12 reasons your page won’t rank – even though it’s optimized

What could beryllium the substance if your perfectly optimized station isn’t ranking? Is the occupation that your tract is not connected Google, oregon is thing other going wrong? What is keeping your contented from reaching that coveted #1 position? In this post, we’ll sermon galore imaginable reasons wherefore your leafage is not ranking, adjacent though it’s optimized.

We’ve divided the imaginable issues you mightiness beryllium having into 4 sections:

• Indexing and crawl issues: How to cheque if your tract is connected Google, positive reasons wherefore your site/page mightiness not beryllium connected Google
• Technical issues with your website: Is Google disregarding it due to the fact that it’s incorrectly acceptable up?
• Linking issues: Is your interior linking operation and deficiency of prime backlinks limiting your success?
• Content and keyword issues: Is your contented precocious prime and aligned with the close hunt intent? Are your keywords conscionable excessively competitive?

Indexing and crawl issues

The archetypal fewer points connected the database each woody with indexing and crawl issues. Put simply, you can’t fertile if your leafage oregon tract is not connected Google successful the archetypal place. If you find these topics confusing, you mightiness privation to work up on how Google works and how to commencement with SEO.

1. Your site/page is not connected Google

If you request assistance determining whether your tract is connected Google, you tin usage the site: hunt relation successful Google. Type site:yoast.com, and you’ll spot a database of pages for that domain. If you benignant successful the afloat URL of a circumstantial article, you should spot lone 1 hunt effect return. If you spot your pages, this means that Google knows astir your tract and has enactment — astatine slightest immoderate of it — successful its index. Once you observe that your leafage is successful the index, but you deliberation it is not performing well, you mightiness privation to excavation deeper.

The site: hunt relation helps you find your tract successful Google’s index

How to hole it

Check your WordPress Reading Settings. For the Search Visibility option, if you’ve ticked the container ‘Discourage hunt engines from indexing this site’, that’s the astir apt crushed your tract is not connected Google. If that’s the case, uncheck that container and click to prevention your changes. If the occupation is that lone immoderate circumstantial pages aren’t showing up connected Google, past you mightiness privation to reappraisal your Search Appearance settings successful Yoast SEO. Go to the ‘Content Types’ tab and guarantee your settings are correct.

2. Your site/page is inactive excessively new

If your tract oregon leafage is new, it mightiness simply beryllium a substance of chilling retired and checking backmost successful a small while. There are galore moving parts successful getting your contented crawled, indexed and ranked. Sometimes, it takes days oregon possibly adjacent weeks for Google to decorativeness its find process.

How to hole it

If you cheque and find your tract is not connected Google yet, you tin install Yoast SEO and taxable the generated XML sitemap to Google Search Console to assistance Google observe your website. You tin besides usage the URL Inspection instrumentality successful Search Console to find however circumstantial pages are doing. It tells you precisely however Google crawls and views your site.

3. Your contented is noindexed

One of the astir communal reasons Google does not scale your tract oregon a circumstantial leafage is that it has been noindexed inadvertently. Adding noindex meta robot tags to a leafage tells Googlebot that it tin crawl the leafage but that the results can’t beryllium added to the index.

How tin you cheque if your leafage is noindexed? That’s easy; simply unfastened the leafage and presumption the root code. You’ll find the codification beneath determination astatine the apical of the page. This tells hunt motor crawlers that the page’s contented shouldn’t beryllium added to the index, frankincense keeping it from ranking.

<meta name="robots" content="noindex">

How to hole it

It happens! Even we occasionally marque a mistake and inadvertently noindex a post. Luckily, it’s an casual fix. We wrote astir how to acceptable a portion of contented backmost connected the close track with Yoast SEO.

4. Your site/page is blocking Google with robots.txt

You mightiness person told Google not to scale your content, but it’s besides imaginable you’ve told Google not to crawl your tract astatine all! Blocking crawlers successful a so-called robots.txt file is simply a surefire mode ne'er to get immoderate traffic. Blocking robots is easier than you mightiness think. For instance, WordPress has a Search Engine Visibility mounting that does its champion to support crawlers retired erstwhile acceptable to Discourage hunt engines from indexing this site. Uncheck this to marque your tract disposable again.

See that this enactment isn’t inadvertently checked

WordPress uses the noindex attack described supra to grip the indexing of sites via the Search Engine Visibility setting. It does person a informing that it’s up to hunt engines to grant the request.

Besides telling WordPress to artifact hunt engines, it mightiness beryllium that different method issues make crawl errors, preventing Google from crawling your tract properly. Your site’s web server could beryllium acting up and presenting server errors, oregon buggy bits of JavaScript successful your codification travel up the crawler. Make definite Google tin crawl your tract easily.

How to hole it

If your robots.txt record is blocking Google from crawling your website (or parts of it) and you privation to alteration that, past you’ll request to edit the file. You tin travel this guide to edit your robots.txt file.

5. You indispensable heighten your scale coverage

Ensuring that Google indexes your web pages is indispensable to succeed. Index sum refers to the fig of your site’s URLs included successful Google’s hunt index. Even the astir optimized contented whitethorn not look successful hunt results without broad scale coverage.

To place the issue, you indispensable analyse the Index Coverage study successful Google Search Console. This instrumentality categorizes your pages into assorted categories and explains wherefore pages are not indexed. If you announcement galore pages falling nether “Error” oregon “Excluded,” it’s clip to analyse further. One of the most communal errors is ‘Crawled – presently not indexed’ successful Search Console.

How to hole it

Ensure your XML sitemap is existent and accurately represents your tract structure. Please taxable it to Google Search Console to assistance Google find your pages. Review and resoluteness immoderate crawl errors specified arsenic 404s, server errors, oregon redirect issues. These errors tin forestall pages from being indexed. Pages with low-quality oregon duplicate contented mightiness beryllium excluded from the index. Focus connected creating unique, invaluable contented that provides genuine idiosyncratic engagement. Use the URL Inspection instrumentality to petition indexing for important pages not yet indexed. This instrumentality besides provides insights into however Google perceives your page.

Google Search Console helps you recognize wherefore pages are not indexed

Technical issues affecting ranking

Is your page/website indexed but not ranking? Then, method problems request to beryllium checked.

6. You’re not ranking due to the fact that your tract has method issues

Your website needs to conscionable definite method benchmarks if you’re going to fertile connected Google! Loading speed, oregon however rapidly your pages load, is important. Security and hosting prime are important too, and that’s not all. You tin work astir each the essentials successful our article: things everyone should cognize astir method SEO.

If your station doesn’t look successful the hunt engines, method issues could forestall it from appearing successful the hunt results completely. You could person conflicting plugins causing problems, and we’ve besides seen immoderate themes that forestall Google from indexing your site. And, portion Yoast SEO takes attraction of galore method issues nether the hood, it should beryllium acceptable correctly to bash that properly.

How to hole it

The hole you request volition beryllium connected the method issues your website is having, and we can’t screen everything here. You mightiness privation to cheque the pursuing points:

• Ensure each your Yoast plugin settings are correct
• Check that you’re doing things the close mode to keep loading times down
• Make definite your site is acceptable to https:// and your information certificates are up to date
• Upgrade your hosting plan
• Check your plugins and/or taxable aren’t causing problems.

If your method SEO looks bully and your tract is indexed, you indispensable excavation deeper to observe the problem. Keep reading!

7. You’re being penalized for breaking SEO rules

If Google catches you utilizing shady SEO techniques that it doesn’t let — e.g., sneaky tactics similar buying links oregon stuffing keywords into hidden substance — your leafage oregon tract tin beryllium penalized. When you’re already putting successful the effort to marque a bully website and prime content, it’s counterproductive to try. Even erstwhile everything other connected your leafage is perfect, if you’re doing thing that Google doesn’t allow, you volition person problems ranking (or appearing successful the Google hunt results).

Most of these things are communal sense, truthful you astir apt don’t request to interest if you’re not trying to instrumentality Google oregon spam people. However, a fewer things utilized to beryllium communal SEO practices that tin present pb to issues — cheque retired our nonfiction astir SEO myths for much examples of atrocious SEO practices to avoid.

How to hole it

You tin cheque whether Google has flagged your leafage for these problems successful the Manual Actions tab successful Google Search Console (GSC). If you’re inactive caller to utilizing GSC, you mightiness privation to cheque retired our introductory article. If you find an contented nether the Manual Actions tab, work this help article to larn much astir what it means and however to hole it.

Linking issues that impact ranking

A bully interior linking operation and prime backlinks are important if you privation to fertile high. Google crawls the web, pursuing each nexus it finds, truthful if your links are lacking, it tin origin problems with ranking.

8. Your tract doesn’t person a due interior linking structure

Another crushed your contented doesn’t look successful the hunt results is that a important portion of your SEO strategy is not successful order. Don’t underestimate the value of tract operation – the interior linking operation – for your SEO strategy. Having a wide tract operation leads to a amended knowing of your tract by Google. If your internal linking structure is poor, chances to fertile precocious are little – adjacent erstwhile your contented is well-optimized and awesome. 

How to hole it

Start adding those links! Make definite that your important posts and pages person the astir interior links to them. But don’t randomly adhd links: marque definite you adhd relevant, related links that adhd worth for your users.

You tin usage the Yoast SEO orphaned contented filter to find posts without incoming interior links. Yoast SEO Premium volition assistance you adjacent much by offering adjuvant linking suggestions arsenic you write. In addition, if you use Yoast SEO Premium, you get assorted different AI features, like Yoast AI Optimize, that assistance you bash the hard work. And if you truly privation to amended your tract structure, cheque retired our site operation training — which is besides included successful Premium!

Pro tip: Take attraction of your orphaned content and internal linking the casual mode with our SEO workouts, disposable successful Yoast SEO Premium.

Read on: Site structure: the eventual usher »

9. There are fewer backlinks to your site

If you conscionable started with your website, your contented won’t instantly rank. Not adjacent if you person optimized everything perfectly and each slug successful Yoast SEO is green. To rank, you’ll request immoderate links from different websites. After all, Google has to cognize your website exists. 

How to hole it

Creating unthinkable contented is simply a bully mode to get links to your pages. High-quality content attracts clicks from readers who mightiness stock the contented acold and wide via societal media. All this helps to get those links. Of course, you tin bash much to get links successful a natural, non-spammy way: present are fifteen ways of getting high-quality backlinks.

To get (more) backlinks, you tin scope retired to different websites. You’ll request to bash immoderate PR oregon link building. Ask them to notation your tract oregon speech astir your merchandise and nexus to your site. You tin besides usage social media to get the connection out! Learn each astir link-building strategies successful our All-Around SEO training!

Content and keyword issues affecting ranking

If everything other is arsenic it should beryllium SEO-wise, past your leafage oregon tract is not ranking mightiness beryllium related to your contented oregon keywords.

10. Your leafage is great, but there’s excessively overmuch competition

Usually, a leafage doesn’t fertile due to the fact that there’s simply excessively overmuch competition. If you optimize your contented for competitory keywords and keyphrases, specified arsenic [cat behavior], [robot vacuum cleaner], oregon [real property agent], chances are precocious that you won’t fertile for that term. 

Check the results pages for your keyword to find if this is the problem. Do precocious authorization sites similar Wikipedia oregon Amazon predominate the archetypal page? Do you spot galore sites already firmly established themselves successful this niche? Probably, your tract doesn’t person the authorization that these different sites person (yet). So you tin optimize each you want, but unfortunately, that’s not capable to fertile precocious successful the hunt results if your niche is excessively competitive. 

How to hole it

If you privation to fertile for highly competitory terms, effort a long-tail keyword strategy. Write contented that targets related long-tail keywords and phrases earlier tackling the competitory keywords. If these long-tail articles commencement ranking, you tin besides fertile for much competitory terms. Such a strategy requires semipermanent efforts, but successful the end, it volition wage off.

Read more: Why you should absorption connected agelong process keywords »

11. Low-quality contented oregon incorrect benignant of intent

Another crushed your contented isn’t ranking is that it doesn’t lucifer the intent of radical searching for your keyword. Search intent is important for hunt engines: bash radical privation to bargain something, spell to a circumstantial website, oregon question information? Even if you’re targeting a much long-tail keyphrase, if your contented doesn’t lucifer the ascendant intent of searchers, hunt engines won’t amusement it successful the results due to the fact that it won’t beryllium what radical are looking for.

Let’s look astatine a fewer examples. Say you’re a canine trainer who wants to fertile for puppy grooming services, truthful you optimize for [training your puppy], with transactional intent successful mind. But if you look astatine the hunt results, you’ll spot that determination are informational videos, and each the results explicate however to bid a puppy yourself. So, searchers person informational intent. This tin enactment the different mode around, too. If you’ve written a step-by-step usher for your blog connected making plot decorations, aiming to fertile for [flower garland plot decoration], you whitethorn person occupation ranking for that word if radical conscionable privation to bargain that, not marque it themselves.

Remember that not each hunt word has 1 ascendant benignant of intent. Also, it isn’t intolerable to fertile with contented for differing intent. Still, it tin beryllium worthwhile to look into this if your optimized contented doesn’t fertile successful the hunt engines.

How to hole it

Unfortunately, you don’t person the powerfulness to alteration the intent of hunt motor users. But you can accommodate your contented strategy. If your optimized contented isn’t ranking, look astatine the hunt results (use backstage mode) and analyse what you see. Is 1 circumstantial benignant of effect dominant? Are determination images oregon videos? Which related queries are shown? This is wherever your opportunities are. If you find chiefly informational intent for a query, you tin constitute contented to get radical to your site, found your marque arsenic a reliable root of information, and enactment apical of caput erstwhile radical privation to bargain something. If you find a batch of images successful the hunt results, you whitethorn request to absorption much connected image SEO. Consider what you spot connected the results pages erstwhile determining your SEO strategy.

12. Your contented lacks uniqueness

Even well-written and optimized contented mightiness conflict to fertile if it doesn’t basal out. Search engines prioritize contented that offers a unsocial position oregon provides further worth compared to existing articles connected the aforesaid topic.

Check the hunt results for your people keywords and analyse the top-ranking pages. Does your contented connection thing antithetic oregon much insightful? If your leafage presents akin accusation successful a comparable format, you whitethorn find it hard to ascent the rankings. With the advent of generative AI, we’ll spot a question of mediocre sameness look successful the hunt results. If you people the aforesaid stuff, hunt engines won’t fuss with it.

Generative AI tin assistance make contented but needs assistance maintaining prime and relevance. While AI tin rapidly nutrient ample volumes of content, we should prioritize prime implicit quantity. You should marque definite that the worldly is archetypal and invaluable to your audience. AI-generated contented mightiness beryllium repetitive oregon deficiency divers perspectives. It’s indispensable to refine it with your unsocial insights oregon adept opinions.

Additionally, the contented should ever align with your audience’s needs and hunt intent, arsenic AI whitethorn not afloat seizure quality nuances. Always comply with hunt motor guidelines regarding AI-generated contented to debar imaginable penalties oregon indexing issues. You tin heighten your contented strategy portion preserving its integrity by utilizing AI arsenic a supportive instrumentality alternatively than a standalone solution.

How to hole it

Quit simply; adhd unsocial insights and views. Add your ain dependable and incorporated archetypal research, lawsuit studies, oregon adept opinions to acceptable your contented apart. Keep your contented caller with the latest information, trends, oregon information to support relevance and uniqueness. Encourage comments and discussions to physique a assemblage astir your content, making it much dynamic and engaging.

Is your optimized contented inactive not ranking?

Multiple reasons could forestall a station from ranking. Have you optimized your station correctly with Yoast SEO? Then, the astir communal origin is apt to beryllium that the contention successful a niche is excessively fierce. Unfortunately, SEO is simply a semipermanent strategy. You request to enactment hard and beryllium patient. In the meantime, you tin tackle galore different aspects of your SEO (site structure, nexus building). Try to absorption connected each website optimization aspects and beryllium the best result. It volition wage disconnected eventually!

Read more: Rank tracking: wherefore you should show your keywords »