Feeling frustrated with encountering the "Crawled - Not Currently Indexed" status in Google Search Console is completely understandable. It's disheartening to put effort into creating content only to find it hasn't been indexed by Google. Here's why this issue occurs and practical steps to alleviate it:
Why It's Happening
1. Content Quality Concerns: With the proliferation of AI-generated content flooding the internet, Google has become more discerning about what it indexes. Low-quality, duplicative content poses a challenge, leading Google to exercise caution in indexing pages.
2. Evolving Indexing Algorithms: Google's indexing algorithms continuously evolve to prioritize high-quality, relevant content. This means that even if your content meets certain criteria, it may still face delays in indexing due to changes in Google's algorithms.
How to Fix It
1. Prioritize Content Quantity: Ensure your pages contain substantial, meaningful content. Comprehensive show notes, including transcripts if available, enrich the content and demonstrate its value to Google.
2. Optimize RSS Feed Links: Utilize your RSS feed effectively by linking prominently to your website, particularly to individual episode pages. Ensure that each episode in your feed includes a direct link to its corresponding episode page on your website.
3. Seek Backlinks: Actively pursue opportunities to acquire backlinks from reputable websites. External links to your pages serve as a vote of confidence in your content's quality and relevance, potentially accelerating the indexing process.
4. Harness Social Media Promotion: Promote your pages on social media platforms to increase visibility and encourage indexing. Utilize Podpage's social media posting feature or share links independently on your social media profiles to reach a broader audience.
5. Enhance Internal Linking: Take advantage of internal linking within your website to connect relevant pages. While Podpage automatically handles some internal linking, supplement it by manually adding links within blog posts and other relevant pages to foster interconnectivity.
6. Manually ask Google to index. Go into search console, go to that URL, and click "Request Indexing". Google will see this as a sign that you care about the page since you're willing to click that manually.
We did a little digging into this in a recent webinar.
By addressing these factors, you can mitigate frustrations associated with pages appearing as "Crawled - Not Currently Indexed" and enhance the likelihood of Google indexing your content. Embrace proactive strategies to showcase the value of your content to Google's algorithms and improve its visibility in search results.