English Google SEO office-hours from October 27, 2020

TL;DR

Google SEO office hours discuss indexing, migration, and best practices.

Transcript

JOHN MUELLER: All right. Welcome, everyone, to today's Webmaster Central Office Hours Hangout. My name is John Mueller. I am a Webmaster Trends Analyst at Google in Switzerland. And part of what we do are these office hours Hangouts where people can join in and ask their questions around the website and web search. Bunch of stuff is submitted alrea... Read More

Key Insights

• When dealing with dynamically loaded content, ensure that critical content is loaded upon initial page load to guarantee indexing by Google.
• For paginated pages, determine if indexing is necessary based on whether the products are linked elsewhere on the site.
• For expired products, consider maintaining them in an archive section to retain image search traffic.
• Domain migrations should be meticulously planned, with careful tracking of URLs to avoid potential traffic loss.
• Google's quality raters do not manually alter site rankings; they evaluate overall algorithm changes.
• 301 redirects are preferred for permanent moves, while 302 redirects are temporary and may be treated as 301s over time if left unchanged.
• Consent management banners should not block Googlebot; ensure content is indexable despite legal interstitials.
• Flash content will not affect indexing as Google relies on HTML content; focus on ensuring HTML is robust.

Questions & Answers

Q: What are the best practices for dynamically loading content with JavaScript?

Ensure that any content you want indexed is loaded during the initial page load. Avoid requiring user interactions like scrolling or clicking buttons to load additional content, as these actions may not be triggered during Google's indexing process. Refer to Google's developer documentation on lazy loading for guidance.

Q: How should paginated pages be handled for SEO?

Determine if paginated pages need to be indexed based on whether the linked products are accessible elsewhere on the site. If the products are well cross-linked, you might not need to index all paginated pages. Use rel canonical to point to the main category page if indexing is unnecessary.

Q: What is the recommended approach for handling expired products on e-commerce sites?

For products that are unique and representative of the business, consider maintaining them in an archive or reference section. This keeps them available for image search traffic and showcases the type of products the business offers. Avoid leaving them as out-of-stock product pages to prevent them from becoming soft 404s.

Q: How should domain migrations be managed to minimize traffic loss?

Plan meticulously and track all URLs before and after the migration. Use 301 redirects to transfer signals from old to new URLs. Avoid additional migrations or URL changes during the process, and ensure internal linking and sitemaps are updated to reflect the new structure.

Q: Do Google's quality raters manually adjust site rankings?

No, quality raters evaluate algorithm changes rather than individual sites. They provide feedback on search result quality, which informs algorithm adjustments. This process does not involve directly altering the rankings of specific websites.

Q: What happens if a 302 redirect is left in place for a long time?

While 302 redirects are typically temporary, if left unchanged, Google might treat them similarly to 301 redirects, eventually indexing the destination URL. However, it's advisable to use 301 redirects for permanent moves to clearly signal the intended canonical URL.

Q: Can blocking Googlebot from seeing consent management banners be considered cloaking?

It can be considered cloaking if Googlebot is served different content than users. However, if the banner is only shown to users in certain regions and not to Googlebot, it may not be an issue. Ensure the main content is indexable and use the Inspect URL tool in Search Console to verify.

Q: Will the discontinuation of Flash impact site indexing?

No significant impact is expected, as Google indexes based on HTML content. Ensure that the HTML is robust and provides enough information for indexing. Flash content itself is not used for indexing, so focus on maintaining strong HTML content.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• The session covers various SEO topics, including handling dynamically loaded content, domain migrations, and the impact of pagination on indexing. Participants discuss best practices for ensuring content visibility and the importance of planning and tracking during site migrations.

• John Mueller addresses concerns about indexing content loaded via JavaScript, emphasizing the need for content to be visible without user interaction. He also advises on maintaining expired product pages for image search traffic and the implications of using 301 versus 302 redirects.

• Attendees inquire about the role of Google's quality raters and the impact of Flash discontinuation on site indexing. Mueller clarifies that quality raters do not manually adjust rankings and that HTML content remains crucial for indexing, regardless of Flash content.