Google Search Console: What It Is & Why You Need It
Countless business owners already take advantage of Google services like Drive, Sheets, Docs, and others. But Google Search Console is perhaps one of the most underrated resources from the popular web browser. But what is Google Search Console, and how can it help you grow your business? We’re here to explain.
What is Google Search Console?
What was once known as Google Webmaster Tools is now called Google Search Console. This free platform lets any website owner get a glimpse into how Google looks at their site. Website owners can go even further by using the data and feedback to improve their sites, leading to better SEO performance.
Google Search Console allows you to track countless metrics such as clicks, impressions, click-through rates, and average positions. Having all of these tools in one place allows you to quickly gauge how your website is performing on Google, which is a huge indicator of your overall SEO performance.
Getting started with Google Search Console is easy and free. You’ll simply log on to the Google Search Console and select the “Add Property” option. Paste your homepage’s URL into the given field, then verify your site. (Google outlines several ways to do this.) Set your target country and link Google Analytics before diving into the data available on Google Search Console.
Benefits of Using Google Search Console
Managing your website can be so much easier and faster when you’re using Google Search Console. Instead of blindly wondering what keywords you’re ranking for or looking through each individual page to find errors, Google Search Console brings all of that information to one convenient place.
One of the biggest benefits of Google Search Console involves indexing. Ensuring all your web pages are indexed gives your website the best chance of being found by users. If there’s a page on your site that’s not currently being indexed by Google, they’ll let you know, and they’ll even tell you why. This process makes it simple to correct any errors and guarantees that all your pages are properly indexed.
Using Google Search Console is a great way to enhance your overall digital marketing strategy. If you’re aiming for a certain number of clicks from Google, you can easily see those figures. Or, if you want to start ranking for a certain keyword or phrase, you can use Google Search Console to watch your progress in working toward that goal.
Google Search Console Reports
Google Search Console has all kinds of tools and reports that can help you understand different aspects of your business. It will take some time to look through all the reports for yourself, but here are some of the most common and potentially most helpful sections to keep an eye on.
Search Results Report
The Search Results Report is a great tool for tracking your SEO performance. This report reveals the keywords you’re currently ranking for on Google and how your rankings have changed over time. You can also see what specific URLs are performing well, so you can identify which unique pages on your website are getting the most clicks.
Coverage Report
You can use your Coverage Report to identify problem areas on your website and ensure that your site is fully functional. In this report, you’ll find everything from 404 errors and redirect issues to pages that aren’t included in your sitemap. Use the Coverage Report to see where the issues lie, then you can go into your backend to make the appropriate fixes.
Sitemaps Report
To make sure your sitemap is as accurate as possible, turn to the Sitemaps Report. As the name suggests, this report looks for issues with your xml sitemap, like broken pages. You can see when Google last read your sitemap, as well as how many URLs have been indexed. If you notice that it’s been a while since Google read your sitemap and you’ve added pages since then, you can easily notify the company so that your website is indexed and crawled accurately.
URL Inspection Tool
As you might guess, the URL Inspection Tool inspects all the URLs of your various web pages. You can manually inspect your URLs to understand how it’s being crawled by Google or if there’s a page that’s not currently indexed, figure out what the problem is. You can also use this tool to manually submit pages for indexing.
Core Web Vitals Report
Audiences these days don’t want to wait for your website to load. If your site doesn’t appear in full within the first couple of seconds, users are likely to click away and find another resource. The Core Web Vitals Report on Google Search Console can reveal areas that need improvement in terms of search speed. When you pay attention to these areas and make the proper changes, you can see an increase in your website’s overall loading speed.
Mobile Usability
These days, it’s more critical than ever before that your website is functional for mobile users, as more than half of all web traffic today comes from mobile devices like tablets and smartphones. Thankfully, Google Search Console can help with improving mobile functionality. This report will reveal any mobile usability issues that are impacting the user experience and SEO performance and which specific webpages are being impacted.
Enhancement Reports
Google’s Enhancement Reports analyze microdata (or schema) reports, allowing you to see how your site is being represented in Google search results. You’ll find elements such as breadcrumbs schema, FAQs schema, product schema, and review snippets. As with other elements of Google Search Console, the Enhancement Report will reveal any errors impacting your website and provide suggestions on how to improve.
Manual Actions
If a human reviewer from Google believes that you’ve participated in a link scheme or are otherwise failing to meet Google’s quality guidelines, they are likely to penalize your site. You can see if this has happened to your website by looking at the Manual Actions on Google Search Console. You’ll receive an email when a manual action is taken against your site, but this section of Google Search Console goes into further detail.
Security
Business owners can rest assured knowing Google Search Console can help with security. In addition to your own security measures, GSC can serve as an extra guard, letting you know if any security threats are present. You’ll be alerted to threats like hacking or phishing, allowing you to quickly address the issue. Keeping your data (and your customers’ data!) safe and secure should be a top priority, and Google Search Console makes it easier than ever.
Google Search Console is a valuable all-in-one tool for businesses of all sizes. Staying on top of your website’s performance can not only improve your SEO standings but can also bring new traffic to your business, spread the word about your company, and help you prove yourself as an authority in your field. If you’re looking to improve your SEO strategy, Google Search Console can be an incredible free resource.
For more information about how you can continue to improve your digital marketing efforts with help from Doukas Media, reach out today to schedule a free discovery call.