Understanding Google Console: SEO Messages and Alerts Decoded

Understanding Google Console: SEO Messages and Alerts Decoded

By Michael Chen

February 7, 2025 at 05:43 PM

Google SEO emails and console messages can be confusing, but not all require action. Here's what you need to know about common notifications:

Mobile-First Indexing When enabled, it means Google recognizes your site works well on mobile devices. This is positive and requires no action if your site uses responsive design.

Mobile Usability Issues These alerts indicate elements that need mobile optimization, such as:

  • Text that's too small to read
  • Clickable elements placed too close together
  • Content wider than screen

Robots.txt Messages These are normal notifications about pages Google shouldn't crawl. Common restricted paths include:

  • /search
  • /?author=
  • /?tag=
  • /?month=
  • /?view=
  • /?format=

Page Indexing Issues Common notifications include:

  • Page crawled but not indexed (normal for cart/checkout pages)
  • Alternate page with proper canonical tag (normal for homepages)
  • Discovered - currently not indexed (waiting to be crawled)

Crawl Errors Most frequent issues:

  • 404 errors (page not found)
  • Redirect errors
  • Soft 404 errors (caused by phrases like "no longer available" or "not in stock")

To fix crawl errors:

  1. Set up proper 301/302 redirects
  2. Request Google to reindex your site
  3. Remove error-triggering phrases from good pages
  4. Wait for Google to process changes

Structured Data Warnings These indicate missing markup code. While not critical:

  • Your site will still be indexed
  • Content remains eligible for rich snippets
  • Use Google's Data Highlighter to tag information manually

Deceptive Behavior Flags If Google flags your site:

  1. Verify your site in Search Console
  2. Remove potentially malicious content
  3. Request a site review through Google
  4. Follow Google's documentation for specific warnings

Remember that third-party SEO tools may provide misleading results for CMS-based websites, as they're designed for custom-coded sites.

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