The Shark Tank

Companies are constantly competing for Google search result spots. How does Google prioritize websites and determine search rankings? How can companies better leverage their content to increase their odds of getting noticed by Google and the speed at which they get noticed?

Search Engines: The Basics

Search engines perform three main functions to determine search result layouts. The first stage is known as crawling. Search engine bots, commonly known as “crawlers”, scour the Internet for new or updated content and follow any URLs they find on these web pages, creating a chain reaction. The second stage is indexing, a process in which, after crawling, the page is processed and stored in Google’s database, the Google Index. The last stage is ranking the search results based on relevancy, content, and accuracy. The second stage, indexing, is critical because the page must be indexed for a page to appear in the search results after a user query. Google’s decision to index a page can depend on the website’s size, quality, and likelihood of user viewings. Even if a website meets all of these criteria, there’s still a possibility that Google never indexes the page. Google’s indexing speed can range anywhere from hours to weeks. Because of this, the website should be in the best shape to expedite the website’s indexing.

How to Promote Google Indexing

The first step is ensuring that Google is granted permission to index the site. To confirm that Google can index the website, ensure that the website’s robots.txt file allows bots.

One valuable way to inform Google what URLs to index is to submit a sitemap through Google Search Console. By listing every URL, Google can better discover the websites and increase the chances that Google crawls pages it might not have picked up when following internal links.

In terms of content, the website should have high-quality content to boost indexing speed. Content quality comprises of components including structure, design, site speed, and image quality. Higher quality content leads to a better user experience, which Google looks for when assessing websites. Optimizing tactics like making certain pages have titles, internal links, headings, and high-quality images, for example, can produce high-quality content. Content should be monitored and updated often to ensure there is no duplicate or low-quality content that doesn’t add value to the website.

Popularity also contributes to indexing speed. If Google sees a website’s popularity and high online visibility, Google is more likely to prioritize the website’s indexing. There are different ways to increase website popularity, but one great way is through backlinks, links from external websites that direct the user to your website. When authoritative websites contain links to your content, your content is endorsed, indicating to others that your site is valuable and trustworthy.

Going Forth

Unfortunately, there is no solid-proof way to guarantee that Google indexes a website, but these tips can increase the probability that Google indexes the site faster. Contact BluShark Digital today for more information and help with your digital strategy.