Is Google not indexing your pages properly? This can be frustrating because you need Google to add your pages to the index so that your audience can find them. However, before Google can index your content, it needs to be found and evaluated. If any of these processes go wrong, it can prevent your pages from being indexed properly.
Most Pages are Indexed by Default
By default, every WordPress post and page is indexed by Google. So, in most cases, you can rely on Google to index your pages on its own. The only exception is if you use a no-index tag on your pages. The no-index tag tells Google what pages you don’t want included in the search results, such as thank you pages, admin and login pages and internal search results.
Sometimes, Google does not index pages properly because of low-quality content, technical issues or poor indexing controls. If this is happening to you, some detective work may be needed to find out what’s going on.
Here are a few tips on making sure that Google can index your pages correctly.
Make Sure Google Can Find Your Content
Check to make sure that your pages aren’t hidden. If Google can’t find your content, it won’t be able to index it. Don’t block JS or CSS files because this prevents Google from reading your website properly.
Make Sure Google Can Evaluate Your Content
When Google finds your content, it will digest its text to determine quality and relevance. Help Google out by telling it exactly what your content is about and why it should be added to the index. Here are a few tips:
- Add high-quality content. Long-form content is best, as Google sees this content as more valuable. Avoid duplicating content or using spammy practices.
- Avoid specific indexing instructions. If you have specific instructions, such as meta robots tags or canonical URL tags, Google may choose not to index the page at all. Avoid these when possible.
- Be careful with Javascript. If your website relies heavily on Javascript, Google may not be able to read the content on the page. In some cases, Google will dig deeper into Javascript sites and decide whether or not to index the pages.
If Google is not indexing your pages, it’s possible that one of the above issues is to blame. Remember, Google must be able to find and evaluate your content. As long as you follow these steps, Google should index your pages on its own. To make sure that your pages are being added to the index, try doing a “site” search on Google. Also, be sure to keep tabs on your pages because Google continuously crawls and re-evaluates content.
