What does Google say about SEO?

Why do HTTP and HTTPS create two distinct indexes in Search Console?

John Mueller Jul 27, 2018 ★★

In Search Console, it is important to verify the correct HTTP or HTTPS versions of a site as indexations can vary between them after a migration.

Crawl & Indexing HTTPS & Security Redirects Search Console

Does Googlebot really handle JavaScript sites as well as static ones?

John Mueller Jul 27, 2018 ★★★

Googlebot can process sites based on JavaScript frameworks like Angular, but it is recommended to use tools like the mobile compatibility test to ensure these pages are rendered and indexed correctly.

Domain Age & History Crawl & Indexing AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO Mobile SEO

Does a high crawl rate in Search Console really harm your ranking?

John Mueller Jul 27, 2018 ★★

High crawl rates in Search Console stats can indicate server problems that slow down indexing, but they do not directly influence ranking.

Crawl & Indexing AI & SEO Web Performance Search Console

Can you really detect the hidden algorithmic penalties of an expired domain?

John Mueller Jul 27, 2018 ★★

There is no way to know if a domain has inherited algorithmic issues; only manual actions can be checked on Search Console with read-only access.

Algorithms Domain Age & History AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO Domain Name Search Console

Should you duplicate your content for every local establishment or consolidate it on a single page?

John Mueller Jul 27, 2018 ★★★

It's better to create unique and engaging content for each individual business, even if they are in different locations. Otherwise, gathering information on a single strong page may be more effective than having multiple small pages.

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

How can massive DMCA removals destroy the ranking of an entire website?

John Mueller Jul 27, 2018 ★★

If 80% of a site's content is removed for DMCA reasons, quality algorithms may struggle to accurately assess the rest of the site, potentially harming rankings.

Algorithms Domain Age & History Content AI & SEO

Where is the best place to host your AMP pages: subdomain, subdirectory, or parameter?

John Mueller Jul 27, 2018 ★★

Google has no preference between subdomains, subdirectories, or query parameters for AMP pages. Choose the method that works best for your specific setup.

Domain Age & History AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO Mobile SEO Domain Name Pagination & Structure

Does the canonical tag really work if the pages are different?

John Mueller Jul 27, 2018 ★★★

For the canonical tag to be effective, the pages must have equivalent content. Use rel=next/prev for paginated series instead of enforced canonicals to the first page.

Domain Age & History Content Crawl & Indexing

Can scraping really devastate the SEO of a low-authority site?

John Mueller Jul 27, 2018 ★★

High-quality sites are generally less affected by scraping as they possess greater authority. If your site is of low quality, it might be challenging to stand out from duplicated content.

Content AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO

Does your server's IP address still impact your local SEO?

John Mueller Jul 27, 2018 ★★★

The server's IP address is no longer an important factor for geotargeting. Instead, use ccTLDs, Search Console settings, and the hreflang tag to indicate your location.

Domain Age & History Domain Name Local Search Search Console International SEO

Are clickable images without an <a> tag really invisible to Google?

John Mueller Jul 27, 2018 ★★★

A link is defined as an HTML tag with an href attribute. Images themselves are not considered links unless they are embedded within an element. Nofollow tags only apply to real links.

Domain Age & History AI & SEO Images & Videos Links & Backlinks

How does Google really index your AMP pages when there's a noindex?

John Mueller Jul 27, 2018 ★★★

If a traditional page is set to noindex, Google will not follow the link to the AMP page and will not index it, unless the AMP is configured as canonical for itself.

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

How long does it take to recover after a complete manual action?

John Mueller Jul 27, 2018 ★★★

After the lifting of a manual action that has entirely removed a site from indexing, the recovery time depends on the full reindexing of the site which can take several weeks.

Crawl & Indexing AI & SEO Penalties & Spam

Should you include keywords in your domain name to rank better?

John Mueller Jul 27, 2018 ★★

Having keywords in the domain name does not guarantee better rankings. You need to work on SEO just like any other site to gain visibility.

AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO Domain Name

Why does Google Cache display your page differently from the actual rendering?

John Mueller Jul 27, 2018 ★★

Differences between the Google cache rendering and the actual rendering of your page may occur due to access restrictions to CSS or JS files, but this will not affect Google's ability to index your content if rendering is correct in the tests.

Domain Age & History Content Crawl & Indexing AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO PDF & Files Web Performance

DMCA or disavow: Why does Google prefer one over the other to handle duplicate content and toxic backlinks?

John Mueller Jul 27, 2018 ★★

Using the DMCA procedure is recommended for handling duplicate content, while the disavow should only be used if you think Google may not ignore problematic backlinks.

Content Crawl & Indexing AI & SEO Links & Backlinks

Does crawl rate really impact rankings on Google?

John Mueller Jul 27, 2018 ★★★

Crawl rate is not an indicator of ranking. Just ensure that your site can handle the volume of crawling without issues and that important content gets indexed on time.

Content Crawl & Indexing

Are social signals really useless for Google ranking?

John Mueller Jul 27, 2018 ★★★

We do not use social signals as a ranking factor in search. Shares on social networks are not tracked by the nofollow URLs they typically contain.

Domain Age & History AI & SEO Links & Backlinks Domain Name Social Media

Do multiple social profiles really boost your SEO?

John Mueller Jul 27, 2018 ★★

Creating additional social profiles for the same brand does not improve the ranking of the main site. Social profiles can be indexed if public, but they do not affect the relevance of search results for the original site.

Crawl & Indexing AI & SEO

Are link directories truly overlooked by Google?

John Mueller Jul 27, 2018 ★★

Links from directories where you submit the content yourself are typically ignored by Google because they do not count as natural recommendations from the site.

Content Links & Backlinks