What does Google say about SEO?

Can you really debug structured data at scale with the URL Inspection API?

Daniel Waisberg Apr 26, 2023 ★★

The URL Inspection API can be used to debug structured data problems on a group of pages, by providing a verdict for rich results with a description of all detected elements and the issues identified for each one.

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

Does the URL Inspection API finally reveal the true indexation status of your pages?

Daniel Waisberg Apr 26, 2023 ★★

Analyzing indexation status via the URL Inspection API provides detailed information about the URL including whether it is indexed or not, the time of the last crawl by Google, the canonical URL selected by Google and the one declared by the user.

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

Should you be monitoring your sitemaps through Google's dedicated API?

Daniel Waisberg Apr 26, 2023 ★★

The Sitemaps API lets you retrieve information about sitemaps already submitted to Google Search, including processing status, last download date, and any existing warnings. It also allows you to submit and delete sitemaps programmatically.

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

How can combining Search Console API data with other sources transform your SEO reporting?

Daniel Waisberg Apr 26, 2023 ★★

A common use case for the Search Analytics API is to combine Google data with other data sources. For example, an SEO tool or content management system can retrieve data to show users the traffic generated by Google Search alongside traffic from othe...

Content JavaScript & Technical SEO

Can Google's Sites API really streamline how you manage multiple Search Console properties?

Daniel Waisberg Apr 26, 2023 ★★

The Sites API can be used to add or remove a site from a user's collection of sites in Search Console. It also allows you to retrieve information for a specific site or list all of a user's Search Console sites with the permission level for each one.

JavaScript & Technical SEO Search Console

Should you really be using Google's client libraries to leverage the Search Console API?

Daniel Waisberg Apr 26, 2023 ★★

Google recommends using client libraries rather than directly calling the REST HTTP service, as they offer better language integration, improved security, and native support for calls requiring user authorization. They are available in multiple progr...

Domain Age & History HTTPS & Security JavaScript & Technical SEO Links & Backlinks Search Console International SEO

Should You Block Your Site's Internal Search Result Pages?

John Mueller Apr 25, 2023 ★★★

On Reddit, John Mueller wrote "If you can't selectively choose which internal search result pages should be indexable, you should block them all. Use the disallow directive in the robots.txt file or noindex in the meta robots tag".

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

Does SafeSearch Really Filter Your Content on Google Discover?

Google Apr 25, 2023 ★★★

In response to a tweet from @lilyraynyc, who was wondering whether sites with some adult content could be entirely excluded from Discover, the Google SearchLiaison account stated: "SafeSearch likely applies to Discover, so yes. I'll update later if t...

Domain Age & History Content Discover & News AI & SEO Local Search

Should You Be Worried About the New GoogleOther Crawler?

Gary Illyes Apr 25, 2023 ★★★

Gary Illyes announced on LinkedIn that a new crawler, GoogleOther, has been added to the list of crawlers that relieve Googlebot. According to him, it doesn't change much but it's interesting to know. GoogleOther will mainly handle R&D crawls, to fre...

Domain Age & History Crawl & Indexing AI & SEO Links & Backlinks Mobile SEO Pagination & Structure Social Media

Why Does Your Website Suddenly Disappear for a Keyword It Once Ranked #1 For?

Gary Illyes Apr 18, 2023 ★★★

During the latest edition of SEO Office Hours, Gary Illyes provided an answer to website owners who notice their site disappearing for certain specific keywords, even though they were sometimes ranked in first position. Although the Google analyst in...

Content AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO Links & Backlinks Pagination & Structure

Do Brand Name Searches Really Boost Your SEO for Generic Queries?

John Mueller Apr 18, 2023 ★★★

In response to a question asked by an SEO on Mastodon, John Mueller indicated that the fact that people may perform queries including a brand name and keywords did not in any way help the brand in question to rank better for more generic queries (i.e...

Content AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO Penalties & Spam

Should You Publish Thousands of SEO Pages All at Once or Gradually Roll Them Out?

John Mueller Apr 18, 2023 ★★

On Twitter, a user asked John Mueller whether he should publish his site's 8,000 new pages all at once or if it would be better to proceed gradually. Mueller's response: "If it's great content that the internet has been missing and users have been wa...

Domain Age & History Content AI & SEO Social Media

Are Links from News Sites Really Worth More for SEO?

John Mueller Apr 18, 2023 ★★★

Following a discussion initiated by Patrick Stox from Ahrefs, John Mueller indicated that links from news sites are not treated differently from other links: "why would links from news sites be treated differently?" Later in his statement, the famous...

Domain Age & History Content AI & SEO Links & Backlinks Pagination & Structure

Can Your Well-Ranked Site Lose Its Google Positions Overnight?

John Mueller Apr 18, 2023 ★★

On Twitter, John Mueller responded to a user who was surprised to see their three-year-old site disappear from Google News. According to Google's Senior Search Analyst, the fact that a site is in the search engine's good graces doesn't mean it will a...

Content AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO Social Media

Is automation really considered spam by Google when it's used to boost rankings?

John Mueller Apr 18, 2023 ★★★

Using automation, including AI, to generate content with the primary purpose of manipulating ranking in search results constitutes a violation of Google's anti-spam policies.

Content AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO Penalties & Spam

Is using AI to generate SEO content spam or a legitimate opportunity?

John Mueller Apr 18, 2023 ★★★

Not all use of automation is spam. Automation has been used to generate useful content such as sports scores, weather forecasts and transcriptions. AI can help create excellent and useful content for the web. Appropriate use of AI or automation is no...

Content AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO Penalties & Spam

Does Google really expect you to justify who, how, and why for every piece of content you create?

John Mueller Apr 18, 2023 ★★

Google recommends thinking about the who, how, and why of your content when creating it.

Content

Is Google's Status Dashboard Really a Game-Changer for SEO Professionals?

John Mueller Apr 18, 2023 ★★

Google has launched a dashboard for transparency regarding changes and incidents in search. It displays widespread issues concerning crawling, indexing, or search result display. The dashboard also tracks important changes to ranking systems and offe...

Domain Age & History Crawl & Indexing JavaScript & Technical SEO Pagination & Structure Local Search

Why is Google making Experience a core ranking factor alongside Expertise, Authority, and Trustworthiness?

John Mueller Apr 18, 2023 ★★★

Google has added an E for Experience to the EAT criteria (Expertise, Authority, Trustworthiness) in its quality rater guidelines. The criteria now become EEAT: Experience, Expertise, Authority, and Trustworthiness.

Content AI & SEO

Does Google's Updated rel=canonical Documentation Change How You Should Handle Duplicate Content?

John Mueller Apr 18, 2023 ★★

Google has recently updated documentation regarding rel=canonical link annotations. These annotations provide search engines with a hint about which page version should be preferred for indexing.

Domain Age & History Crawl & Indexing Links & Backlinks PDF & Files