How Can Discrepancies Between Submitted and Indexed Pages in the Report Be Investigated and Resolved?
Summary
Investigating and resolving discrepancies between submitted and indexed pages involves a thorough understanding of how search engines process pages, utilizing tools such as Google Search Console, and implementing best practices in web management. This guide will cover the essential steps and provide authoritative resources to help you resolve these discrepancies effectively.
Understanding the Discrepancies
Discrepancies between submitted and indexed pages can result from various issues, including technical errors, quality issues, and crawling limitations. Identifying and understanding these discrepancies is the first step toward resolving them.
Definitions
- Submitted Pages: These are the pages you have submitted to search engines for indexing, often through sitemaps.
- Indexed Pages: These are the pages that search engines have crawled and included in their databases.
Using Google Search Console
Google Search Console (GSC) is a critical tool for diagnosing and resolving indexing issues. It provides detailed reports on the status of submitted and indexed pages, helping you understand why certain pages may not be indexed.
Coverage Report
The Coverage Report in GSC shows which pages Google has indexed and flags any issues preventing certain pages from being indexed. To access this report, go to the Coverage section in your Google Search Console dashboard.
For more information on the Coverage Report, visit the Google Search Console Help Center.
Inspecting URLs
The URL Inspection Tool in GSC allows you to check individual URLs to see if they’re indexed, understand why they may not be indexed, and request indexing. This is useful to diagnose specific discrepancies.
For a detailed guide on using this tool, refer to Google's URL Inspection Tool documentation.
Common Causes and Solutions
Robots.txt File Restrictions
Ensure your robots.txt file is not blocking Googlebot from crawling important parts of your website. Review and update your robots.txt file accordingly.
See Google's guide on robots.txt for more details.
Noindex Tags
Pages with <meta name="robots" content="noindex"> tags will not be indexed. Check your page headers and remove these tags where they’re not intended.
To understand more about meta tags, visit Google's documentation on special tags.
Crawling Issues
Slow server responses, errors (e.g., 404, 500), or excessive crawl depth can prevent pages from being indexed. Use GSC’s Crawl Stats report to diagnose any crawling issues.
Learn more from Google’s article on Crawl Errors.
Content Quality
Low-quality or thin content may not be indexed. Ensure your content is unique, valuable, and comprehensive. Follow content guidelines provided by search engines.
For best practices on creating quality content, refer to Google's Quality Guidelines.
Canonicalization Issues
Improper use of canonical tags can cause indexing issues. Ensure canonical tags are correctly implemented to avoid confusion about the preferred version of a page.
Check Consolidate Duplicate URLs using Canonical Tags for more details.
Advanced Monitoring and Debugging
Log File Analysis
Analyze server log files to see how search engine bots interact with your site. This helps identify crawling issues and optimize the crawling budget.
Refer to Google's guidance on Log File Analysis for more insights.
Sitemap Accuracy
Ensure your sitemaps are accurate and up to date. This helps search engines discover and index new or updated pages effectively. Validate your sitemaps using XML Sitemap Validator.
Conclusion
Solving discrepancies between submitted and indexed pages involves using tools like Google Search Console, addressing common indexing issues, and continuous monitoring. By following the outlined steps, you can ensure more comprehensive indexing and better visibility for your website.