Indexing

Crawling vs indexing

Search engines first crawl your pages—downloading and reading content. But crawling doesn't guarantee indexing. Google evaluates whether each page provides sufficient unique value before adding it to the index. Low-quality, duplicate, or technically problematic pages get crawled but not indexed.

You can check indexing status in Google Search Console. The Coverage report shows which pages are indexed, excluded, or encountering errors. Pages not indexed won't appear in search results, regardless of quality.

What prevents indexing

Technical blocks: Robots.txt directives, noindex meta tags, or password protection prevent search engines from indexing pages. Check these aren't accidentally blocking important content.

Thin content: Pages with minimal text, little unique value, or purely navigational purpose may be excluded. Search engines prioritise content that answers questions or solves problems.

Duplicate content: If your page closely duplicates another indexed page, Google may choose not to index both versions. Canonical tags tell search engines which version to prioritise.

Speeding up indexing

Submit your XML sitemap to Google Search Console. This helps search engines discover all pages, especially on larger sites or those with complex navigation.

Request indexing through Search Console after publishing new content. This prompts Google to crawl and evaluate the page sooner than waiting for automatic discovery. Combined with strong internal linking, new pages typically index within hours.

Indexing in site builds

We ensure every Fernside site launches indexing-ready: automatic sitemap generation, proper canonical tags, clean URL structure, and Search Console integration. Important pages index quickly without technical barriers.