A Beginner’s Guide to Navigating Google Search Console

by | Aug 14, 2025 | SEO | 0 comments

Google Search Console Guide

In the ever-evolving world of digital marketing, understanding how your website performs on Google is critical. That’s where Google Search Console (GSC) steps in—a free, powerful tool that gives you insights into how your website appears and performs in search results.

Whether you’re a blogger, small business owner, or SEO beginner, this Google Search Console guide will walk you through the basics of using GSC effectively in 2025.

🔍 What is Google Search Console?

Google Search Console is a free tool from Google that helps you monitor, maintain, and troubleshoot your site’s presence in Google Search results. It doesn’t directly impact rankings, but it shows how your content is performing, highlights issues, and offers recommendations to improve visibility.

🛠️ Why Should You Use Google Search Console?

Here’s what GSC can do for you:

  • Track your website’s search performance (clicks, impressions, CTR, average position, search terms)
  • Identify technical SEO issues (crawling, indexing, mobile usability)
  • Submit sitemaps and request indexing
  • Check for manual actions or penalties
  • Analyze which keywords and pages are driving traffic
  • Inspect how Googlebot sees your website
Google Search Console

🚀 Getting Started with Google Search Console

Step 1: Set Up Your GSC Account

    • Domain property (tracks all versions of the domain)
    • URL-prefix property (only a specific URL version)

We recommend Domain property for full visibility.

Step 2: Verify Website Ownership

Choose one of the following methods:

  • DNS record (recommended for domain property)
  • HTML file upload
  • Google Analytics or Tag Manager
  • Insert HTML tag in your website’s header tag <head>

If you’re unsure, your web developer or hosting provider can help.

📈 Key Sections to Understand in GSC

1. Performance Report

See how your site performs in Google Search:
  • Total clicks – How many users clicked your site from Google
  • Total impressions – How often your site appeared in results
  • Click-through rate (CTR) – % of impressions that resulted in clicks
  • Average position – Your average ranking for queries
👉 Use this to identify top-performing pages and keywords.

2. URL Inspection Tool

Want to know how Google views a specific page?

Use the URL Inspection Tool to:

  • Check if the page is indexed
  • View last crawl date

Submit URL for reindexing after updates

3. Index Coverage Report

Understand how many pages are:
  • Indexed
  • Excluded
  • Having errors
Common issues include:
  • Crawl anomalies
  • Pages blocked by robots.txt
  • Redirect errors
✅ Fix these for better crawlability and SEO health.

4. Sitemap

Submit your XML sitemap (e.g., yoursite.com/sitemap.xml) to help Google discover your content faster.

5. Mobile Usability

Google prioritizes mobile-first indexing. This report shows:
  • Viewport issues
  • Text too small to read
  • Clickable elements too close
📱 Always optimize for mobile users.

6. Experience and Core Web Vitals

Track how your site performs in terms of speed and user experience:
  • Largest Contentful Paint (LCP)
  • First Input Delay (FID)
  • Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS)
Improve these for better UX and ranking signals.

7. Security & Manual Actions

If your site has security issues (malware, hacked content) or has violated Google guidelines, you’ll be notified here.

✅ Beginner Tips for Using GSC Effectively

  • Check GSC weekly to track performance and spot issues early.
  • Compare data month-over-month to monitor SEO growth.
  • Use filters to analyze specific countries, devices, or queries.

Combine GSC with tools like Google Analytics and Google Data Studio for deeper insights.

💡 Real-World Example (Optional Add-on)

Case Study: A local business improved its CTR by 34% simply by optimizing title tags and meta descriptions on its top 5 pages as shown in the GSC Performance report.

🔧 How Sigur Solutions Can Help

Managing your site’s SEO and performance doesn’t have to be overwhelming. At Sigur Solutions, we help clients integrate, monitor, and optimize their websites using Google Search Console and other top-tier tools.

📩 Contact Us today for a free website audit!

When it comes to SEO, two things matter the most: making sure your pages are properly indexed by Google and ensuring they deliver a smooth, fast user experience. Google Search Console (GSC) is one of the most powerful free tools available to achieve both. It not only helps identify indexing issues but also provides insights into Core Web Vitals—metrics that directly affect rankings and user satisfaction.

In this blog, we’ll break down how to fix indexing issues and improve Core Web Vitals using Google Search Console.

Understanding Indexing Issues

If your website isn’t indexed, it won’t appear in Google search results—no matter how great your content is. Common indexing issues include:

  • Crawled but not indexed: Google has seen your page but didn’t add it to search results.
  • Duplicate content: Pages with similar content may not be indexed.
  • Blocked by robots.txt or meta tags: Technical settings that prevent crawling.

Server errors (5xx) or not found (404): Broken pages that block indexing.

How to Fix Indexing Issues with GSC

  1. Check the Coverage Report – Navigate to Index > Pages in GSC to see which URLs are indexed and which aren’t.
  2. Inspect URL – Use the URL inspection tool to check if Google can crawl and index your page.
  3. Fix Errors – Resolve technical issues (broken links, redirects, duplicate tags, robots.txt blocks).
  4. Request Reindexing – Once fixed, request indexing to speed up the process.

💡 Tip: Regularly monitor sitemaps and ensure your most important pages are included.

Improving Core Web Vitals

Core Web Vitals are Google’s way of measuring user experience. They focus on:

  • Largest Contentful Paint (LCP): Loading performance (should be under 2.5s).
  • First Input Delay (FID) / Interaction to Next Paint (INP): Interactivity (should be under 200ms).

Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS): Visual stability (should be under 0.1).

How to Improve Core Web Vitals with GSC

  1. Check the Experience Report – GSC provides Core Web Vitals data for desktop and mobile.
  2. Optimize LCP – Compress images, use faster hosting, enable caching, and reduce render-blocking scripts.
  3. Improve Interactivity (FID/INP) – Minimize JavaScript, use lazy loading, and reduce third-party scripts.

Stabilize Layout (CLS) – Always define image dimensions, avoid dynamic ads pushing content, and maintain consistent design.

Why This Matters for SEO

  • Pages with indexing issues won’t show up in search at all.
  • Poor Core Web Vitals lead to higher bounce rates and lower rankings.
  • A well-optimized site provides better user experience, which Google rewards.

By consistently monitoring Google Search Console, you not only fix hidden SEO issues but also future-proof your website for better rankings and conversions.

Google Search Console is more than just an SEO tool—it’s your direct communication channel with Google. By using it to resolve indexing issues and improve Core Web Vitals, you ensure your website is discoverable, fast, and user-friendly.

✅ Regularly monitor GSC.

✅ Fix technical SEO errors promptly.

✅ Keep improving Core Web Vitals.

Do this, and you’ll see your site climb in rankings while keeping visitors engaged.