John Mueller

★★★ Is the 'Crawled, Currently Not Indexed' status really just a sign of poor website quality?

When a page is crawled but not indexed, it generally indicates that Google is not convinced of the site's quality. Significantly improving the overall quality of the entire site is the main recommenda...

Jan 21, 2022 ⚡ Analysis available

★★ Do you really need technical perfection to rank well on Google?

Google uses many different factors in its algorithms. A site doesn't need to be perfect on all these factors to rank well. Errors on one factor can be compensated by strong results on others....

Jan 21, 2022 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Can you really use the address change tool to merge or split websites?

The address change tool in Search Console only works for one-to-one migrations from one domain to another. It should not be used to merge or split sites, as this requires URL-by-URL handling....

Jan 21, 2022 ⚡ Analysis available

★★ Crawled vs Discovered: Are these two non-indexed statuses really the same thing?

The statuses 'Crawled, not indexed' and 'Discovered, not indexed' are essentially equivalent. In both cases, Google knows the URL but has decided not to index it....

Jan 21, 2022 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Does Google really crawl your site less when it perceives low quality?

Google doesn't crawl all web content and must prioritize. Crawl frequency reflects the overall quality perception of a site. If algorithms aren't convinced of quality, fewer pages will be crawled and ...

Jan 21, 2022 ⚡ Analysis available

★★ Can Google Really Identify the Main Language of a Multilingual Page Without Hurting Your SEO?

Google attempts to identify the main language of a page even if it contains terms in multiple languages. If no main language can be determined, multiple languages can be assigned without losing weight...

Jan 21, 2022 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Do structured data really improve rankings, or just how results are displayed?

Structured data is primarily useful if it produces a visible effect in search results. They do not change a page's ranking. If they are not displayed, adding them is not critical....

Jan 21, 2022 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ CCTLD, subdomain or subdirectory: which structure for international geotargeting?

For international geotargeting, CCTLDs are very clear, but subdomains and subdirectories also work effectively. Avoid URL parameters for geographical targeting as Google cannot apply geotargeting to t...

Jan 21, 2022 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Does the 503 status code really protect your pages from deindexing during an outage?

During a technical outage, serving a 503 code for one or two days protects indexation. Google considers this a temporary problem and does not remove pages. A 404 or error page would result in their re...

Jan 21, 2022 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Can invalid structured data penalize your SEO performance?

Invalid structured data on a page does not lead to its removal from the index. It affects neither crawling, nor indexing, nor ranking. Google simply reports the error if you wish to use these structur...

Jan 21, 2022 ⚡ Analysis available

★★ Should you worry when the number of indexed pages drops?

A decrease in the number of indexed pages is not always a real problem. It can reflect technical cleanup, such as the removal of pages with accidentally indexed parameters. You need to analyze the act...

Jan 21, 2022 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Does internal linking really outperform URL structure for SEO?

Internal linking is more important than URL structure for understanding a site's architecture. A clear link structure helps Google identify the most important pages according to the website owner....

Jan 21, 2022 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Why Does Google Cause Position Fluctuations for Two Months After URL Restructuring?

Any significant change in URL structure causes fluctuations in search results while Google recrawls and understands the new structure. These fluctuations can last one to two months before stabilizatio...

Jan 21, 2022 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Do internal links in the header or footer really have less SEO value?

There is no quantifiable difference between internal links placed in the header, footer, or content. Google does not make any particular distinction based on the location of internal links on the page...

Jan 21, 2022 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Will desktop Page Experience signals be a game-changer for your SEO rankings?

Page Experience signals will be rolled out for desktop search results (scheduled for around April-May 2022). This rollout is separate from mobile-first indexing: what gets indexed and what measures sp...

Jan 20, 2022 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Should you really keep 301 redirects live for a full year or more?

301 redirects must remain active for at least one year following URL migration. This is the minimum duration recommended by Google to ensure a complete transition....

Jan 18, 2022 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ How long does a URL migration really take before Google fully processes it?

A complete URL migration can take several months before being fully completed and Google has reprocessed the entire site....

Jan 18, 2022 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Why does changing a URL cause you to lose a page's entire SEO history?

Google stores its index page by page, based on URLs. When a URL changes, that page's data must be transferred to the new URL, otherwise it's lost....

Jan 18, 2022 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Can a rushed URL migration destroy your search rankings before you even realize what's happening?

Before any URL migration, it is recommended to research available options and analyze potential effects. The timing of the migration must be carefully considered because these changes take time and ha...

Jan 18, 2022 ⚡ Analysis available

★★ Is Google Search Console really essential for a successful site migration?

The migration must be monitored in Google Search Console reports. You need to verify redirects for all pages to ensure the transfer is happening correctly....

Jan 18, 2022 ⚡ Analysis available