How to get your website to show up on Google

The short answer

Your website shows up on Google when three things are true: Google knows the site exists, Google can load it without errors, and the pages plainly say what you do and where. Most small business sites are missing one of the three. A five minute test tells you which. Start there.

The five minute test

Open Google and search for site:yourwebsite.com with your real address in place of yourwebsite.com and no space after the colon. Google shows every page it has from your site.

If pages appear, Google knows your site. Your problem is ranking, and the fixes are in steps 3 and 4 below.

If nothing appears, Google does not have your site at all. Start with step 1.

Step 1: Tell Google the site exists

Go to search.google.com/search-console and add your website. Google asks you to prove you own it. The easiest route is usually through the company that hosts your website or registered your domain; Search Console offers a one click connection for most of them. Once verified, paste your homepage address into the search bar at the top of Search Console and choose "Request indexing". That is you telling Google directly: this page is here, come read it.

Step 2: Give Google the list of pages

Most website builders generate a sitemap automatically at yourwebsite.com/sitemap.xml. Open that address in your browser. If you see a list of your pages, go back to Search Console, find "Sitemaps" in the left menu, and paste that address in. If you get an error instead, search your builder's help pages for "sitemap"; it is usually one setting.

Step 3: Fix what stops Google from loading the site

Load your site on your phone using cellular data, not your shop wifi. Look at the address bar. If it says "Not secure" or shows no padlock, ask your website host to turn on the free security certificate (called SSL). If the site takes more than a few seconds, huge photos are the usual cause, and your builder's help has a "compress images" article. Try the address with and without "www." in front; both should land on your site.

Step 4: Say what you do and where, in plain words

Google decides when to show your site by reading it. If your homepage says "Quality you can trust" and never says "plumbing repair in Fort Collins", Google has to guess, and it guesses someone else. Near the top of your homepage, add one plain line: what you are plus where you are. Name your main services the way customers say them. Put your business name, city and phone in the footer of every page. Then set the page title (your builder calls it "page title" or "SEO title") to say what and where.

How long does it take?

Days to a few weeks after Google can read the site. Check with the site: search above. A brand new site is usually found first for its own business name and only later for what it does.

What this guide does not cover

A website Google can find is one of ten checks in the free Bearlo scan. The scan also tests whether the site is secure, whether it loads on a phone, and whether your name and phone match what Google shows. Every result is visible, pass or fail.