What does Google say about SEO? /
This category compiles official Google statements regarding Google Discover and Google News, two critical content distribution platforms for publishers. Google Discover has emerged as a significant traffic source, operating on a personalized recommendation model without user queries. Official Google positions on these topics are vital for understanding content selection criteria, eligibility factors, and necessary technical optimizations. SEO professionals will find guidance on E-E-A-T quality requirements, technical specifications including structured data markup, AMP formats, and editorial policy compliance. Google News maintains strict inclusion standards, while Discover prioritizes engagement metrics and contextual relevance. Mastering these official guidelines enables publishers to optimize visibility within these feeds, maximize referral traffic, and align content strategies with recommendation algorithms. These declarations also illuminate algorithm updates specific to these platforms and evolving journalistic standards expected by Google. Understanding the nuances between these two services helps publishers differentiate their optimization approaches and capitalize on opportunities for increased content distribution beyond traditional search results.
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★★ Is it true that the date shown in Google News isn't the actual publication date?
The dates shown for articles in Google News reflect when the Google News bot first crawled the article, not necessarily the actual publication date....
Stacie Chan Mar 25, 2015
★★★ Should you really limit meta tags to 12 keywords in Google News?
To help Google News better understand the content of your articles, use appropriate meta tags with a maximum of 12 keywords without overloading the article title with them....
Stacie Chan Mar 25, 2015
★★ How can you effectively signal your local content to Google News?
To promote local content, add a dedicated local section to the Publisher Center and to your sitemap to better signal your local content to the Google News bot....
Stacie Chan Mar 25, 2015
★★ Is Google News still ignoring mobile-friendliness while Google Search has embraced it?
Although Google Search has implemented mobile-friendliness, Google News has yet to adopt this change but is evaluating the benefits....
Stacie Chan Mar 25, 2015
★★ Can Pop-Ups Really Exclude Your Site from Google News?
A site may not be included in Google News if pop-ups prevent access to content during the review for inclusion....
Stacie Chan Mar 25, 2015
★★★ Should you really resubmit your Google News sitemap after fixing each error?
It is important to resubmit your Google News sitemap if errors are detected, as the errors persist until a new submission occurs....
Stacie Chan Mar 25, 2015
★★★ Does Google really require three digits in your URLs to be indexed on Google News?
Article URLs in Google News must include a unique string of three digits to differentiate articles from spam, unless a Google News sitemap is used to bypass this rule....
Stacie Chan Mar 25, 2015
★★★ Is it true that content syndication can trigger Panda?
Duplicating an article on another site like LinkedIn should not trigger Panda. The focus should be on the overall quality of the site....
John Mueller Mar 13, 2015
★★★ Is original content really enough to rank on Google?
Google prefers that sites publish unique and original content, rather than simply copy-pasting articles from other sites. Producing original content improves your site's quality in Google's eyes....
Google Mar 02, 2015
★★★ How does Google actually decide the date shown for your articles in the SERPs?
Google chooses the date to display for articles based on several algorithmic factors. This could be the creation date or a significant modification, and it is not something webmasters can influence pr...
John Mueller Feb 26, 2015
★★★ Do all sponsored links really need to be nofollow to avoid penalties?
Sponsored articles linking to your site must use nofollow links, as these links are considered paid and can negatively affect rankings if they are followed....
John Mueller Feb 24, 2015
★★★ Do you really need separate URLs by country to appear in multilingual Google News?
To be included in multiple Google News editions based on country, a site must have distinct URLs for each country and each targeted language. For example, xyz.com/fr for France and xyz.com/en for the ...
Stacie Chan Feb 21, 2015
★★ Why does Google News reject long articles even when the content is correct?
The 'article too long' errors in Google News are often caused by extensive user comments rather than the text of the article itself. Comments can be isolated via an iframe to avoid this issue....
Stacie Chan Feb 21, 2015
★★★ Can a sitemap really cut your indexing time on Google News by tenfold?
A sitemap is an effective tool for enabling fast indexing of articles in Google News. It can reduce indexing time to just a few minutes after submission....
John Mueller Feb 21, 2015
★★ Does the Google News standout tag truly turn SEO into a recommendation system?
The standout tag in Google News operates as a community validation system. Publishers can use this tag to enhance their credibility by recommending other sites as much as their own internal articles....
Stacie Chan Feb 21, 2015
★★★ What causes name-matching errors in your Google News sitemap within Search Console?
A Google News sitemap can be used to view reported errors in Webmaster Tools. Name-matching errors between the sitemap and the Google News database are common, especially in cases of minor differences...
Stacie Chan Feb 21, 2015
★★★ Is it necessary to perfectly align H1 tags and Titles in Google News?
In Google News, ensuring consistency between the Title and H1 tags of an article is crucial to avoid extraction errors. Differences can result in incorrect indexing....
Stacie Chan Feb 21, 2015
★★★ Is the rel=canonical tag truly enough to handle syndicated content in Google News?
When syndicating content via services like Reuters or AFP, the use of the rel=canonical tag is recommended to avoid duplicate content issues....
Stacie Chan Feb 21, 2015
★★★ Why does Google require property verification to access the News Publisher Center?
To access the Google News Publisher Center, publishers must verify ownership of their site via Google Webmaster Tools. Preferred methods for verification are the domain provider or an HTML file....
Stacie Chan Feb 21, 2015
★★★ Do user comments diminish the SEO quality of your pages?
Comments are an integral part of published pages. For short articles, comments represent a larger share of the content. Google examines the entire page, including comments, to evaluate quality....
John Mueller Dec 30, 2014
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