's SEO ranking.

How can you successfully execute a domain migration without losing your organic traffic?

John Mueller Aug 24, 2018 ★★★

It is crucial to carry out the redirects in a domain migration consistently and thoroughly to avoid prolonged traffic losses.

AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO Domain Name Redirects

Does lazy loading of images really harm your Google indexing?

John Mueller Aug 24, 2018 ★★★

Google recommends that images be easily accessible, even with lazy loading, through the tag or structured data to ensure their correct indexing.

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

Do structured dates really influence the SEO of your articles?

John Mueller Aug 24, 2018 ★★★

Using structured dates in the structured data of an article helps Google accurately identify the publication date of news articles.

Discover & News AI & SEO

Why does redirecting all your pages to the homepage during migration ruin your SEO?

John Mueller Aug 24, 2018 ★★★

During migrations, avoid directing all pages to the homepage. 301 redirects must be page-specific to preserve SEO equity.

Domain Age & History JavaScript & Technical SEO Redirects

Is it true that using a 410 code instead of a 404 really speeds up deindexing?

John Mueller Aug 24, 2018 ★★★

Using a 410 response instead of a 404 for deleted URLs can, in some cases, expedite their removal from Google's index.

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