What does Google say about SEO? /
The Content category compiles all official Google statements regarding textual content creation, optimization, and evaluation in the context of search engine optimization. It encompasses fundamental aspects such as editorial quality, E-E-A-T criteria (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness), duplicate content issues, and thin content concerns. Google's positions on these topics are critical for understanding how algorithms assess the relevance and added value of web pages. This category also includes recommendations on structural elements like headings (H1, H2, Hn tags), meta descriptions, and semantic optimization. With the introduction of the Helpful Content system, Google has reinforced the importance of a user-first approach rather than a search engine-first methodology. SEO professionals will find here official guidance for creating content that meets algorithmic expectations while delivering genuine value to users, a balance that has become essential for achieving and maintaining strong rankings in search results. These declarations provide clarity on content strategies that align with Google's evolving quality standards and ranking factors.
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★★★ Is user-centric content really the ranking factor Google claims it to be?
Google's systems are designed to surface helpful, reliable content created primarily for people, not for search engines. This is a fundamental principle of ranking....
Daniel Waisberg May 15, 2023
★★★ Does Google News really consider all websites automatically, or are there hidden criteria you need to know about?
Web content is automatically considered for Google News. To appear, it must meet three criteria: high levels of E-E-A-T, consistent history of news-related content production, and compliance with Goog...
Cherry Prommawin May 15, 2023
★★★ Are Google Search Essentials Really Enough to Rank Well in Google?
Google Search Essentials include the fundamental elements that make your web content eligible to appear and perform well in Google Search. These criteria define what allows content to be indexed and r...
Daniel Waisberg May 15, 2023
★★★ Why does Google News require complete transparency about author identity?
An essential part of Google News policies is transparency: providing clear dates, information about authors, publication, and publisher. Visitors want to know who writes the content they read....
Cherry Prommawin May 15, 2023
★★★ Is your paywall triggering Google's cloaking detection without you knowing it?
If you implement a metered paywall, paywall, or login wall, use appropriate structured data. This helps Google differentiate paid content from cloaking, which violates the anti-spam policy. Content be...
Cherry Prommawin May 15, 2023
★★★ Is Trust Really the True Central Pillar of E-E-A-T According to Google?
Google's systems prioritize content using a blend of factors defining experience, expertise, authority, and trustworthiness (E-E-A-T). Trust is the most important member of E-E-A-T....
Daniel Waisberg May 15, 2023
★★ Has first-hand experience become a non-negotiable ranking factor for Google?
Experience demonstrates the extent to which the content creator possesses the direct or lived experience necessary for the subject matter. For example, for product reviews, Google values content from ...
Daniel Waisberg May 15, 2023
★★ Should you remove logos and watermarks from your images to boost SEO performance?
Use relevant images for the article and avoid logos or oversized watermarks that make images difficult to understand. Important information should not be integrated solely within images but also in ac...
Daniel Waisberg May 15, 2023
★★ Is thematic authority really enough to position yourself as a reference source in Google's eyes?
Authority demonstrates the extent to which the content creator or website is recognized as an indispensable source for the subject. For example, to renew a passport, the official government page will ...
Daniel Waisberg May 15, 2023
★★★ Should You Really Disavow Links Flagged as Toxic by SEO Tools?
John Mueller is not a big fan of link disavowal. On Twitter, he stated that it was a "terrible idea" to disavow links based on metrics from a third-party tool. He also added "Plus, none of these metri...
John Mueller May 09, 2023
★★★ Why Are Your WebP Images Showing Up in Search Console's 'Crawled - Not Indexed' Report?
A Reddit user noticed they had many WebP images appearing in the "Crawled - currently not indexed" report in Search Console. John Mueller responded that WebP images are not indexed as HTML pages, sinc...
John Mueller May 09, 2023
★★★ Should You Use "Coming Soon" Pages During a Site Migration?
According to John Mueller, it's best to avoid "coming back soon" pages as much as possible during a redesign. On Twitter, he indicates that he would simply use a 503 status code if the site migration ...
John Mueller May 09, 2023
★★ Should You Really Avoid Using Noindex and Canonical Together on the Same Page?
Google has always said that you shouldn't use noindex and a canonical tag at the same time. But John Mueller recently played his "it depends" card on Twitter. "For identical pages you don't care much ...
John Mueller May 09, 2023
★★ Does extended boilerplate content really hurt your SEO rankings?
Extended boilerplate content should generally not have any effect on your site's presence in search results. Instead, you should think about how users perceive it, as they might not appreciate it....
Gary Illyes May 04, 2023
★★★ Does your choice of CMS and programming language really impact your SEO?
The CMS used (WordPress or other) and the programming language have no impact on ranking. Only server performance and behavior can have an effect, particularly if the server is especially slow....
Martin Splitt May 04, 2023
★★★ How many products per page should you display to optimize your e-commerce SEO?
On Mastodon, a user asked John Mueller what the ideal number of products per page was. The Google employee did not directly answer his interlocutor, suggesting instead that they conduct user tests to ...
John Mueller May 02, 2023
★★ How can combining Search Console API data with other sources transform your SEO reporting?
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 gene...
Daniel Waisberg Apr 26, 2023
★★★ Does SafeSearch Really Filter Your Content on Google Discover?
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 a...
Google Apr 25, 2023
★★★ Should You Block Your Site's Internal Search Result Pages?
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 n...
John Mueller Apr 25, 2023
★★ Should You Publish Thousands of SEO Pages All at Once or Gradually Roll Them Out?
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 th...
John Mueller Apr 18, 2023
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