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.
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🕒 ~1 min 🎯 5 questions
★★★ Is it true that EAT isn't a direct technical factor in SEO?
EAT is not a technical score or a direct ranking factor based on specific elements. It is a concept from the Quality Rater Guidelines that influences the overall improvement of algorithms....
Sep 26, 2021 ⚡ Analysis available
★★ Should you really worry about migrating between subdomains?
<p>Switching from one subdomain to another on the same domain is relatively simple and should take about a week for a medium-sized site, provided that the redirects are set up correctly.</p>...
Sep 26, 2021 ⚡ Analysis available
★★ Does Google really filter out spam traffic in Core Web Vitals?
Google filters out typical spam traffic from the data in the Chrome User Experience Report used for Core Web Vitals. This type of traffic should not cause any issues....
Sep 26, 2021 ⚡ Analysis available
★★★ Does frequent manual submission indicate quality issues for your SEO site?
If you have to manually submit each article for it to be indexed, it's a sign that Google is unsure about the overall quality of the site. With truly excellent content, Google crawls regularly without...
Sep 26, 2021 ⚡ Analysis available
★★ Should you really be concerned about the canonical element for every site?
The canonical element is important when multiple URLs display the same content (tracking URLs, etc.). For a typical site, it's not critical but it's a good practice. There is no direct SEO bonus....
Sep 26, 2021 ⚡ Analysis available
★★★ Does Googlebot Really Ignore Cookies?
Googlebot cannot use cookies and therefore does not see personalized content based on cookies. It always sees the same content as a user without cookies....
Sep 26, 2021 ⚡ Analysis available
★★★ Should you focus on creating strong pages instead of numerous ones in SEO?
Creating fewer but stronger pages is generally better when competition is high. With too many pages, the value becomes more dispersed. It's better to start with fewer, very solid pages....
Sep 26, 2021 ⚡ Analysis available
★★★ How does Core Web Vitals evolve automatically for SEO?
Improvements to Core Web Vitals are taken into account automatically and progressively. There's no need to wait for a major update. Data in Search Console has a delay of 28 days....
Sep 26, 2021 ⚡ Analysis available
★★ How does Google leverage title and anchor text to interpret your links?
Google utilizes both the title attribute and anchor text in conjunction to understand links. If the title contains information that is missing in the anchor text, it should function properly....
Sep 26, 2021 ⚡ Analysis available
★★★ How does search intent impact your SEO rankings?
Google seeks to understand the intent behind a query to determine whether the user is looking for information about a product or intends to make a purchase. This influences the type of pages displayed...
Sep 26, 2021 ⚡ Analysis available
★★★ How does Google's Page Experience Update really impact your SEO?
The rollout of the Page Experience Update occurred gradually from July to the end of August, page by page. Therefore, traffic changes are gradual, not sudden. A sharp drop on the day of the announceme...
Sep 26, 2021 ⚡ Analysis available
★★★ How Do Internal Links Affect Google's Perception?
Internal linking helps indicate to Google which pages are important. Pages linked from the homepage are treated as almost as important as the homepage itself, and the value then gradually spreads....
Sep 26, 2021 ⚡ Analysis available
★★★ How Does Google Really Assess the Overall Quality of a Website?
John Mueller explained on Twitter that the overall concept of website quality, in Google's eyes, is primarily defined by analyzing all pages of a site, not just those that are not indexed: "when it co...
Sep 20, 2021 ⚡ Analysis available
★★★ Can Changing Your CMS Theme Really Impact Your SEO Rankings?
John Mueller explained in an SEO video that changing the theme on your CMS (WordPress, Drupal, Prestashop, or others) can impact your SEO, depending on the changes that are made. For example, the mana...
Sep 20, 2021 ⚡ Analysis available
★★★ Should You Ignore Mobile Compatibility Errors in Search Console When Manual Tests Pass?
John Mueller explained that if you have error messages in the mobile compatibility report of Search Console, you should disregard them if the URLs indicated as faulty successfully pass the mobile-frie...
Sep 20, 2021 ⚡ Analysis available
★★★ Is it necessary to add a lot of text on e-commerce category pages?
There is no word count limit imposed by Google. For category pages, a few sentences are generally sufficient to provide context. If product names are clear, additional text is often not necessary....
Sep 17, 2021 ⚡ Analysis available
★★ Is it true that Google tolerates partial content duplication between blogs and category pages?
Duplicating one or two paragraphs between a blog article and a category page poses absolutely no issue. Only massive content duplication across the entire site would be problematic....
Sep 17, 2021 ⚡ Analysis available
★★★ Do 404 Errors from Non-Existent URLs Really Impact Your SEO?
404 errors on URLs that do not exist on the site (from broken external links or scrapers) are normal and do not negatively affect crawling. Google attempts to access them and then ignores them. It's o...
Sep 17, 2021 ⚡ Analysis available
★★ Should you really link to the original sources of duplicate content for SEO?
It is not necessary to add a link to the original source of duplicate content (like a manufacturer). Google automatically manages duplication without needing this indication....
Sep 17, 2021 ⚡ Analysis available
★★ Should you be concerned about low-quality pages affecting your overall SEO?
When Google assesses the overall quality of a site, it’s a lengthy process. Adding new pages to an existing site will be evaluated in the context of the entire site, which takes time....
Sep 17, 2021 ⚡ Analysis available
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