John Mueller

★★★ Is crawl budget really a non-issue for most websites?

Crawl budget is a topic that mainly affects large websites, typically those with more than a few hundred thousand URLs....

Nov 19, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Should you really be concerned about crawl budget for your site?

Crawl budget is not a concern for most sites, as Google has no trouble exploring enough URLs on the majority of websites....

Nov 19, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Is the crawl budget really just to protect your servers or is there more to it?

Crawl budget is a system used by Google to limit the number of requests made to a server in order to avoid causing issues during crawling....

Nov 19, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Is it true that Google's Web Rendering Service really indexes what users see?

The Web Rendering Service (WRS) is used by Googlebot to display pages like a browser, allowing it to index all the content in the same way that users see it....

Nov 19, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★ Why does Google change results even during freeze periods for updates?

Even during freeze periods for launches at Google, search results continue to evolve automatically as ranking systems are algorithmic. The constantly changing web means these modifications are automat...

Nov 16, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Do Expired Domains Still Work for SEO in 2024?

John Mueller discussed the use of expired domain names in SEO during a hangout. He explained that Google is well aware of all this, and the way some people use expired domains for more or less justifi...

Nov 16, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★ Why does Google still show the old domain in site: queries after a 301 redirect?

When performing a site: query for a domain that redirects, Google may show the old site because the systems are trying to display what you're specifically searching for. This link can persist for many...

Nov 13, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★ Does Google really impose an indexing delay based on the quality of your pages?

Google does not have an intentional delay between indexing a page and displaying it based on quality or mobile usability issues. If the content is in pure HTML, it is indexed immediately after crawlin...

Nov 13, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Is it really necessary to match exact keywords in your SEO content?

It is not necessary to use exact keyword matching in your content. Google recognizes synonyms, misspellings, singular/plural forms. Machine learning systems understand the subject matter and search in...

Nov 13, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Does the length of an article really influence its Google ranking?

There is no direct relationship between the length of an article and its ranking. What matters is meeting user needs. For some topics, users expect long articles, while for others they do not. There i...

Nov 13, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Why does it take Google 3 to 6 months to refresh large websites?

For large sites, Google balances crawling between discovering new content and refreshing existing content. Without specific signals, Google takes 3 to 6 months to refresh all the content of a large si...

Nov 13, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★ Should you really optimize your pages for 'best', 'top', or 'near me'?

Google attempts to recognize qualifiers in queries such as 'best', 'top', or 'near me' and to understand intent rather than focusing solely on exact word matches. It is not necessary to specifically o...

Nov 13, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Can the same site really appear 7 times on the same SERP?

Google does not have a strict restriction on the number of times a site can appear in search results. The same site can show up 5, 6, 7 times or more if it is relevant to the user. The goal is to redu...

Nov 13, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★ Do you really need to mark your affiliate links to avoid a Google penalty?

Google is capable of recognizing common types of affiliate links. There is no automatic penalty if affiliate links are not explicitly marked, but it is recommended to help Google understand the site b...

Nov 13, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Should you really prioritize rel=sponsored for affiliate links, or is nofollow enough?

For affiliate links, Google recommends using rel=nofollow or rel=sponsored. Both are acceptable, and they can even be combined. Google prefers rel=sponsored as it is more specific, but there is no maj...

Nov 13, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Have Core Web Vitals really become a crucial ranking factor?

Core Web Vitals, including CLS, are not yet a ranking factor currently. Google plans to use them as a page experience factor starting in May 2021. It is advisable to address the issues now to prepare....

Nov 13, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Do orphan pages really harm your SEO?

Pages without internal links are considered non-critical by Google. Google gives them less weight in search results. If these pages have duplicated or low-quality content, the impact is limited as the...

Nov 13, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★ Should you really align visible dates and structured data for chronological ranking?

Google recommends that the visible date on the page matches the date in the structured data. If Google can correctly recognize the date, it will be able to rank articles chronologically when necessary...

Nov 13, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Can your site really appear in Top Stories and the News tab without being a news outlet?

Top Stories and the News tab are essentially specific variations of Google search. Any site can appear there, not just news sites listed in Google News. Each surface employs different ranking algorith...

Nov 13, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Should you really choose between 301 redirect and canonical for merging two sites?

To merge two sites, Google recommends the 301 redirect if the goal is purely SEO and a complete cleanup. The canonical is preferable if you want to keep the old site active for reasons other than SEO....

Nov 13, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available