URL is not on Google – How to make urls crawl manually?

In the ever-evolving world of digital marketing, having a website that is easily discoverable by search engines is imperative for any business—especially automotive dealerships. When URLs from your dealership’s website are not indexed by Google, it can negatively impact your online visibility, ultimately leading to lost sales opportunities. In this post, we will explore how to ensure your URLs are crawled, whether manually or through optimization techniques. By implementing these strategies, you’ll improve your online presence, attract more customers, and boost conversion rates.

Understanding Why URLs May Not Be Crawling

Before diving into the methods of getting your URLs crawled, let’s discuss some common reasons your URLs might not be appearing on Google’s search results:

• Robots.txt Restrictions: Your robots.txt file might be disallowing Googlebot from crawling certain sections of your site.
• DNS Issues: If your website is experiencing DNS issues, search engines might not be able to access your URLs.
• Low-Quality Content: Google may prioritize higher-quality content and ignore URLs with thin or duplicate content.
• New URLs: New URLs might take time to get indexed, especially if your website has low authority.

Steps to Make Your URLs Crawlable

1. Check Your Robots.txt File

The first step is examining your robots.txt file to ensure that important sections of your website aren’t blocked. You can access your robots.txt file by navigating to yourwebsite.com/robots.txt. Here’s how to edit your robots.txt file correctly:

• Ensure it doesn’t contain any “Disallow” directives that would prevent crawling of desired pages.
• Use “Allow” statements to explicitly permit search engines to crawl content that might be restricted.

2. Submit Your Sitemap

The next step is to create and submit an XML sitemap to Google Search Console. This file provides search engines a clear guide to your site’s structure, ensuring all your URLs are seen. For automotive dealerships, having a well-structured sitemap is crucial since it can include inventory pages, blog posts, and service offerings. Follow these steps:

• Create a sitemap using a plugin if you’re using a CMS like WordPress or generate it manually.
• Visit Google Search Console, go to the “Sitemaps” section, and submit your sitemap URL.
• Check for crawl success and fix any issues indicated by Google.

3. Use Google Search Console to Request URL Indexing

For immediate results, you can manually request Google to index specific URLs. Here’s how:

1. Log in to your Google Search Console account.
2. Navigate to the “URL Inspection” tool.
3. Enter the URL you want to index.
4. If the URL is not indexed, click on the “Request Indexing” button.

This method sends a signal to Google to revisit the page and index it, which can be particularly helpful for newly created pages like dealership promotions or blog posts.

4. Optimize Your Website’s Structure

A clear, logical website structure not only aids users but also helps search engines crawl your site efficiently. Here are some best practices:

• Use Internal Linking: Connect related pages within your site. For example, linking to a service blog post from a car listing page can improve visibility.
• Improve URL Structure: Ensure your URLs are descriptive yet straightforward. For instance, yourdealership.com/audi-a3-service is better than yourdealership.com/page1.

5. Create Quality Content

Content quality significantly impacts indexing. If Google finds your content useful, it will crawl your pages more frequently. For dealerships, consider creating:

• Informative blog posts related to car maintenance, like tips for maintaining your vehicle.
• Videos explaining services or showcasing inventory— this can attract links and increase traffic.

Common Tools and Strategies to Enhance URL Crawlability

1. Use SEO Tools for Analysis

Employ SEO tools like SEMrush or Ahrefs to analyze your URL structures. These tools offer valuable insights, helping you determine which pages require optimization.

2. Monitor and Fix Errors

Regularly monitor Google Search Console for crawl errors. Fixing these issues swiftly will ensure that Google can efficiently crawl your pages.

3. Leverage Social Media

Share your URLs on social media platforms to generate traffic and signals to Google. Increased traffic from legitimate sources can prompt Google to index your URLs faster.

Conclusion

Ensuring that your dealership URLs are crawlable is critical for maximizing visibility in today’s competitive online automotive market. By following the strategies outlined above, from examining your robots.txt file to utilizing Google Search Console effectively, you can enhance your site’s crawlability. Remember that consistent quality content and internal linking from your dealership’s blog posts, like lead generation techniques, reinforce the authority of your pages and foster better indexing experiences. Implement these techniques to not only improve crawlability but also drive more traffic and sales to your dealership.