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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★★★ 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
★★ 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
★★★ 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
★★★ 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
★★★ 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
★★ Can Your Well-Ranked Site Lose Its Google Positions Overnight?
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 ...
John Mueller Apr 18, 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
★★★ Does Google really treat AI-generated content the same as human-written content in rankings?
Evaluating your content according to Google's guidelines, whether you use AI-generated content or not, will help you stay aligned with what Google's systems seek to reward and what users love discover...
John Mueller Apr 18, 2023
★★★ Does Google really reward content quality regardless of how it's produced?
Google's ranking systems aim to reward original, high-quality content that demonstrates authority, expertise, and trustworthiness. Google focuses on content quality rather than how the content was pro...
John Mueller Apr 18, 2023
★★★ Why Does Your Website Suddenly Disappear for a Keyword It Once Ranked #1 For?
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...
Gary Illyes Apr 18, 2023
★★★ Do Brand Name Searches Really Boost Your SEO for Generic Queries?
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 que...
John Mueller Apr 18, 2023
★★★ Why is Google making Experience a core ranking factor alongside Expertise, Authority, and Trustworthiness?
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 Tr...
John Mueller Apr 18, 2023
★★★ Is using AI to generate SEO content spam or a legitimate opportunity?
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 ...
John Mueller Apr 18, 2023
★★★ Are Links from News Sites Really Worth More for SEO?
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 treate...
John Mueller Apr 18, 2023
★★ Does Google really expect you to justify who, how, and why for every piece of content you create?
Google recommends thinking about the who, how, and why of your content when creating it....
John Mueller Apr 18, 2023
★★★ Is automation really considered spam by Google when it's used to boost rankings?
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....
John Mueller Apr 18, 2023
★★★ Does structured data really guarantee access to rich results?
Add structured data to describe your content to search engines and become eligible to display your content in a useful and compelling way in search results....
Daniel Waisberg Apr 13, 2023
★★ Should you really ignore traffic-generating queries that don't match your business?
If a search query generating traffic is not related to your site, it's an opportunity to refine your content to focus on other queries that will bring more relevant traffic....
Daniel Waisberg Apr 13, 2023
★★★ Do header tags really help Google understand and rank your content better?
Use heading elements to highlight important text and create a structure for your content, making it easier for users and search engines to navigate....
Daniel Waisberg Apr 13, 2023
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