What is Google Search Console?
Google Search Console (GSC) is a free tool provided by Google to help website owners and SEO professionals understand how Google sees their website. The tool provides critical information about a site’s performance in search results, including visibility, search terms, click-through rates and any technical issues that may be affecting the site’s indexing.
History and importance of the tool
Google Search Console was originally known as Google Webmaster Tools and was launched in 2005. Its purpose from the outset was to provide webmasters with a view of how Google indexes their sites and how they can be optimised for better performance in the search engine. In 2015, Google rebranded the tool to its current name, which better reflected the broader functionality it offers.
The tool plays an important role in the management of websites:
- Monitoring and troubleshooting: the GSC helps identify and correct technical errors, such as crawling problems and security issues.
- Performance analysis: it provides information on site traffic, keywords and user behaviour that is valuable for site development.
- SEO optimisation: the tool provides recommendations to improve your website, which will help improve your visibility in Google search.
This tool is therefore an invaluable resource for anyone who wants to improve the performance of their website and better understand how their content is performing in the digital environment.
Making Google Search Console
Google Search Console is a powerful tool that helps website owners monitor and optimise their site’s performance in Google search results. In this section, we’ll go through how to create an account and add your website to Google Search Console, and look at different domain validation methods.
Creating an account and adding a website to Search Console
To get started, you first need to create an account with Google Search Console. The process is simple:
- Go to the Google Search Console homepage and sign in with your Google Account.
- Click on ‘Add property’ and enter your website URL in the correct format.
Once you have added your website, you will need to confirm your ownership. Google provides a number of methods to ensure that only the true owners of the website can view and edit information through the Google Search Console.
Domain name validation methods
Google offers several different verification methods to help you prove the ownership of your website:
- To add a DNS record: add a TXT record to your domain’s DNS settings. This is the recommended method as it validates the entire domain and all its subdomains.
- Uploading an HTML file: upload the HTML file to the root directory of your website. Google will confirm ownership by checking for the presence of the file on your site.
- Metatags: add a special metatag to the <head> section of the homepage of your website. This method is simple and fast, especially if you can edit the HTML code of your site directly.
- Using Google Analytics: if Google Analytics is already installed on your site, you can use its tracking code to confirm ownership. This requires that you have root access to your Analytics account.
- Google Tag Manager: if you use Google Tag Manager, you can confirm ownership using the Tag Manager container snippet. This method requires that you have administrative rights to your Tag Manager account.
Once you have chosen the appropriate verification method and completed the required steps, Google will verify and confirm the ownership of your website. You can then start using the tools and reports provided by Google Search Console to monitor and improve your website’s performance.
Tip: It’s important to keep your Google Search Console account information up to date. Make sure that any website changes, such as domain changes or major site redesigns, are updated and reconfirmed in your Console account so that you can continue to monitor and optimise your site effectively.
Interface and Understanding Reports
Google Search Console provides a comprehensive interface that allows you to monitor your website’s performance accurately. In this section, we will discuss how you can make use of the three main reports: performance, coverage and user experience, and how this information can be used to improve your website’s SEO.
Presentation of the main reports
The Performance Report provides detailed information on how your website is performing in Google search results. This report includes information such as:
- Hakukyselyt, jotka tuovat käyttäjiä sivustollesi.
- Klikkausten ja näyttökertojen määrä kullekin avainsanalle.
- Keskimääräinen sijoitus hakutuloksissa.
The coverage report, or page index status, provides information about the status of pages on your site in the Google index. The report reveals:
- Indeksoitujen sivujen määrä.Virheet ja varoitukset, jotka voivat estää sivujen indeksoinnin.Ohjeet siitä, kuinka korjata nämä ongelmat.
The user experience report focuses on the technical performance and user experience of the site. The report includes:
- Core Web Vitals -mittarit, jotka kuvaavat sivujen latausnopeutta, reagointikykyä ja visuaalista vakautta.
- Mobiiliystävällisyyden tilan.
- Turvallisuus- ja HTTPS-ongelmat.
Interpreting and using data in SEO
Once you are familiar with these reports, it is important to learn how to interpret and use the data collected:
- Keyword prioritisation: focus on the keywords that generate the most traffic but can still improve their ranking.
- Technical improvements to your site: quickly fix any technical problems that affect the visibility and user experience of your site.
- Content optimisation: develop content that matches the intent of popular queries to improve your pages’ CTR and rankings.
By making use of the information provided by Google Search Console, you can systematically improve your website’s SEO performance and thereby increase organic traffic.
Search result analysis and optimisation
The keyword performance analyses provided by Google Search Console are valuable tools for improving the visibility and effectiveness of your website in search engines. The analysis covers four main metrics: clicks, impressions, CTR (click-through rate) and ranking in search results. This information will help you determine which keywords are performing well and where there is room for improvement.
Key words performance analysis
When viewing the performance report in the Google Search Console interface, focus on the following areas:
- Clicks: the number of times visitors have clicked on a search result that leads to your site.
- Impressions: how many times your site has appeared in search results, regardless of whether it was clicked on.
- CTR: This figure shows the ratio of clicks to impressions. A high CTR indicates that the search result is attractive and relevant.
- Ranking: where your site ranks on average for specific keywords.
Analyse this data to identify which keywords or pages need improvement and which topics you should create more content on.
Optimising pages for higher traffic and better CTR
To better optimise your pages and get higher visibility in Google search results, follow these steps:
Improve your content:
- Develop and complement your content with keywords that will make an impression on your page but have a low CTR.
- Make sure that the content responds to the user’s search query and adds value through informative and detailed content.
Optimise headlines and meta descriptions:
- Write attractive and descriptive headlines and meta descriptions that highlight the value of the page and encourage clicks.
- Use keywords in a natural way so that they stand out in search results and respond directly to user needs.
- Make sure your site is technically optimised: fast load times, mobile-friendliness and error-free code.
- Use structured data to improve your visibility in rich search results.
Take advantage of internal ´links:
- Add internal links to your pages to improve the structure of your site and boost Googlebot’s crawlability.
- This also helps to spread the link juice around the site and improve the value of individual pages.
By following these guidelines and using the information provided by Google Search Console, you can improve your site’s performance in search engines, leading to better visitor numbers and higher conversion rates.
Indexing and site health
Using Google Search Console to monitor the health and indexing of your website is vital to ensure that your website content is searchable and indexable in Google’s search engine. Next, we’ll look at how you can diagnose and fix crawling problems, as well as improve the structure and security of your site.
Diagnosis and repair of indexing problems
Identifying and fixing your site’s crawling problems is crucial to ensuring that all your pages are visible on Google. Here are some key steps you can take to address these problems:
- Sitemap: make sure you have an up-to-date XML sitemap on your site. Google Search Console allows you to send your sitemap directly to Google, which helps Google understand the structure of your site and speeds up the indexing of new pages. Your sitemap should cover all the important pages on your site.
- Blocking files: check your
robots.txtfile, which controls which pages search bots can or cannot crawl. Make sure it does not prevent important pages from being crawled. - Server errors: fix any server errors, such as 5xx errors, that are preventing Google from accessing pages on your site. Google Search Console will report these errors, so actively monitor any reports and take action to resolve the issues.
Improving site structure and security
Improving the structure and security of your website not only contributes to a better user experience, but also improves the SEO performance of your website and protects your users from potential threats.
- Optimising site hierarchy: build a clear and logical site hierarchy that makes it easier for both users and search engines to navigate your site. Use internal linking wisely to give more visibility to important pages.
- SSL/TLS certificates: make sure your site uses HTTPS, which is the standard for online security. Google considers HTTPS as a ranking factor, so its use is critical to your site’s visibility.
- Mobile-friendliness: optimise your website for mobile users. Google favours mobile-friendly sites, and a lack of mobile-friendliness can affect your site’s rankings. Google Search Console provides reports to help you identify and fix mobile-friendliness issues.
- Security threat management: monitor and manage potential security threats, such as malware and phishing. Google Search Console will notify you if it detects security issues on your site, so respond quickly to these alerts to maintain your site’s reputation and your users’ trust.
Active monitoring and continuous improvement through Google Search Console will help keep your site healthy and ensure that it serves both your users and search engine requirements. By using these tools and strategies, you can significantly improve your site’s performance, security and user experience.
Frequently asked questions (FAQ): Google Search Console
What is Google Search Console?
Google Search Console is a free tool that allows website owners to monitor and manage the visibility of their website in Google’s search engine. It provides important information such as search traffic, performance analysis and any errors on the site.
How can I add my website to Google Search Console?
Adding a site starts with establishing its ownership. You can do this in several ways, such as adding a DNS record, uploading an HTML file to your server, adding an HTML tag to your page’s main tag, via Google Analytics, or using Google Tag Manager.
What information does Google Search Console provide?
The tool provides information such as the number of clicks by users, the number of times the site appears in search results, average rankings in search results, site security issues, mobile-friendliness and page load speeds.
How can I fix crawling errors with Google Search Console?
Fixing indexing errors starts with understanding the error messages provided by the Google Search Console. You can view the details of the error and get instructions on how to fix the problem, such as page map gaps or server errors.
Is there a fee to use Google Search Console?
No, Google Search Console is a completely free tool. It is designed to help website owners improve their site’s performance in Google’s search engine for free.
