The Three Stages of Google Search
So, I thought I would introduce you to the three different stages that your post will go through before it hopefully hits the dizzy heights of page 1 of Google!
I often see some confusion about this, and to be honest, I don't think that the email that WA sends when your content is indexed actually helps!
It implies that your post is not only indexed but ranked too, and this is rarely the case.
So, let's see exactly what happens once you have pushed that magic Publish button!
Crawling
Google is constantly searching for new and updated pages on the internet.
This is called URL Discovery.
Sometimes, Google already knows a page exists and goes to see if it has been updated.
Or, it may find a new page because you have added an internal link to it from a page it already knows about it.
Or, Google will find new pages through your Sitemap.
Indexing
Once Google has found a page, it tries to understand what it is about, this is called indexing.
This is why we use keywords, particularly in the title and the first paragraph, to guide Google.
It will analyze the content and check if it is duplicated elsewhere.
Important - Google will not index every page it finds!
Even if you submit your post for indexing using Search Console, Google is not obliged to index it.
Ranking
Interestingly, Google does not use the term ranking, it is called serving.
So, when a user enters a search term, Google will determine the intent behind that keyword and return the results it believes are the highest quality and most relevant.
Ranking typically takes several months, and your rank position can fluctuate as Google compares your posts to other websites that are using the same keyword.
There is no guarantee that a post will ever be ranked!
If Google determines that the content is irrelevant, copied and pasted, or low quality, then it will not be ranked high enough to be found by anybody.
I hope this helps you understand the process; thanks for reading!
Recent Comments
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Thank you very much, Diane, this information really helps some of us. These tips are highly valued. Do not stop here, please, continue to educate some of us. We do appreciate it very much. Once again thank you.
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Great summary, Diane!
I usually have good luck with Google ranking (serving) the posts on my guitar site.
Perhaps Google understands that Rock N' Roll is in my blood.
Who knows, but I'm having fun and that's what matters most. Making a little money would also be nice, but I'm a patient guy! 😊
Frank 🎸