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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★★ Should you really rely on CMS plugins to handle your structured data automatically?
If you use a content management system like WordPress or Squarespace, the best approach is to find a plugin that automatically exposes structured data for content already present on your web pages....
Ryan Levering Aug 23, 2022
★★★ What's the point of perfect structured data if Google can't actually crawl your pages?
The most important thing as a website owner is to first make sure Google can crawl your content. If Google cannot crawl your content, then it cannot find the structured data on your page....
Ryan Levering Aug 23, 2022
★★★ Why does Google recommend JSON-LD over Microdata or RDFa for structured data implementation?
Google's recommended approach is to use JSON-LD because it's the simplest syntax. JSON-LD is a separate block of JSON syntax placed on the web page within a script tag alongside the visible content....
Ryan Levering Aug 23, 2022
★★★ Can structured data really boost your qualified SEO traffic?
When you tell Google what's on your webpage in a structured way, it allows Google to interpret your content more precisely and create visual treatments like product review stars or search filters. Thi...
Ryan Levering Aug 23, 2022
★★★ Why Does Google Refuse to Index Some SEO Content Even When It's Optimized?
John Mueller explained on Twitter that "a lot of SEOs and websites produce very low-quality content that isn't worth indexing (...) Just because it exists doesn't mean it's useful to users."...
John Mueller Aug 22, 2022
★★★ Is HTTPS Really Mandatory to Rank Well on Google in 2024?
John Mueller reminded on Twitter that having a website in HTTPS is absolutely not a requirement to be (well) ranked in Google's search results. Many HTTP sites are well indexed and rank in the top res...
John Mueller Aug 22, 2022
★★★ How Do You Count the 50,000 URL Limit in XML Sitemaps Without Making Mistakes?
John Mueller explained on Twitter that the 50,000 URL limit in XML Sitemaps applies only to the number of URLs submitted through the "loc" tag. If there are other URLs in the file, such as with the "a...
John Mueller Aug 16, 2022
★★★ Do Dwell Time and Pogosticking Really Influence SEO Rankings in Google?
John Mueller reminded us on Twitter for the 4,765th time 🙂 that clicking on your link (or another one) in the SERPs will have no influence on the future ranking of that page in the SERP, neither posit...
John Mueller Aug 16, 2022
★★★ Should You Abandon Dynamic Rendering for SEO in 2024?
Google has updated its documentation for JavaScript developers and now indicates that Dynamic Rendering is "a workaround and not a long-term solution for JavaScript-generated content issues in search ...
Google Aug 16, 2022
★★★ Do skip links really improve your SEO, or are they just an accessibility checkbox?
Accessible websites should offer a skip link menu on the first Tab press, allowing users to jump directly to main content and avoid repetitive navigation. This is a recommended practice for web access...
Danny Farra Aug 11, 2022
★★ Does accessibility really boost your content's international SEO performance across multiple languages?
Writing short, well-structured texts improves accessibility and facilitates translation. Content becomes longer in certain languages like German, so starting with concise text is beneficial for everyo...
Lizzi Sassman Aug 11, 2022
★★★ Does text spacing and structure really influence your Google rankings?
Cognitive accessibility requires dividing paragraphs into digestible sections, spacing out content, and using bullet points. Large blocks of unstructured text are not accessible, whether the user is n...
Danny Farra Aug 11, 2022
★★ Does text size really matter for Google rankings, or is it just about user experience?
Text that is too small reduces accessibility. All textual elements on a page, including those considered decorative, should be large enough to be easily read and understood....
Danny Farra Aug 11, 2022
★★★ Does Google really prioritize color contrast for SEO rankings, and should you care?
Insufficient color contrast is one of the most common accessibility issues on websites. Text overlaid on images without solid backgrounds or very light/gray text reduces readability and accessibility....
Danny Farra Aug 11, 2022
★★★ Can an iframe with noindex block the indexing of the main page?
John Mueller explained on Twitter that if a parent page containing a meta robots "index" tag displayed an HTML file (child) containing a meta robots "noindex" tag in an iframe, the parent page would b...
John Mueller Aug 08, 2022
★★★ Can Google really index your URLs blocked by robots.txt without you being able to do anything about it?
If a page blocked by robots.txt disallow is very popular on the internet, Google can index the URL without the content. The result will appear without a snippet but with the title. In this case, a met...
Gary Illyes Aug 04, 2022
★★ Should you disable Google cache to take control of how your snippets appear in search results?
At the serving level (search results display), it is possible to control the snippets displayed and the cached content of the page. The meta noarchive tag allows you to remove the cached page without ...
Gary Illyes Aug 04, 2022
★★★ Does Google extract meta robots and canonical tags during indexing rather than at crawl time—and why does this distinction matter for your site?
Meta tags such as meta robots noindex and rel canonical are extracted during the indexing process, when Google parses the content and performs rendering. If Google detects meta robots noindex, the URL...
Gary Illyes Aug 04, 2022
★★★ Should You Really Focus on Backlink Numbers to Improve Your SEO?
John Mueller indicated on Twitter that there is no objective and exhaustive way to count the links pointing to a web page (backlinks): "Don't focus on the number of links a particular tool indicates, ...
John Mueller Aug 01, 2022
★★★ Do Age Verification Pop-ups Really Prevent Your Content from Appearing in Google Discover?
Danny Sullivan explained that if a website displays an age verification request (particularly for sites accessible only to adult users via a pop-up) before accessing its content, this can prevent it f...
Danny Sullivan Aug 01, 2022
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