English Google Webmaster Central office-hours from January 21, 2020

TL;DR

John Mueller addresses SEO queries in a Google office-hours session.

Transcript

JOHN MUELLER: All right. Welcome, everyone, to today's Webmaster Central office-hours hangout. My name is John Mueller. I'm a webmaster trends analyst here at Google in Switzerland, and part of what we do are this office-hour hangouts where folks can join in and ask their questions all around Web Search. Today, it looks like I'm in a train, but it'... Read More

Key Insights

• Meta robots tag 'follow' is ignored by Google; its presence or absence doesn't affect search results.
• For out-of-stock products, redirect to a replacement if available; otherwise, indicate non-availability using HTML or schema markup.
• IP redirects can limit Google's ability to crawl regional pages, potentially affecting hreflang effectiveness.
• Using 'Travel Porn' as a category title can lead to irrelevant search queries but won't impact overall site quality.
• JavaScript redirects are treated like other redirects by Google but may take longer to process.
• Estimating SEO improvements in numerical terms is challenging; focus on best practices and user experience.
• Duplicate content across different language versions isn't penalized; hreflang can help specify regional targeting.
• For sites with duplicate content in multiple languages, Google recognizes translations as unique content.

Questions & Answers

Q: What is the impact of the 'follow' meta tag on SEO?

The 'follow' meta tag is ignored by Google, meaning it has no impact on SEO. Whether you include it or not doesn't change how Google crawls or indexes your content. It's essentially a default setting, so removing it won't affect your site's search performance.

Q: How should out-of-stock products be handled on an e-commerce site?

For out-of-stock products, if a replacement product exists, it's best to redirect users to that page. If no replacement is available, you can indicate the product's non-availability using HTML or schema markup. This informs users and search engines about the product's status without negatively impacting SEO.

Q: What are the challenges with IP redirects in international SEO?

IP redirects can limit Google's ability to crawl and index regional pages because Googlebot typically crawls from a single location, usually the US. This can prevent Google from seeing and indexing different regional versions of your site, affecting the effectiveness of hreflang tags.

Q: Does using 'Travel Porn' as a category title affect SEO?

Using 'Travel Porn' as a category title can lead to your site appearing in search results for unrelated, adult-themed queries. However, it doesn't impact the overall quality or ranking of your site. It's more about brand perception and whether you want your site associated with such terms.

Q: How does Google treat JavaScript redirects?

Google treats JavaScript redirects the same as any other redirects. The main difference is that JavaScript redirects require processing the script first, which can delay indexing by a day or so. However, they are generally effective and won't negatively impact your site's SEO.

Q: How can I provide numerical estimates for SEO improvements?

Providing numerical estimates for SEO improvements is challenging due to the multitude of factors influencing search rankings. Instead, focus on implementing best practices and enhancing user experience. You can use historical data and conversion rates to make educated guesses, but guarantees are difficult.

Q: Is duplicate content across different language versions penalized?

Duplicate content across different language versions is not penalized by Google. Translations are considered unique content, and hreflang tags can help specify regional targeting. Google recognizes the need for duplicate content in multilingual sites and doesn't negatively impact their ranking.

Q: How does Google handle translations as unique content?

Google treats translations as unique content because the text is different, even if the subject matter is the same. This means that a page in English and its translation in another language are considered separate, unique pages, which helps in avoiding duplicate content issues.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• John Mueller discusses various SEO topics in a Google office-hours session, addressing common webmaster questions.

• Key topics include meta tags, handling out-of-stock products, international SEO, and the impact of duplicate content.

• Mueller emphasizes best practices, user experience, and the importance of clear signals for search engines.