Why Google Indexing Matters More Than Flannel Pajamas

Getting your WordPress site listed in Google search results is crucial, but it can definitely feel daunting as a beginner.

As someone who‘s optimized WordPress sites for 15+ years, I know firsthand how frustrating it can seem when Google doesn‘t index your website. Especially when you‘ve put in tons of hard work publishing great content!

The good news is, with the right approach, you can get your WordPress site showing up in Google search results faster than a caffeinated squirrel 🐿️.

In this comprehensive guide, I‘ll share all of my tips and expertise to help fellow WordPressers get their sites indexed and discoverable on Google.

Before we dive in, let‘s look at why Google indexing is so incredibly important for your WordPress site:

• ✅ Reach more users – Google processes over 40,000 search queries every second. That‘s over 3.5 billion searches per day! Getting indexed taps you into an endless supply of hungry searchers.

• ✅ Beat the competition – Top ranking positions allow you to stand out from competitors in your niche. You‘ll steal their search traffic faster than a shoplifting seagull at the beach.

• ✅ Establish authority – According to Moz, the top 3 results for a query get 60% of clicks. So ranking highly builds immense authority and trust for your brand.

• ✅ Grow your business – More organic traffic and conversions. Cha-ching! 💰💰💰

• ✅ Build credibility – Users see indexed sites as more legitimate. Like sprinkles on an artisanal donut.

Clearly, a WordPress site not showing up on Google misses out on a lot of sprinkly search goodness.

So let‘s get stuck in and get your content indexed, shall we?

Before optimizing your site, you need to diagnose if Google has already indexed it or not.

Here are a couple easy ways to check:

Search for Your Site Directly

The most straightforward option is to search for your site on Google. Try using your:

• Domain name
• Page titles
• Unique keywords or phrases

If you don‘t see your site in the search results, it likely isn‘t indexed yet.

Check Google Search Console

For a more in-depth look, check your index coverage in Google Search Console.

Search Console is a free service that provides tons of insights into how Google interacts with your site. It‘s essentially your all-access backstage pass 🎫.

To check your index status in Search Console:

1. Go to the Coverage report
2. Check the total number of indexed pages

Here‘s an exampleCoverage report:

[Indexed pages coverage report screenshot]

A low number of indexed pages indicates limited visibility on Google. Time to roll up those SEO sleeves and get optimizing!

Now that you know your current status, let‘s look at how to optimize your site to get Google crawling and indexing it.

Enable Search Engine Visibility

Start by enabling search engine access to your site.

Go to Settings > Reading and uncheck the "Discourage search engines" box:

[Screenshot of Reading Settings]

Leaving this enabled essentially puts an SEO "Do Not Disturb" sign on your site.

Submit an XML Sitemap

XML sitemaps outline all the pages on your site for search engines. They serve as a roadmap for Google to find and crawl all your content.

The easiest way to generate a sitemap is using an SEO plugin like Yoast. The plugin handles all the technical stuff for you automatically.

Learn how to properly submit your sitemap to Search Console in Step 3.

Fix Technical SEO Problems

According to Moz, some common technical issues that limit indexing include:

• ⚠️ Slow page speed – Pages that load slowly are frustrating for users and get indexed less.
• ⚠️ Broken links – These confuse Google and can lead to indexing errors.
• ⚠️ Missing meta data – Page titles and descriptions should be unique and keyword-rich.
• ⚠️ Improper HTML markup – Messy code makes parsing pages harder for Googlebot.

Search engines also prefer mobile-friendly, secure sites built on modern technology.

So scan for technical problems using tools like Google PageSpeed Insights, Search Console, and SEMrush. Then fix any issues discovered.

Optimize Site Architecture

Simplify your site structure as much as possible. Avoid deep nested category levels.

Clean architecture signals an organized, crawl-friendly site. Like Marie Kondo tidying up your website 🧹.

Google‘s job indexing your content will be much easier as a result.

Publish Killer Content

Focus on publishing amazing, high-quality content that really engages visitors.

Informative, useful articles and resources focused on target keywords give Google something great to index.

The more awesome content you publish, the more pages will get indexed over time.

Build Backlinks

According to SearchEngineJournal, backlinks remain one of the most important ranking factors.

External sites linking back to your content gives Google signals to discover and prioritize those pages.

Try tactics like guest posting, directory citations, contributing to forums, and linkable assets.

By optimizing these key areas, you‘ll eliminate common indexing roadblocks and help Google rapidly find and include your WordPress site.

Earlier we discussed using XML sitemaps to outline all your site‘s pages for Google.

The next step is directly submitting your sitemaps to Search Console.

Here‘s how:

1. Install an SEO plugin like Yoast to automatically generate a sitemap.xml file.

2. In Google Search Console, click Add a sitemap under the Sitemaps report.

3. Enter your sitemap URL, typically www.yourdomain.com/sitemap_index.xml

4. Click Submit to add the sitemap to your account.

Google will now reference your sitemap as an indexing cheat sheet for your site.

You can resubmit updated sitemaps whenever you publish fresh content. Then watch your pages get indexed faster than a cheetah chasing a gazelle 🐆.

Some common WordPress practices accidentally block Google from indexing your site.

Here are key barriers to watch out for:

Password Protection

If your whole site requires a password, Google can‘t access or index it.

Avoid password protecting your entire site if you want it indexed. Only use protection for private pages.

Blocking in robots.txt

The robots.txt file gives instructions to bots crawling your site.

Bad configurations may inadvertently block indexing. Use an SEO optimized robots.txt file.

Test your robots.txt using Google‘s Robots Testing Tool.

Private Domain Registration

Privacy services hide your registration info, which can also block search engine access.

Use registrars like WordPress.com that allow private registration along with search engine indexing.

Removing barriers gives Google full access to crawl and index your entire WordPress site.

Search Console provides awesome reports to track your indexing progress:

• 📊 Index Coverage – Shows total indexed, not indexed, and pending pages.

• ⚠️Indexing Errors – Displays issues preventing pages from being indexed.

• 📃 Sitemaps – Number of sitemap pages indexed.

• 🔗 Links – Inbound links assisting indexing.

Regularly check for any crawl errors or issues. Over time you should see indexed pages grow as you optimize.

You can also monitor rankings for target keywords directly on Google. Moving up indicates your efforts are working!

As mentioned earlier, backlinks are enormously helpful for getting indexed faster.

Here are my favorite tactics for earning high-quality backlinks:

• Guest posting – Contact sites in your industry to contribute content with a link back to your site. Offer value to the audience.

• Web 2.0s – Commenting on forums, blogs, and niche social sites provides contextual links and exposure.

• Directory citations – Ethically list your business on relevant online directories and citation websites.

• Asset link building – Create resources like tools or quizzes and build links to them.

• PR distribution – Write and distribute press releases to news outlets. Include target keywords.

According to Ahrefs, earning 15+ relevant backlinks monthly results in significant indexing improvements.

Social media signals also boost discoverability and indexing:

• Facebook – Shares and tags notify Google of new pages to crawl.

• Twitter – Links in tweets pass crawl signals.

• YouTube – Videos in transcripts and descriptions can rank in Google search.

• Pinterest – Optimized pins linking back to your content help indexing.

Install social sharing buttons on your site to encourage more user sharing.

Then actively promote your content across social platforms. The more shares, the quicker Google discovers your new pages.

Being listed on Google News expands visibility. To qualify:

• Publish timely news content regularly.
• Have a dedicated news section.
• Follow Google News publisher guidelines.
• Have an established site with traffic history.

If approved as a news source, your latest stories appear in Google News results.

Use Google Search Console to request indexing in Google News. Spread your wings across both web search and news search.

Google My Business (GMB) displays your local business info prominently in search results:

[GMB Knowledge Panel screenshot]

This helps drive tons of calls, directions, and store visits from local searchers.

Make sure to register your GMB listing if you operate a local brick-and-mortar business.

We‘ve covered Search Console‘s key reports for monitoring indexing. But they offer other helpful tools as well:

📋 URL Inspection – Manually submits a URL for Google to crawl.

🔎 Fetch as Google – Displays how Googlebot renders and indexes a page.

🚫 Blocked URLs – Shows pages blocked by robots.txt or other issues.

🛠️ HTML Improvements – Identifies fixes for HTML problems affecting indexing.

Actively use these tools during optimization to diagnose and resolve crawl errors.

Getting your WordPress site indexed on Google is crucial for driving search traffic and growing your online presence.

By following this guide, you can:

• Understand how Google indexes sites
• Diagnose current indexing status
• Optimize your WordPress site for improved indexing
• Accelerate with sitemaps, backlinks and social signals
• Monitor progress in Google and Search Console

Stick with these tips, and you‘ll see your pages start appearing in Google search results in no time!

Feel free to reach out if you have any other questions on getting your WordPress site indexed. I‘m always happy to help fellow WordPressers.

Here‘s to dominating those search results! 🥳