When you link your website with Google Search Console you unlock a whole host of benefits for your business. This free tool tracks data specifically related toy how your website performs in search results. From how often your website appears in search results to how many clicks it gets and which search phrases get eyeballs on your content. Using Google Search Console for SEO efforts is a smart move.
Estimated reading time: 6 minutes
SEO basics
Before I get stuck into how to use Google search console for SEO I want to talk a bit about Google and search engine optimisation.
The first thing you need to understand is that Google is the number 1 search engine around and they want to keep it that way.
So Google are only concerned with serving users the best results possible, because if people stop finding what they need they’ll use another search engine.
This is why more and more focus is being put on user experience in search algorithms.
If people leave your site quickly after landing on it Google will see that you’re not giving people the information they need when they search for those keywords and will push you down the rankings.
Boosted visibility
Search Console gives you the lowdown on how your website appears in Google search results. You’ll see what search queries people are using to find your site, how often it shows up in results, and where your pages rank. Armed with this info, you can optimize your content and amp up your visibility.
Sitemaps
Sitemaps make it easier for search engines to crawl and index your website.
Sitemaps are files listing the pages on your site along with images and links. It makes 100% sure that Google knows your site’s there and that it knows how best to crawl it.
When you submit one, via Google Search Console, it will alert you to any crawl errors that might be hampering your site’s accessibility.
Monitor performance
With Search Console, you can track key metrics like click-through rates, impressions, and your position in search results. You’ll also find a report listing all the websites that link back to yours, which is a great indicator of the quality of the content on your website.
It’s like having your own SEO dashboard! Use these insights to fine-tune your strategies and uncover opportunities for growth.
Track mobile friendliness
With more and more people using them to access the web mobile is where it’s at, and Search Console has your back.
It provides a mobile usability report that flags any issues hurting your site’s mobile experience. Don’t miss out on those smartphone users—make sure your site shines on every screen!
SEO Site Health
Search Console keeps an eye on your website’s well-being. It’ll let you know if you’ve committed any SEO no-no’s that could lead to manual actions and decreased visibility.
Plus, it alerts you to potential security threats, like sneaky malware or hacking attempts.
Crawl errors
There may be some pages or posts that Google can’t crawl for some reason. When we talk about crawl errors it means that Google can’t access a page on your site to add it or update it in it’s index.
There are loads of reasons Google might not be able to index a page, but the sooner you find out about them, the sooner you can fix them.
Possible causes include removing a page and not setting up a redirect to another one. It could even be that when Google tried to crawl your site that your host was having technical difficulties.
You’ll get a reason for crawl errors and advice on how to fix them.
You should also get an email from Google search console telling you about it as soon as it happens. So your pages shouldn’t fail crawling for too long.
To find out about crawl errors click the Coverage option on the left hand menu.
Add individual pages for indexing
You can add single pages to Google’s index just by adding the URL via Google search console. This is useful in a couple of situations.
If you’ve fixed a crawl error or a mobile usability problem then you’ll want to tell Google to re-index it so it knows that the problem has been fixed.
You could also do this after you publish a new page or blog post to try to get it into Google’s index a bit quicker than it would have otherwise.
To do this, paste the link into the search bar at the top of the screen and hit enter.
Google will then tell you whether or not it’s included in it’s index. If it isn’t in the index you can click Request Indexing and it will be added to the list of pages to be indexed.
Search Console Success
Set up Google Search Console on your WordPress website
Improve your website’s visibility, track performance and make data-driven decisions
Using Google search console for SEO – verdict
If knowledge is power then Google search console is the kingmaker.
It gives you a huge amount of information to help you supercharge your SEO strategy.
Not only will you have access to the basic info like which keywords your site ranks highly for but it will also give you a list of sites that link to yours including which of your pages they link to, but the link text as well.
If you use the info it gives you and you keep on top of any crawl or mobile usability problems then you should be able to improve your search engine optimisation.
You may also enjoy:
The Google Search Console dashboard – all you need to know
Google Search Console vs Google Analytics – do you need them?
How to set up Google Search Console on your WordPress website
I’m glad you found it useful