What Is Google Search Console and How to Use It: Beginner’s Guide

“What gets measured gets improved.” – I know I’m quoting someone; I just can’t remember who. Anyways. It’s hard to argue with that. When it comes to measuring (tracking) your site’s performance, the first thing that comes to mind is Google Analytics. Not without a reason because it’s a great tool. However, Google Analytics on its own is not enough to get the full picture.

Enter Google Search Console – your new best friend in the digital world.

This gem of a tool is not only powerful but also completely free, and it’s here to give you the lowdown on how your site’s really doing on Google. Trust me, whether you’re a seasoned pro or just dipping your toes into the web, this is a game-changer.

Now, I get it. If you’re new, diving into the world of SEO can feel like you’re drowning in alphabet soup. But here’s the beautiful thing about Google Search Console – it cuts through the noise and gives you the good stuff. Want to know what’s bringing people to your site? Curious about those pesky technical issues holding you back? This tool’s got your back.

In this guide, I’ll explore what Google Search Console is, how to set it up, and how you can use its features to boost your site’s performance in search results. Ready to take your web game to the next level? Let’s dive in!

What is Google Search Console?

Officially speaking, Google Search Console (GSC) is a free service offered by Google that allows website owners to monitor and maintain their site’s presence in Google search results.

It really is a vital tool for understanding how your website is viewed by the search engine and provides essential insights into various aspects of your site’s performance.

Unlike Google Analytics, which focuses on user behavior once they reach your site, Google Search Console provides information about how your site appears in search results.

This includes data on search queries, site indexing status, and crawling errors. With this tool, you can identify issues affecting your site’s visibility and take steps to improve its search performance.

For beginners, Google Search Console can seem a bit technical, but it’s designed to be user-friendly and accessible. The tool helps you understand which keywords are driving traffic to your site, how your pages are performing, and any issues that might be preventing your site from ranking higher.

Key features of Google Search Console

Here are some of the more essential features that you’ll likely find useful in your everyday work:

Performance reports

Performance reports are the main section in most Search Console panels. They provide detailed insights into how your site performs in Google Search. It shows data on total clicks, impressions, click-through rates (CTR), and the average position of your pages in search results.

By analyzing this information, you can identify which queries bring users to your site and which pages perform well or need improvement. This report helps you understand your audience and tailor your content strategy accordingly.

URL inspection tool

Aka. the main search field at the top of Search Console – allows you to check the index status of individual pages on your site. It provides detailed information about how Google views a specific URL, including whether it is indexed, any crawl errors, and other important information.

Page indexing reports

Page indexing reports show the indexing status of your entire site, highlighting which pages are successfully indexed and which ones have issues. These reports identify errors such as 404 pages, server errors, or pages excluded from the index due to noindex tags.

Sitemaps

Google Search Console allows you to submit your sitemap directly to Google, helping the search engine discover and index your pages more efficiently. This feature is essential for ensuring that new and updated content is recognized by Google as quickly as possible.

It also provides insights into how many pages from your sitemap are indexed, helping you identify any issues with your sitemap submission.

Core Web Vitals report

The Core Web Vitals report provides insights into the user experience of your site, focusing on key performance metrics – as deemed by Google. These metrics include loading performance, interactivity, and visual stability, which are crucial for a good user experience and can affect your site’s search ranking.

The report highlights pages that fall under good, poor, and “need improvement” categories based on how well they’re doing in terms of Core Web Vitals.

By leveraging these features, you can gain a comprehensive understanding of your site’s search performance and make informed decisions to enhance your site’s SEO strategy.

Of course, you don’t have to be in Search Console every day, browsing through the endless panels there. However, one more equally key feature that I haven’t mentioned yet are the email reports that Search Console will send you whenever there’s something that requires your attention.

How to set up Google Search Console

Setting up Google Search Console is a straightforward process that enables you to start monitoring and improving your website’s performance as soon as today.

Here’s a step-by-step guide to get you started:

Create a Google Search Console account

Everyone that has a Gmail technically also has a Search Console account. You just need to “turn it on.” To do that:

1. Go to the Google Search Console website click on “Start Now” and sign in with your Google account.

2. Once logged in, click on the “Add Property” button. You’ll need to choose between two property types: Domain or URL Prefix. The Domain property type is what you want. It provides a comprehensive view of your site across all protocols and subdomains.

Verifying site ownership

Verification is necessary to confirm that you actually own the site that you’re adding. There are several options to do that, but I recommend taking one of two paths:

The easy yet not too elegant path:

• Add an HTML tag to your site’s <head> section. Search Console can provide you with a custom tag to place in your theme’s/site’s head section. You can add that code easily by using a plugin like Head & Footer Code.

The more elegant but also more technical path:

• Add a new TXT record to your domain’s DNS settings. This method involves signing in to your domain registrar account and adding a DNS TXT record provided by Search Console. It can be a bit more technical but it’s a clean method for domain-level verification. If you’re not sure, you can consult with your domain registrar’s support about how to do that.

No matter which method you choose, click on Verify when done, and you’re good to go!

Once your site is verified, you’ll gain access to all of Google Search Console’s features and reports. Remember that data might take a few days to populate fully.

Explore the dashboard

Remember all those key features that I listed above? With your account set up, you can now explore them all through the main dashboard. This central hub provides access to key reports and tools that help you monitor and optimize your site’s performance in search results.

Take some time to familiarize yourself with the interface, and begin by exploring the different reports to gain insights into your site’s health and performance.

Things worth doing in Search Console first

Apart from all the reports that you can start analyzing, it might be worth to do a handful of things first, before you lose yourself in all the other stuff:

Check your indexed pages

You’ll find this section under Indexing → Pages.

What to do here:

• Look through your total number of indexed pages vs not indexed pages. View the reasons why some pages haven’t been indexed (as you can see, I have a lot to deal with judging by the image above).

Add a sitemap

You’ll find the section under Indexing → Sitemaps.

What to do here:

• Enter the URLs of your website’s sitemaps. In most cases – at least if you’re on WordPress – you’re going to find your sitemap under yoursite.com/sitemap.xml

Look through any issues with Core Web Vitals

You’ll find those under Experience → Core Web Vitals.

What to do here:

• Check the report and see if any of your site’s URLs are listed under “poor” optimization for Core Web Vitals. If so, Google will also tell you what to do to improve them.

Wrapping up your Google Search Console journey

By setting up and regularly checking your Google Search Console account, you can identify which keywords drive traffic, diagnose and fix errors, and ensure your site is mobile-friendly. You can also leverage reports like Core Web Vitals to improve user experience, which is increasingly important for search rankings.

Remember, SEO is an ongoing process, and Google Search Console is your partner in navigating this journey. Regularly reviewing the reports and data can help you stay ahead of issues and identify new opportunities to enhance your site’s visibility and performance.