Purpose
Google Search Console is a powerful tool. It shows you how people discover your website. Analyzing search queries helps you improve your content. This attracts more visitors and boosts your website's indexing. As a result, you get better search engine rankings.
When to use Google Search Console
- Identify Popular Search Queries: Discover the keywords people are using to find your website.
- Find Content Gaps: Identify topics that your audience cares about that isn't on your site yet.
- Update Outdated Content: Make sure your content is accurate. Find search terms that rank for a specific page. Then, update it with relevant answers or information.
- Improve Your Website's SEO: Boost your search engine rankings and get more organic traffic. Use popular search queries to inspire your content ideas.
- Index Your Website: Submit your website's sitemap to help Google discover and index your pages.
- Remove Content from Search Results: Use the "Remove URLs" tool to hide specific URLs from Google’s search results for a while. Submit your website's sitemap to help Google discover and index your pages.
Elements of Google Search Console
- Removals: The Removals tool in Google Search Console allows you to temporarily remove specific URLs from Google Search results. This tool helps you hide old content or pages from search results for a while.
This is just a temporary fix. The URLs will show up in search results again if they’re still on your website. To remove it permanently, delete the content from your website.
- Sitemaps: The Sitemaps section in Google Search Console is used to submit your website's sitemap to Google. Submitting a sitemap helps with the following:
- Improved Indexing: Helps Google discover new pages on your website.
- Faster Crawling: Prioritizes important pages for Google's crawlers.
- Better Search Visibility: Increases the chances of your website appearing in search results.
- Search Results: The "Search Results" section is like a window into what people are searching for when they land on your site. You can also use the "Add filter" button to search for a specific URL. Here's what it shows:
- Search Queries: These are the words people type into Google to find your site.
- Clicks: How many times people clicked on your website from Google Search.
- Impressions: How often your website appeared in Google Search results.
By understanding these search queries, you can improve your website's content to match what people are looking for. This can help your website rank higher in search results and attract more visitors.
- Pages: The "Pages" section in Google Search Console is like a report card for your website. It shows you how well Google understands and indexes your pages. It helps you understand:
- Indexed Pages: These are the pages that Google has found and added to its search results.
- Excluded Pages: These are pages that Google hasn't added to its search results.
- 404 Error Pages: These are pages that have broken links and that have returned errors, such as 404 Not Found.
By checking this section, you can make sure Google is seeing the right pages and fixing any problems that might be keeping your website from showing up in search results.
- URL Inspect: The URL Inspection Tool in Google Search Console is like a magnifying glass that lets you check a specific page on your website to see how Google sees it. You can use it to:
- Check Indexing Status: See if Google has indexed your page.
- Find and Fix Errors: Identify any issues that might be preventing your page from ranking well.
- Request Indexing: Ask Google to crawl and index a specific page.
- Referring Page: The "Referring Page" in the URL Inspection tool shows the page where Google first discovered your URL. It's essentially the source of the link that led Google to your page. Keep in mind that this isn't necessarily the most recent or important backlink. It's simply the page where Google first encountered your URL.
Identify content gaps and update outdated information:
- Identify Missing Topics: Find keywords related to your page that you haven't covered yet. Use the search queries that have high impressions and low clicks.
- Refresh Old Content: Add new sections or paragraphs to your content. This helps update old information and cover these keywords.
- Improve Readability: Create clear and simple content. Be sure to include keywords in your page titles, headings, and text.
For example:
If your page on "Standard Work Template" shows many impressions but few clicks for the query "standard work," consider making changes.
How to use Google Search Console to review and improve outdated content
Start by reviewing your outdated Content page. Check if it has relevant keywords and search queries in the header and paragraph sections.
If you don't, use those search queries. Add them to the page in the heading and body text. For example, when we check the Standard Work Template page in Google Search Console, it shows high impressions for the search query "Standard work." However, the clicks are low.
We can add the words "Standard work" to the heading when we visit the page directly. You can also add another section to this page. It can share more relevant information about the search query.
Use Google Search Console and these tips to refresh your old content. Make it relevant to what your audience is searching for. This way, you can improve your search engine rankings.
How to update outdated content
Go to Google Search Console in the "Performance" tab, use the "Search Results" section.
- Click the "Add Filter" button. Then choose "Pages" to enter the exact URL of the page you want to analyze. This is how you can find the search terms that are being used by users in Google to find that page.
- Check the "Search Queries" section. Find search queries with high impressions but low clicks. These keywords can help you update your outdated content. Low clicks suggest the page might not answer a specific question users have about this search query.
Now that you have your search term, go to the edit section of your page. You can add a new section that includes any relevant information about that term.
How to edit a page
To find the content pages you want to edit, click the "Content" button.
Clicking the Content button opens the Content library page. Here, you'll see all the pages that you and your team have added to the site.
To find the page you want to edit, use the search field. Type in the page name. You can also sort pages by using the content type filter.
In the content library, click the "Edit" button on the page you want to edit.
You can edit a page if you have its URL. Just go to the page you want to update. Then, click the "Edit" button above the title.
