John Mueller

★★ Should you still use disavow or has Google truly automated the ignoring of spam links?

Spam links from low-quality sites are likely already ignored by Google's algorithms. The disavow is an option if you are truly worried, but in most cases, it is not necessary....

Jul 24, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★ Should you ignore mobile errors in Search Console if the live test comes back clean?

If the live Mobile-Friendly test in Search Console detects no issues, but errors persist in the reports, it is likely that Google was unable to process the CSS during certain crawls. In such cases, yo...

Jul 24, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★ Do you really need to duplicate your infographics' content in text for Google?

For infographics, it is recommended to also provide the text or the essential content in textual format (in an article or other format), as Google primarily treats infographics as images and not as te...

Jul 24, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★ Is it really necessary to wait for ranking fluctuations to stabilize before taking action?

Google continuously makes changes to search results. When a site experiences ranking fluctuations, it's advised to let the situation stabilize, consult with other webmasters, and then improve the site...

Jul 24, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★ Do pop-under ads really hurt your SEO rankings?

Google evaluates a page's quality by looking at whether the top of the page is visible. Pop-under ads are an old technique, and their impact depends on their implementation. It is advisable to first a...

Jul 24, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Is PageRank still a top-ranking factor that you should keep an eye on?

Google still uses PageRank, but it is just one of many ranking factors. Focusing only on PageRank or links is ineffective, as many other elements influence the overall ranking....

Jul 24, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Why can a site that steals your content rank better than you?

Google uses many ranking factors. A competing site that copies content can still rank better if other signals (speed, UX, backlinks, overall structure) are better. You need to improve the site as a wh...

Jul 24, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★ How does Google choose which sitelinks to display under your search results?

Sitelinks are automatically generated by Google when it understands the site's structure and important subpages. A clear hierarchy (main pages, subpages) helps Google identify and display the right si...

Jul 24, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★ Should you really block server configuration files in robots.txt?

Configuration files such as PHP.ini or .htaccess are not accessible from the outside by default. They are secured or located in a special place. If no one can access them, Googlebot cannot either. The...

Jul 20, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Should you really unblock all CSS files in robots.txt to avoid a Google penalty?

Google must be able to access CSS files to render pages correctly. This is essential for determining whether a page is mobile-friendly. Although CSS files are generally not indexed on their own, Googl...

Jul 20, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Should You Block 404 Error Pages in Your Robots.txt File?

John Mueller indicated on Twitter that it would be a very bad idea to block pages that return 404 errors from search engine crawling, adding that Googlebot attempts to crawl billions of URLs that retu...

Jul 20, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Should you really create your robots.txt from scratch or can you take inspiration from a competitor?

You shouldn't simply reuse someone else's robots.txt file assuming it will work for your site. Instead, think about the parts of your site that you really don't want crawled, and block only those....

Jul 20, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Should You Reject Backlinks from Pages Less Popular Than Yours?

According to John Mueller, receiving links from pages with lower popularity (whether you measure it with metrics like TF, CF, DA or others) than the page receiving the link does not pose a major probl...

Jul 20, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Should You Optimize Your Mobile Site for Landscape Mode in SEO?

John Mueller explained on Twitter that the fact that a website doesn't support "landscape" mode on mobile has no impact on the search engine algorithm and therefore no SEO impact......

Jul 06, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Can Google Really Rank a Page Without Analyzing Its Content First?

John Mueller explained on Twitter that Google does not rank a page before analyzing its content. Therefore, it does not propose a page in its SERP based solely on other criteria, such as the URL or li...

Jun 29, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★ Why do link aggregators struggle to rank effectively?

Sites that primarily function as collections of links to other providers (for example, app or sports betting aggregators) may encounter ranking difficulties because Google’s algorithms may prefer to i...

Jun 26, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★ Can you really merge multiple domains using Google's Change of Address Tool?

The Change of Address Tool could technically be set up to consolidate multiple domains into one, but that is not its intended use. It is designed to replace an old site with a new one (signal transfer...

Jun 26, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ How can you effectively manage thousands of subdomains in Search Console?

Search Console limits each account to 1000 verified properties. For sites with thousands of subdomains, this requires creating multiple Search Console accounts, making management more complex (for exa...

Jun 26, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Should you still use the Disavow Tool to manage spam links?

Google generally manages spam links well automatically without the need for intervention. However, if a webmaster detects a massive influx of spam links (for instance, hundreds of spammy domains), the...

Jun 26, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Why does Google filter certain pages in the SERPs despite full indexing?

If two pages would produce exactly the same snippet in the search results, Google will filter one out. The filtering depends on the query and the relevance of each site. The pages remain indexed; only...

Jun 26, 2020 ⚡ Analysis available