What does Google say about SEO? /
John Mueller is one of Google's most active spokespeople on search engine optimization topics. As a Search Advocate, he regularly answers the SEO community's questions during Google Search Central sessions and on social media. His statements are a prime source of information for understanding how Google Search works and the best practices to follow.
Quick SEO Quiz

Test your SEO knowledge in 5 questions

Less than a minute. Find out how much you really know about Google search.

🕒 ~1 min 🎯 5 questions
★★★ How long should you really wait before a new site starts receiving organic traffic?
For a new site, well-written content can appear quickly in search results, but competition in a popular niche can prolong this timeframe....
Jun 15, 2018 ⚡ Analysis available
★★★ Does temporarily removing a URL really protect your Google rankings?
Temporarily removing a site from search results using the URL removal tool in Search Console does not erase indexing. Ranking signals are retained....
Jun 15, 2018 ⚡ Analysis available
★★ Will Google's Web Light transform your pages without your consent?
Web Light is used to provide a faster version of pages for devices with low connectivity. Dynamic sites will not be affected....
Jun 15, 2018 ⚡ Analysis available
★★★ Is the automation of database-generated URLs killing your SEO?
Automatically creating URLs from a database can result in a lot of very thin and non-unique content, which is problematic for SEO....
Jun 15, 2018 ⚡ Analysis available
★★★ Should Q&A sites sacrifice quantity to maintain their quality?
With user-generated content sites, maintaining high quality is challenging. It is important to try to offer more in-depth and unique content....
Jun 15, 2018 ⚡ Analysis available
★★★ Is it really necessary to balance internal and external links for SEO?
There is no fixed ratio between internal and external links. A good interlinking structure for crawling is crucial, but external links cannot be controlled....
Jun 15, 2018 ⚡ Analysis available
★★★ Does merely matching the top 10 results really suffice for SEO?
To succeed in SEO, content must be unique and compelling, not just comparable to the top ten or twenty results. Providing significantly better information is crucial....
Jun 15, 2018 ⚡ Analysis available
★★★ How does Google really assess the editorial quality of tech news sites?
Changes in search results are related to relevance, website presentation, and overall quality. Reused content or too many ads can give a lower quality impression....
Jun 15, 2018 ⚡ Analysis available
★★★ How can you correctly use structured rating data without risking penalties?
It is important that ratings refer to the main subject of the page and that users can submit comments. A rating on a page should concern the specific topic of that page....
Jun 15, 2018 ⚡ Analysis available
★★ Why are your rankings dropping even though you haven't changed your pages?
Regular updates to Google's algorithm are not always linked to specific elements on your pages, but may be due to an adjustment in the expected relevance of results....
Jun 12, 2018 ⚡ Analysis available
★★ Can language parameters in the URL really be indexed correctly by Google?
Google might be able to correctly index content differentiated by language parameters in the URL, such as language=fr. Clear links to these versions aid in indexing....
Jun 12, 2018 ⚡ Analysis available
★★★ Do Search Console impressions really count as you think?
Impressions in Google Search Console are counted only when your site’s URL is actually seen by the user, not for unviewed search results pages....
Jun 12, 2018 ⚡ Analysis available
★★★ Should you really disavow toxic backlinks or does Google take care of it on its own?
Google recommends disavowing harmful links if it concerns you, even though its algorithms generally ignore these links. Using a disavow file does not negatively affect your site....
Jun 12, 2018 ⚡ Analysis available
★★ Should you really fix every 404 error reported in Search Console?
It is normal for Google to occasionally recrawl very old URLs that return a 404 error. This is not a problem, and these errors are displayed in Search Console to inform you of crawl attempts....
Jun 12, 2018 ⚡ Analysis available
★★ Do customer reviews and ratings really influence organic SEO rankings?
Online survey results or evaluations on a website do not affect organic search rankings. Local reviews may influence local searches, but this is separate from organic results....
Jun 12, 2018 ⚡ Analysis available
★★★ Should you really abandon hreflang tags in anchor links?
Google does not support hreflang tags in anchor links. Hreflang tags must be placed in the head section of the HTML page, in the HTTP header, or in a sitemap....
Jun 12, 2018 ⚡ Analysis available
★★★ Does content translation count as duplicate content for Google?
Translating content into different languages is not considered duplicate content. Google views this as unique content because it targets different audiences....
Jun 12, 2018 ⚡ Analysis available
★★★ Do hash fragments (#) in URLs really prevent Google from indexing them?
Google generally does not consider URLs with hash fragments (#) for indexing. It is advisable to use the HTML5 History API for navigation in JavaScript applications so that Google can properly index t...
Jun 12, 2018 ⚡ Analysis available
★★★ Should you really keep 301 redirects active for a year after a site migration?
It is recommended to maintain 301 redirects for at least one year when moving sites to ensure that Google understands that the content on the new domain is the same as that on the old one....
Jun 12, 2018 ⚡ Analysis available
★ Does Word Order in Title Tags Really Impact SEO Rankings?
John Mueller indicated on Twitter that changing the word order in a Title tag does not, in his opinion, modify the page's ranking in search results....
Jun 11, 2018 ⚡ Analysis available
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