Google Search Console – INSIGHT #1:

There are no longer 10 search results listed on the first page on Google search. If you were trying to get on to page 1 in Google Search results you used to have to rank between 1st and 10th position. This is now not the case. Google Search results now garner between only 7 to 9 links on the first page of results. Not only that, the top 5 search results get almost 70% of all clicks.

ACTION #1:

Hop into your Google Search Console account and look under the performance tab as shown in the image below and look at your average position. Your target should be 5 or less.

If you are working with an SEO expert, find out what your rankings are, not just for the average position for your website, but for other organic terms that you might be ranking for. Discuss with them what tactics they are undertaking to increase your rankings to position 5. You can read this article from Search Engine Journal on 5 Proven Ways to Increase your Google Rankings to get some of the lingo.

Google Search Console – INSIGHT #2:

Google is simplifying the Search Console reports, noting this is the reports, no changes to how Google crawls, indexes or serves your pages (although I am sure they will be doing that soon 😉). Rather than using the old terms of ‘error’, ‘valid with warning’ or ‘valid’ they have simplified the reporting to ‘invalid’ and ‘valid’ – yeah a win for the little guy!

ACTION #2:

No real action to be taken here, however, if you aren’t popping into your Google Search Console once a month, I would recommend it. It is an easy tool to use, just click around and if you see something in red, then you or your developer should tend to the error.

In my SEO Masterclass webinar – 3 Practical Steps to Simplify Your SEO, I cover more on how to get the most out of Google Search Console.
*Growth Members can access my SEO Masterclass webinar under the ‘Webinars’ menu in our eCommerce Growth Platform. Here is a link to our membership sign-up page.