Why is my website not showing up on Google?

There are a number of things that could be responsible for your website not showing up on Google. From being a new website to technical issues, we've broken down the most common causes:

1. Google hasn't indexed your website or page

If your website is new, Google may not have discovered/indexed it yet. This can take time, but you can speed things along by submitting your sitemap through Google Search Console (GSC). If your website isn't new, Google may have only indexed some pages and not all of them. It's worth checking if Google has indexed the site or page, which you can do by using Google Search Console’s URL inspector tool. 

2. Google is blocked from crawling or indexing your site

There may be an accidental block that is stopping Google from crawling the site/page. If URLs have been blocked in your robots.txt file, they won't show up in the search engine results pages (SERPs). You can check this using Google Search Console, by navigating to the ‘pages report’ and looking for ‘submitted URL blocked by robots.txt’ errors. 

3. Your page isn't meeting the correct search intent, is low-quality or features duplicate content

If your content doesn't quite match the search intent, Google will not see your site as relevant and is not likely to show you as a result. High-quality and original content is most favoured by Google, so any inaccurate or out-of-date information will drag the quality down. In addition, duplicated or repeated content dilutes the topical authority, so make sure you aren't repeating large sections of content across multiple pages on your site. 

4. Your site has tech issues

Google highly views sites that are mobile-friendly, responsive and easy to use, so it's worth checking how your site looks for mobile users. Do all features on the page work properly on mobile, and have you implemented responsive design to ensure your site can adapt to different screen sizes?

The speed of your site also has a big impact on your site’s ranking. Slow-loading sites are often ranked much lower than those with faster loading speeds. Choosing a reliable web hosting provider with an excellent uptime guarantee (at least 99.9%) can help with this. 

Finally, broken links can make your site look out-of-date or unreliable in the eyes of Google, so this is another key tech issue to be aware of. Always make sure all links on your website are working and relevant. 

5. Your site is new

It takes time to build up authority, backlinks and become a reputable source in the eyes of Google. However, you can help to speed up this process by building high-quality backlinks and providing genuinely helpful and up-to-date information on your site's topic.

6. You have Google penalties

Google can penalise any websites that violate their guidelines. You can check this in Google Search Console by navigating to the ‘search traffic’ section, and then the ‘manual actions’ section. If a penalty has been given, you will find details about this here.

How to get my website to show up on Google

For a website to show up on Google, it needs to tick these five boxes:

1. Make your pages easily findable and easy to understand

Google needs to know that the website exists and be able to easily find and access all pages of the site. Do you have an organised site structure with appropriate internal links to aid navigation? 

Making pages easy to find and easy to understand helps both users and search engines. It helps users by ensuring their journey on your site is smooth and seamless, and that they can easily access what they need without frustration or confusion. It benefits search engines as they heavily rely on clear page structure and descriptive content to discover, index and rank pages. If your site is confusing and disorganised, search engines may not be able to find/understand the pages.

2. Optimise each page for SEO

SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) refers to the improvements made to content, structure and technical aspects of a web page that result in that page ranking higher in the SERPs, therefore attracting more organic traffic to the site. 

A big part of this involves meeting search intent. Google needs to know that your page is relevant and that it holds the exact answers for users, so they know that they are directing the user to the correct place. To ensure your page is meeting search intent, there needs to be a page on the site that is a relevant match for a specific keyword to let Google know you're the best answer to the search query.

3. Ensure content is high-quality and prioritises EEAT (Expertise, Experience, Authority and Trustworthiness)

Google needs to see that the page deserves to rank for the search term. It needs to be able to easily see that the page is the most helpful and valuable for the user, to ensure their query is answered correctly. Websites demonstrate their value to search engines by prioritising content that showcases the following:

Expertise

This shows that the owner of the content (the site it's on) has in-depth knowledge about the topic, or skills that are relevant to the field it discusses. This can be demonstrated by creating thorough, accurate and up-to-date content that shows proficiency. To really boost the expertise of your site, you can mention any qualifications or credentials that certify your expert-level knowledge or experience.

Experience

Showing you have experience in the topic your content discusses will add a level of relatability for users, and reassures them that you have had first-hand, real-world involvement in the topic. You can demonstrate this by sharing personal stories, including first-person insights, or by encouraging user reviews or testimonials that exhibit genuine experiences.

Authority

The authoritativeness of a website means that users recognise either the author or the site itself as a trusted source in that field (like the NHS website discussing a health issue – you know it's trusted). You can build and attain authority by building a strong brand presence, getting backlinks from reputable websites and displaying partnerships or recognitions from respected organisations.

Trustworthiness

In order for a website to have high trustworthiness, the site and content must feel safe, honest and reliable to both users and search engines. This can be demonstrated by using HTTPS to secure your site, as well as being open and transparent with information on your site. Make it easy for users to find contact details, terms and policies. Avoiding exaggerated claims or misleading information will also help to boost trust.

4. Build authority

Showing that your content is valuable and popular with users builds authority. This shows Google that your website knows its stuff and provides information that users find helpful. Learning how to drive traffic to your website can help to demonstrate this, while also increasing the likelihood of backlinks.

5. Use the right website building tools

When building your website, it’s important to choose the right website builder. Look for one that offers powerful marketing features and integrated SEO tools, making it easier for your website to be found by search engines and potential visitors.

How long does a new website take to show up on Google?

This could range from a few days to a few months, and can depend on the complexity of your site, as well as its size. Google's algorithm is ever-evolving, and the elements that make a page rank in position 1 today could be different in a month's time. 

If your website is new, it can take Google a while to notice it. To speed up this process, make sure you: 

• Create a GSC account
• Link your account to your website
• Create a sitemap and submit it through Google Search Console. This helps search engines to understand your website's structure and hierarchy, and demonstrates to them how you want it to be crawled. 

Get your website showing up on Google as soon as possible with Fasthosts. With a 99.99% guaranteed uptime, an SEO-friendly website builder and easy SSL setup for site security, it really is a no-brainer. Make use of our helpful tools and 24/7 support that make it simple to optimise for search engines and resolve issues that might be preventing Google from indexing your pages. 

Get in touch today to find out more about how we can help to get your website ranking on Google.