Google Webmaster Tools: See what Google Sees
For those of us managing websites and looking for ways to accurately gauge and improve our performance on Google, Webmaster Tools is a free resource to help you optimise your website.
What are Webmaster Tools
In the words of Google:
"Our suite of webmaster tools provides you with a free and easy way to make your site more Google-friendly. They can show you Google’s view of your site, help you diagnose problems, and let you share info with us to help improve your site’s visibility."
There are 3 key things you can accomplish with these tools.
1. Diagnosis
You will be able to see how Google is viewing your website, and diagnose potential problems that may limiting the success of your website.
2. Performance
View the top queries that drive traffic to your site and where your site is included in the top search results. See how your site is indexed and which of your pages are included in the Google index.
3. Submission
Tell Google how to index your website by submitting a sitemap.
How to get it
Firstly, if you haven't already, sign up for a Google Account. This will give you access to the Webmaster Tools, as well as a host of other essential freebies such as Google Analytics.
Step 1: Click here to go to the Webmaster Tools Page
Step 2: If you already have a Google Account - Login
OR
Click the 'Create a Google Account' Link
Once you have completed your account - you should be taken directly to the webmaster tools
Step 1. Add your Website
You can add multiple sites that you
wish to analyse via the 'Dashboard'. Type in the URL of the site you
want to add, and click the 'Add Site' Button.
Step 2. Verify Your Website
Google needs to verify that you have a genuine relationship to the website you have just added. The way it does this is to get you to put a unique identifier on your website – this way, you prove that you have access to upload files to the website in question.
The easiest way to verify your site is by adding a META tag to the homepage of your website.
After adding your site in step one, you should see a box as follows:-
Click the 'Verify your site' link and choose the 'Add a meta tag…' option from the 'Choose Verification Method…' drop down menu.
A unique identifier will be generated for you that looks like this (this one is just for illustrative purposes & won't work):-<
<meta name="verify-v1" content="vKaOSgZFcGKs3/K35eaywuhc5bo6iS4Daz1iEiU+pCo=" />
Add this meta tag in the HEAD section of the HTML of your homepage and upload the file.
Once uploaded, click the 'Verify' button, and Google will then check your home page to see if the code you added is present. If it is, your website is now verified.
How to use the tools
There are 4 tabs at the top of the page – Diagnostic, Statistics, Links, Sitemaps
Diagnosic Tab:
The Diagnostic Tab will give you a summary of :
- when your website was last indexed by Googlebot (Google's indexing software)
- whether your site has pages included in Google's index
- Web Crawl errors
Assuming you have ticks by the first 2, the most useful tool here is the Web Crawl errors.
The read-out here will let you identify any areas that need fixing on your website. Every HTTP error, Not Found, or Unreachable URL can damage your search engine ranking and requires urgent attention.
In the example below, there are 3 Not Found errors. Clicking on this link reveals the missing pages in question. In this case I am able to either find the missing pages and upload them, or find the pages that are pointing to these missing pages, and correct the bad links.
Other Tools
There are further tools in the Diagnostic section that can be useful in your quest for an error free website., including a URL Removal tool, by which you can request to remove missing pages from Google index.
Statistics Tab:
The Statistics tab offers you general site, page and keyword statistics that you can use to form a picture of how well your website is performing.
The most useful of these is Query Stats:-
Report a bug