Notes from the Google Webmaster Hangout on the 4th of April, 2017.
Google Tracks a Link’s Starting Point and Final Destination
Links to URLs which redirect are fine as Google tracks the starting point of the link, and the final destination. Redirecting links can make sense if you want to change the destination without updating the link.
Disallowed URLs may Show in Search Due to Internal Linking
If you’re seeing disallowed URLs showing up in search results, it may be because of internal linking to these pages, so you should change links to point to pages you want to be shown instead.
Sitemap Index Counts Report the Exact Submitted URLs
Sitemap Index counts report the exact URL you submit including trailing slashes. If Google chooses to index a different copy of the same page, the submitted URL wouldn’t be reported as indexed.
Info Query to Find Canonical URLs
Search for a URL with an Info: query to see if a different URL has been indexed instead.
Cross Linking Deep Pages Can Help Indexing
Cross linking between deep pages linked through paginated category pages can help them be discovered more easily.
Search Console Backlinks Include Nofollowed Links
Google includes nofollowed links in the Search Console backlinks data to discourage a focus on followed links only, and help you understand which content is generating the most links.
Headings Help Google to Understand Content Structure
Headings help Google to understand the structure of a page, so use them to separate different content.
Google Uses Anchor Text on Internal Links for Context but not Select Forms
Google does use anchor text on internal links to understand the context of a page. The text in select forms probably won’t be seen as anchor text.
Large Numbers of Nondex Pages are OK
A large number of noindex pages are OK, provided you don’t want them to rank in search results.
Google Doesn’t Count Ad Calls which Don’t Show Ads
Google renders the page the way it’s shown to the user, so if an ad calls doesn’t actually show an ad, it’s not counted.
Links on the Homepage Pass the Most Weight
Google considers pages linked from the homepage to be the most important, so those links carry the most weight. They should be used to promote your most important pages.
