Google emails website owners from time to time about how their site shows up in search. Some of these sound scary. Most are routine. Here's how to tell the difference.
Why you get these emails
Your site is connected to Google Search Console. That's the free tool Google uses to tell site owners which pages it found, which ones it shows in search, and anything it wants you to know. Getting these emails is a good sign. It means Google is paying attention to your site.
The ones you can ignore
- "Pages aren't indexed" or "Page with redirect." Google skipped some pages, and that's almost always on purpose. Old pages that now point to new ones, thank-you pages, and duplicate links all get skipped. It's not a problem with your site.
- "We started collecting data for your site." A status update. Nothing to do.
- "Congrats on reaching" a milestone. People are finding you in search. Enjoy it.
The ones to forward to us
- A sudden drop in clicks or impressions across your whole site
- A manual action or a security issue
- A spike in errors across a lot of pages at once
Forward the whole email to support@earnworthy.com so we can see exactly what Google flagged.
How to handle one when it lands
- Don't reply. It comes from a no-reply address.
- Read the subject line. If it's a milestone, a status update, or a "pages not indexed" note, file it away.
- Forward anything you're unsure about. We'd rather look at ten harmless emails than miss one that matters.
FAQ
A "pages not indexed" email came in. Is my site broken?
Almost certainly not. If a page you care about isn't showing up in search, tell us and we'll check it.
Why aren't my new pages in the menu?
That's on purpose too. See Why New SEO Pages Aren't in Your Menu.
Do I need to click the buttons in these emails?
No. You can, but you don't have to.
Can I turn them off?
You can unsubscribe from certain types inside the email. It's better to leave them on and forward the ones that matter. They're a useful early warning.