Google Search Console Setup Service

Setting up Google Search Console (GSC) for a client involves a series of strategic steps to ensure that their website is not only verified and monitored but also optimized for search engine visibility, performance and monitoring.

Initial Setup and Verification

  • Account Creation and Access: If the client doesn’t already have a GSC account, the agency will create one. They ensure that the right Google account is used for GSC to keep everything organized under a single Google account umbrella, preferably the same account used for Google Analytics.
  • Website Verification: The agency verifies ownership of the client’s website in GSC using one of several methods provided by Google, such as DNS record verification, HTML file upload, HTML tag, Google Analytics tracking code, or Google Tag Manager container snippet. The chosen method depends on the client’s website configuration and access levels.
  • Domain vs. URL Prefix: Decide whether to add the property as a Domain (which includes all subdomains and protocols) or as a URL prefix (a specific URL). The agency might choose the Domain property for a comprehensive view.

Configuration and Settings

  • Sitemap Submission: The agency submits the client’s XML sitemap to GSC, facilitating Google’s crawling and indexing of the site. This step is crucial for new websites or after major site updates.
  • Robots.txt Verification: Verify the correctness of the robots.txt file through GSC to ensure it’s not unintentionally blocking important pages from being crawled.
  • Preferred Domain Setting: For URL prefix properties, set the preferred domain (www or non-www) to ensure consistency in how URLs are indexed.
  • International Targeting: If the client’s website targets users in specific countries, the agency may configure international targeting settings in GSC.

Monitoring and Optimization

  • Performance Monitoring: Regularly monitor the Performance report in GSC to track key metrics like clicks, impressions, click-through rate (CTR), and position in search results for various queries.
  • URL Inspection Tool: Use the URL Inspection tool to check the index status of URLs, identify crawl errors, and request indexing for new or updated content.
  • Coverage Issues: Review the Coverage report to identify and fix issues that prevent pages from being indexed, such as crawl errors, redirects, or pages blocked by robots.txt.
  • Mobile Usability: Monitor the Mobile Usability report to ensure the site is mobile-friendly, addressing any usability issues Google identifies.
  • Core Web Vitals: Analyze the Core Web Vitals report to optimize for user experience metrics such as loading performance, interactivity, and visual stability.
  • Enhancements: Use GSC reports to improve site features like structured data (for rich results), AMP pages (for mobile), and sitelinks searchbox, enhancing visibility and user experience.
  • Manual Actions and Security Issues: Check for any manual actions taken by Google against the site for violations of Google’s guidelines, and resolve any security issues like hacking or malware that GSC identifies.
  • Links Report: Analyze the site’s backlink profile using the Links report, understanding both internal and external linking patterns to improve SEO strategies.

Communication and Collaboration

  • Alerts and Notifications: Set up email notifications for alerts on issues identified by GSC, ensuring prompt action on critical issues like site outages, hacking, or penalties.
  • Share Access with Stakeholders: Grant appropriate levels of access to different members of the client’s team, ensuring they can view reports relevant to their roles while maintaining security.
  • Integration with Other Google Services: Connect GSC with Google Analytics and Google Ads to enhance data sharing and insights across these platforms, providing a more comprehensive view of the site’s performance and opportunities.

Reporting and Strategy

  • Regular Reporting: Compile insights from GSC into regular reports for the client, highlighting key performance metrics, issues resolved, and ongoing optimization efforts.
  • Strategic Recommendations: Based on data from GSC, provide strategic recommendations for content creation, website structure, and SEO tactics to improve search visibility and performance.

Integration and Linking

  • Link Google Products: Link GA with other Google products like Google Ads, Search Console, and Google Optimize for a holistic view of online performance and to leverage GA data in other platforms.
  • Third-Party Integrations: Integrate with third-party platforms like CRM systems, email marketing software, or social media platforms for a comprehensive data overview.

Reporting and Analysis

  • Custom Dashboards and Reports: Build custom dashboards and reports that highlight the metrics and dimensions most relevant to the client’s goals.
  • Audience Definitions and Remarketing Lists: Use GA data to define audiences for analysis and create remarketing lists that can be used in Google Ads campaigns.

Education and Ongoing Support

  • Training Sessions: Offer training sessions for the client’s team on how to use GA, interpret data, and make data-driven decisions.
  • Documentation: Provide documentation on the GA setup, including an explanation of configurations, goals, filters, and any customizations made.
  • Ongoing Analysis and Optimization: Offer ongoing services to analyze data, provide insights, and recommend actions to improve website performance and marketing ROI.
Google Search Console image of indexing issues. Image indicates indexed/non-indexed ratio.

This Google Search Console image shows the number of pages indexed or not indexed.

This is one of the first places to look when troubleshooting poor search performance.

Further Reading about Google Search Console

What is Google Search Console? Google Search Console is a must-have tool for monitoring your website’s performance in Google Search results. It provides detailed insights into how Google views your site, including information on search queries, site impressions, clicks, and indexing status. This tool is essential for understanding and improving your site’s visibility in search engines.

Why Google Search Console? Visibility in search results is key to attracting organic traffic. Google Search Console helps you ensure that your site is accessible to Google and optimized for search performance. It alerts you to any issues that might affect your rankings, such as crawl errors or security issues, and provides recommendations for improvement.

Enhancing Your SEO with Google Search Console: Google Search Console is invaluable for SEO. It allows you to see which queries bring users to your site, how often your pages appear in search results (impressions), and how many clicks those impressions generate. This information is critical for understanding your site’s search performance and identifying opportunities to improve your SEO strategies.

The Role of Google Search Console in Lead Generation: By optimizing your site’s presence in search results, you increase the chances of reaching potential customers at the moment they’re searching for the services or products you offer. Google Search Console plays a crucial role in this process by providing the insights needed to enhance your site’s SEO, thereby improving visibility, driving organic traffic, and ultimately, generating leads.