In the digital realm, mastering Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) is akin to wielding a magic wand...
How to make sure Google knows about your website and your website is listed properly.
In this post we're going to go through everything you need to know to add your site to Google's search index and make sure it's scanning you!
We'll go through how to put a website on Google.
Having your website set up is great, but, what if Search Engines don't know about it? The curse fact is most small businesses who set up their own website often don't realise you have to tell Google you exist. I've worked with so many websites over the last few years with my SEO Workshops that adding a site to Googles index is one of the first things I do on my checklist. So in this post we'll go through exactly how to put a website on Google.
Why is Google Indexing so important?
Adding your site to Google Search Console is the quickest way to tell Google you exist, what pages exist on your site, and most importantly: let Google scan the content on your website.
How else will Google know what you're offering, so it can put you in front of people searching for things?
How to Index your website
There's a few things we'll cover in this guide:
- How to add your domain to Google Search Console so you can get a really good overview of what Google knows about you.
- Add a website to your account if you're starting from scratch
- Add a site if you've already got others in your account
- How to add your sitemap to Google's index so it scans every page of your site.
Adding your website to Google Search Console
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In a new tab, browse to Google Search Console
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Make sure you're logged in with a Google Account you want to associate this domain with. I usually advise my clients to log in with a company e-mail address rather than a personal gmail account.
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Click "Start Now"
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At this point you may or may not already have a property in your account. Both methods are listed below based on what you have;
How to add a property if none already exist
Click the down arrow next to Add property
Click + Add property
Enter your domain (without https:// or www.) so it looks like this bristechtonic.co.uk and click "continue"
It'll then ask you to copy a string of text. Click Copy.
Next, go to your domain provider and create a TXT record (click "Full Details" for guides on how to do this).
When you've added the TXT record, click VERIFY (this might take up to 48 hours but usually happens a lot quicker, if not instantly. If it doesn't work first time, keep checking back and clicking VERIFY).
Click the down arrow next to the default property
Click + Add property
Enter your domain (without https:// or www.) so it looks like this bristechtonic.co.uk and click "continue"
It'll then ask you to copy a string of text. Click Copy.
Next, go to your domain provider and create a TXT record (click "Full Details" for guides on how to do this).
When you've added the TXT record, click VERIFY (this might take up to 48 hours but usually happens a lot quicker, if not instantly. If it doesn't work first time, keep checking back and clicking VERIFY).
When it has verified successfully, you'll see an Ownership Verified notification.
Click GO TO PROPERTY
Now you can see everything Google knows about your domain!
Now you've got your website registered with Google, let's make sure your sitemap is there too. Providing your sitemap to Google is like saying here Google, here's a menu of my site. Here's all the pages, please have a read of everything on my site and make notes so you've got it to hand incase someone wants to search for something I offer.
Adding your sitemap to Google
In a new tab, browse to Google Search Console
Make sure you're logged in with the Google Account associated with the domain property you set up earlier.
Click "Start Now"
Make sure you've got the domain in question selected, then click Sitemaps
Under Add a new sitemap enter your sitemap. It's usually something like https://www.bristechtonic.co.uk/sitemap.xml
(important - your site may not use www. so be sure to put the actual URL)
Click Submit
You'll get a message to say it's been submitted successfully. Click GOT IT
Then you'll see the sitemap and its status
And we're all done!
What Next?
Now you're all set and ready to go, why not continue learning SEO and other ways you can help build your profile to get found in search results?
