Ask an entrepreneur who owns an online store about search engine rankings and they will tell you that it is the most important thing for them to stay ahead in the whole online game. And Google search console or earlier known as Google webmaster is the tool that can help e-commerce businesses optimise their website for search engines. So, it is important to get familiarised with Google search console and how it can benefit your website.

Google search console gives you insights into what Goggle is checking. For example, how much traffic you have earned, which keywords are you ranking for at that moment, the keywords that are ranking, if you have earned any inbound links and so on. 

To begin with, you need to create an account on Google search console which is absolutely free of cost and get your website verified. Once Google verifies your account, you can start using it within 24-48 hours. Google search console gives you insights into what Goggle is checking. For example, how much traffic you have earned, which keywords are you ranking for at that moment, the keywords that are ranking, if you have earned any inbound links and so on. 

Here is a list of terms that you need to understand while you are using Google search console:

1. Dashboard

The dashboard is where the most important information is stored. You can use various tools like overview, URL inspection etc. to understand what Google is viewing at that time. Some functionalities that you should be aware of are:

• Website messages - The space where Goggle informs the search console of issues that might need immediate attention. You might receive messages about a malware that is infecting your website or the CMS that needs to be upgraded.
• Users and site owners- If you are the owner of the site, you have the authority to add anyone and specify their authority within it. 
• Settings- You can schedule alerts to be delivered to your inbox and communicate with Google about any marketing strategies.
  
  

Also read: 8 free and easy SEO tools every bootstrapped owner should know about

2. Search appearance

Helps you optimise the appearance of your website. Data Highlighter helps understand your site’s data and display it as snippets on the search results page and the HTML improvements tab will alert you if there are any content issues with your website.

3. Crawl

This gives you information about any errors on your site or any blocked pages you might encounter.  

4. Site index

You need to configure your site better to help Google rank you better. These are the terms you should be aware of:

• Coverage- Under coverage you can view the basic report of your website. It is divided into categories such as pages with error, valid with warning, valid and excluded. Your aim should be to have zero pages with errors on them. Then there are pages that hold private information and you don’t want a third party to know about it. The valid and excluded pages depend on what you want Google to see. 
• Sitemaps- A hierarchy that helps Google easily find and sort pages on your website. It is important that you provide Google search console with site maps in XML format which can’t be more than 50,000 URLs. If your site map exceeds 10 megs, then you need to submit multiple files. The key to getting Google all the pages indexed are to keep the content of your website original.
  
  

Also read: Power of testimonials and how they can boost your e-commerce sales

5. Search traffic

 This gives you an insight into what people are looking for right now and the keywords that are ranking. You can filter your queries by looking at the following factors:

• Query - Tells you which keyword is ranking at the moment. Which keywords you should be using and if you are ranking for the ones you are using.
• Impressions - Here you can see the number of people who are viewing your website. 
• Clicks - The people who have seen and clicked or acted on it.
• CTR - Click Through Rate or CTR gives you a ratio between clicks and impressions. You can analyse and update your content accordingly.
• Links - Shows websites that link to you the most. 
  
  

The Google search console can help you understand your site and its SEO better. You can thereby improve the content of your website, find good market opportunities and come up with new strategies to divert traffic to your website.

Also read: 10 things you should do before launching your e-commerce website

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