In the realm of Search Engine Optimization (SEO), SEO needs visibility in search results (SERPs) for traffic. Deindexing is when search engines remove a page or site from their results, making it vanish from search. Knowing what it is and how to handle it is key for SEO health.
What is deindexing?
Deindexing is the process by which search engines like Google remove a web page or an entire website from their search results. It disappears from searches, but it’s still online if you have the direct link. It’s like a book taken off the library’s search system – still there, but hidden. Website owners use this to manage what shows up in search, which is important for SEO.
💡 Many site owners wonder why their pages don’t appear in search, or why they can’t get Google to index backlinks pointing to certain pages. One major reason is that the target pages themselves may have been deindexed — making even quality backlinks ineffective.
Why does Google deindex my site?
Google may deindex a website or specific pages for various reasons, all generally centered around providing users with high-quality and relevant search results.
1.Violation of Google’s Webmaster Guidelines
One of the most common reasons is a violation of Google’s Webmaster Guidelines. These guidelines outline practices that are considered manipulative or harmful to the user experience, such as using spammy links, engaging in keyword stuffing, cloaking content, or employing other deceptive tactics. Google aims to ensure a positive user experience and will penalize websites that attempt to game the system.
2. Low-quality or duplicate content
Google often deindexes pages with low-quality, duplicate, or auto-generated content to keep search results helpful. They prioritize unique and valuable information for users. Additionally, Google’s team can manually remove sites that violate their guidelines. If human reviewers find manipulative SEO tactics, they can issue penalties leading to deindexing. This highlights the importance of ethical SEO practices to maintain search visibility.
3. Technical issues
Technical issues can also inadvertently cause deindexing. These include incorrect implementation of the ‘noindex’ directive, blocking Googlebot (Google’s web crawler) from accessing important parts of the site via the robots.txt file, server errors that prevent crawling, DNS resolution problems, and issues with JavaScript rendering that make content inaccessible to search engines. Even unintentional technical errors can hinder Google’s ability to crawl and index a website, leading to deindexing. Regular technical audits are essential to identify and resolve these issues.
Security vulnerabilities, such as malware attacks or security breaches, can also lead to deindexing. Google prioritizes user safety and may remove compromised websites from its index to protect users from potentially harmful content. Maintaining strong website security is crucial for both user protection and continued search visibility.
Furthermore, Google’s frequent algorithm updates can impact how websites are indexed, sometimes leading to deindexing even without direct violations. Staying informed about these updates and adapting SEO strategies accordingly is important for maintaining search visibility. Finally, limitations in crawl budget (the number of pages Googlebot will crawl on a site within a given timeframe) can also contribute to deindexing. If Google has difficulty crawling a website efficiently, it might not index all pages, and previously indexed pages could be dropped. Optimizing crawl efficiency is particularly important for larger websites.
Which pages should you deindex from your site?
While the goal is generally to have valuable pages indexed, there are instances where deindexing specific pages can be beneficial for your site’s SEO and user experience. Here’s a breakdown of which pages you might want to deindex:
1. Low-Quality Content: Think pages with very little original text or content that was automatically created. These can make your whole site look bad to search engines.
2. Duplicate Content (Sometimes): If you have pages that are very similar, it can confuse search engines. While using canonical tags is often better, you might deindex less important duplicates in some situations.
3. Internal Search Results Pages: These pages usually aren’t helpful for people searching on Google, so deindexing them can help Google crawl your site more efficiently.
4. Parameterized/Filtered URLs: URLs with extra bits for sorting or filtering products (like on an online store) often don’t have unique content and can clutter Google’s index. Deindexing them can be a good idea.
5. Private or Internal Pages: Things like login areas, thank you pages after a purchase, or test versions of your website shouldn’t show up in public search results, so deindex them.
6. Outdated Content: If a page has information that’s no longer correct or relevant, removing it from the index helps avoid misleading people.
7. Poor Translations/Untranslated Pages (on Multilingual Sites): If translations are bad or some pages aren’t translated at all, deindexing them can improve user experience and SEO.
How to deindex your site and webpages
Shopify store owners have several methods to deindex their site or specific webpages. In this article, we’ll recommend 5 common methods.
Method 1: Request removal of URL from Google Search Console
A straightforward method to de-index a webpage is by utilizing the ‘Remove URL’ feature in Google Search Console.
Here is a brief guide:
1. Access Google Search Console
2. Select ‘removals’ from the sidebar
3. Click on ‘new request’
4. Input your URL This feature enables website administrators to temporarily or permanently eliminate URLs from Google’s search results.
After submitting a removal request, Google will review it within a few days, and the page should be excluded from the search results.
Method 2: Contact the website owner directly
If you know the website owner, like a vendor or partner, feel free to reach out to them directly and ask for the removal of the unwanted content. This approach works well when the content isn’t illegal or against Google’s policies, but rather just outdated or incorrect.
Method 3: Contact Google’s legal team
If you know the website owner, like a vendor or partner, you can reach out to them and ask to remove the unwanted content. This is helpful if the content isn’t illegal or against Google’s rules, but is just old or incorrect.
Method 4: Use meta tags to block search engines
If you want to remove a specific page from Google’s index but do not want to de-index the entire website, you can use meta tags to block search engines from indexing that page. This is helpful for temporarily removing a page from search results due to a temporary issue.
Method 5: Remove the content from the website
If you can manage the website with the unwanted content, the easiest fix is to delete it completely. This is especially helpful if the content is old, wrong, or unnecessary. Deleting it makes sure that Google and other search engines won’t index it.
Shopify apps like SearchPie offer a user-friendly way to manage noindex settings without needing to edit code directly. These apps often provide bulk editing options and easier control over indexing for different page types. SearchPie, for example, has a “Google Index” feature that allows you to connect to Google Search Console, submit sitemaps, and request indexing or deindexing of specific URLs. It also offers bulk meta tag editing, which can be used to apply noindex tags to multiple pages at once.
Finally, Google Search Console provides a “Removals” tool for temporary URL removal from Google’s search results. This is a quick but temporary solution, lasting about 6 months. For permanent removal, using the noindex tag or removing the content is necessary.
Which tool can you use to deindex content using the noindex meta tag?
Several tools and methods can help implement the noindex meta tag.
- Manual HTML editing
It involves adding <meta name=”robots” content=”noindex”> to the <head> section.
2. For Shopify, you can edit the theme.liquid file or use No-code Alternatives like SEOAnt and SearchPie, which provide user-friendly interfaces to manage meta tags, including noindex.
- SEO Ant
In SEOAnt, go to the SEO settings of the page you want to exclude and open the advanced options. Enable the No index tag and save to prevent search engines from indexing the page.
- SearchPie
With SearchPie SEO & Speed Optimization, you can index/ noindex unwanted pages in one-click.
This can be implemented automatically or by request that fits your needs.
3. WordPress users can utilize plugins like All in One SEO (AIOSEO) and Yoast SEO to easily implement the noindex tag on individual pages or sitewide.
These tools simplify the process of controlling content indexation for various platforms and levels of technical expertise.
Conclusion: Understanding and Managing Deindexing
Deindexing is a critical aspect of website management and SEO. Whether it happens intentionally or unintentionally, understanding its causes and knowing how to manage it is essential for maintaining a healthy online presence. By regularly auditing your website for quality, technical issues, and adherence to search engine guidelines, you can minimize the risk of unwanted deindexing and ensure your valuable content remains visible to your target audience. Utilizing tools and methods for intentional deindexing allows for a more strategic approach to SEO, focusing search engine efforts on your most important and valuable pages.