What does Google say about SEO?

Is it really necessary to geolocate a website for an international audience?

Google Jun 19, 2018 ★★★

For websites with a global audience, it is often unnecessary to geolocate to a specific country if the content applies to multiple regions.

Content Local Search International SEO

Is Google really ignoring your international hreflang tags due to bidirectionality issues?

Google Jun 19, 2018 ★★★

Errors in hreflang tag configuration can make bidirectionality inconsistent, which could cause Google to ignore these annotations on certain pages.

Domain Age & History AI & SEO International SEO

Do spelling mistakes in comments really hurt SEO rankings?

Google Jun 19, 2018 ★★★

Google considers comment sections separately from the main content of websites. Spelling errors in comments should not affect the site's SEO ranking.

Content AI & SEO

Hreflang and Fragmented Content: How can your tags disrupt your crawl?

Google Jun 19, 2018 ★★★

Errors in content structure within hreflang tags can lead to article fragmentation, which may cause crawling issues for Google.

Content Crawl & Indexing Discover & News Pagination & Structure International SEO

Does Google use different algorithms based on your niche?

Google Jun 19, 2018 ★★

Google does not utilize different algorithms specifically based on niches. Fluctuations may be due to the perceived quality of content within those niches.

Algorithms Content

Why Doesn't Google Images Crawl Images Embedded with DIV Tags?

John Mueller Jun 18, 2018 ★★

John Mueller indicated on Twitter that when an image is embedded in the source code using a DIV tag, it is not, in his opinion, taken into account and crawled by the image search engine robot.

Domain Age & History Content Crawl & Indexing AI & SEO Images & Videos Social Media

Should You Use HTML or XML Sitemap for Hreflang Tags?

John Mueller Jun 18, 2018 ★★★

John Mueller indicated on Twitter that Hreflang tags are processed in the same way, whether they are integrated into the source code of pages or in XML Sitemap files.

Domain Age & History Content Crawl & Indexing AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO PDF & Files Social Media Search Console International SEO

Does the Order of URLs in an XML Sitemap Actually Affect Google's Crawling?

John Mueller Jun 18, 2018 ★

Once again, it's John Mueller (since Gary Illyes no longer seems to talk about SEO online at all, which, let's be honest, is no great loss...) who explains that the order of URLs provided in an XML Sitemap file doesn't matter—all data is processed in...

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

Do Forum Backlinks Still Work for SEO?

John Mueller Jun 18, 2018 ★★★

John Mueller explained in a Reddit discussion that including links (backlinks) in forum posts worked "very badly" for SEO.

Domain Age & History Content AI & SEO Links & Backlinks

Do Customer Reviews and Surveys Really Impact Google's Ranking Algorithm?

John Mueller Jun 18, 2018 ★

John Mueller (yes, him again) explained in a hangout that Google's algorithm doesn't use data such as survey results, reviews, ratings, critiques, etc. to assess a page's relevance for a given query.

Algorithms Domain Age & History Content AI & SEO Local Search Search Console

How can you correctly use structured rating data without risking penalties?

John Mueller Jun 15, 2018 ★★★

It is important that ratings refer to the main subject of the page and that users can submit comments. A rating on a page should concern the specific topic of that page.

Domain Age & History AI & SEO

How does Google really assess the editorial quality of tech news sites?

John Mueller Jun 15, 2018 ★★★

Changes in search results are related to relevance, website presentation, and overall quality. Reused content or too many ads can give a lower quality impression.

Content

Does merely matching the top 10 results really suffice for SEO?

John Mueller Jun 15, 2018 ★★★

To succeed in SEO, content must be unique and compelling, not just comparable to the top ten or twenty results. Providing significantly better information is crucial.

Content AI & SEO

Is it really necessary to balance internal and external links for SEO?

John Mueller Jun 15, 2018 ★★★

There is no fixed ratio between internal and external links. A good interlinking structure for crawling is crucial, but external links cannot be controlled.

Crawl & Indexing AI & SEO Links & Backlinks

Should Q&A sites sacrifice quantity to maintain their quality?

John Mueller Jun 15, 2018 ★★★

With user-generated content sites, maintaining high quality is challenging. It is important to try to offer more in-depth and unique content.

Content AI & SEO

Is the automation of database-generated URLs killing your SEO?

John Mueller Jun 15, 2018 ★★★

Automatically creating URLs from a database can result in a lot of very thin and non-unique content, which is problematic for SEO.

Content Domain Name

Will Google's Web Light transform your pages without your consent?

John Mueller Jun 15, 2018 ★★

Web Light is used to provide a faster version of pages for devices with low connectivity. Dynamic sites will not be affected.

Domain Age & History AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO

Does temporarily removing a URL really protect your Google rankings?

John Mueller Jun 15, 2018 ★★★

Temporarily removing a site from search results using the URL removal tool in Search Console does not erase indexing. Ranking signals are retained.

Crawl & Indexing AI & SEO Domain Name Search Console

How long should you really wait before a new site starts receiving organic traffic?

John Mueller Jun 15, 2018 ★★★

For a new site, well-written content can appear quickly in search results, but competition in a popular niche can prolong this timeframe.

Content AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO

Should you really stick to a niche when launching a new website?

John Mueller Jun 15, 2018 ★★★

For a new site, it is recommended to focus on a niche where the site can be recognized as an expert and grow progressively from there.