Google says poor indexing on strong hosting indicates quality issues

Google search advocate John Mueller addressed a website owner's indexing concerns on July 15, 2025, stating that sites experiencing minimal indexing despite being hosted on strong platforms likely indicate Google's systems "aren't convinced about the site overall." The comment, made on Bluesky, comes amid ongoing discussions about Google's increasingly selective indexing practices.

The original inquiry came from CarBuyerHelp.co.uk, a website owner experiencing significant indexing challenges. "Hi @johnmu.com, can you help with my Wix website not being crawled or indexed by Google? I've had it up for a few months now, and only 4 of the page have been crawled and indexed. The website is still not showing up in a Google search either."

Summary

Who: Google search advocate John Mueller addressed indexing concerns from CarBuyerHelp.co.uk website owner on the Bluesky social platform.

What: Mueller explained that websites experiencing minimal indexing despite strong hosting platforms likely indicate Google's systems "aren't convinced about the site overall," suggesting underlying quality issues rather than technical problems.

When: The exchange occurred on July 15, 2025, following months of indexing challenges experienced by the website owner.

Where: The conversation took place on Bluesky, with the affected website hosted on Wix platform and seeking Google search visibility.

Why: The guidance addresses growing concerns about Google's selective indexing practices and emphasizes content quality over technical optimization as the primary factor determining search visibility.

Mueller's response emphasized that technical hosting quality alone doesn't guarantee indexing success. "If you're hosting your site on a strong hosting platform, in a technically valid way (which you can test for), and it's barely getting indexed, often that's a sign that our systems aren't convinced about the site overall," Mueller explained.

The exchange reveals broader indexing challenges facing website owners. According to the site inspection report provided by the website owner, 28 pages were inspected on July 15, 2025, with most showing "Excluded" status and "Unknown to Google" coverage details. The report included multiple blog posts, archive pages, and car review content that remained unindexed despite being technically accessible.

Mueller's guidance expands beyond technical considerations to content strategy. "These situations are always hard. If you've recently moved to this domain, sometimes it takes time to settle down. I wonder (without an official-Google hat on) if the strategy of creating 'SEO content' lightly related to the topic of your actual business is ideal - will people really convert?"

The search advocate questioned whether creating content primarily for search engine optimization purposes serves user needs. "Obviously every site & business is different (looking at those reading on SER,SEL,SEJ,etc), it just sometimes feels like folks focus on building out a topic, ranking pages for the topic, when their business is actually not directly tied to random web traffic for that topic."

According to comprehensive analysis from PPC Land, Google's selective indexing reflects increasingly sophisticated quality evaluation systems. The platform regularly addresses indexing challenges through technical documentation and support resources.

Search Engine Roundtable's Barry Schwartz notes that Mueller's comments represent familiar territory for Google representatives. "Just to step back, this is not new. John and Google representatives have said this before. Google spoke about being on the edge of indexing because of being on the edge of Google's quality threshold."

The indexing challenges extend beyond individual websites to broader industry trends. Google's absence from the IndexNow protocol demonstrates the search engine's commitment to maintaining independent crawling infrastructure rather than adopting push-based indexing systems used by competitors.

Mueller's commentary addresses the relationship between content quality and indexing success. "He has said that if you find yourself needing to often submit your URLs to the index manually, that can be a sign of quality issues. Low quality content that is not indexed is not surprising to Googlers."

The conversation highlights challenges facing small business owners attempting to establish online presence. CarBuyerHelp.co.uk's owner expressed frustration with the indexing process: "It's very frustrating to put the work in and then not be indexed. I'm not technically-minded, and am simply trying to build a small website in order to work from home due to long term health issues."

This personal dimension contrasts with Google's systematic approach to content evaluation. The search engine's algorithms analyze multiple factors including content quality, technical implementation, and user engagement signals before determining indexing eligibility.

Recent developments in Google's indexing practices demonstrate the company's continued refinement of crawling and indexing processes. The Indexing API, limited to specific structured data types, requires approval for production use and maintains strict quota limitations.

The exchange occurred during a period of significant change in search behavior. ChatGPT referrals have grown 25x while Google's zero-click searches increased from 56% to 69% since AI Overviews launched, indicating fundamental shifts in how users discover and consume content.

Mueller's guidance emphasizes patience and quality improvement rather than technical fixes. "These situations are always hard. If you've recently moved to this domain, sometimes it takes time to settle down." The comment suggests that domain age and historical performance influence indexing decisions alongside content quality assessments.

The technical aspects of the indexing challenge appear straightforward for the website owner. According to the Bluesky conversation, the site uses Wix hosting platform and follows Google's technical guidelines. The disconnect between technical compliance and indexing success highlights Google's evolving quality standards.

Google's approach to indexing reflects broader changes in search engine optimization. The mobile-first indexing transition completed in July 2024 demonstrates the company's commitment to prioritizing mobile-friendly content, adding another layer to quality evaluation.

The conversation reveals ongoing tension between content creators and search engines. Website owners invest significant effort in content creation while facing uncertain indexing outcomes. Mueller's comments suggest that Google's quality thresholds continue rising, requiring higher standards for content to achieve search visibility.

The indexing challenges extend beyond individual websites to industry-wide trends. Digital publishers face traffic challenges as AI-powered search platforms reshape content discovery patterns, creating additional pressure on traditional SEO strategies.

Mueller's commentary addresses the fundamental question of content purpose and audience alignment. The search advocate's unofficial observation about SEO content strategies suggests that Google's algorithms increasingly prioritize content that serves genuine user needs rather than search engine optimization objectives.

The exchange demonstrates Google's continued emphasis on organic content discovery over manual submission processes. The company's quality-focused approach prioritizes content that naturally attracts user engagement rather than material created primarily for search engine visibility.

This indexing guidance comes amid broader discussions about search quality and user experience. Viral critiques of Google Search highlight concerns about ad saturation and content quality, indicating user dissatisfaction with current search results.

For the marketing community, Mueller's comments emphasize the importance of content quality over technical optimization. The guidance suggests that successful indexing requires alignment between content creation and genuine user needs rather than search engine manipulation tactics.

The conversation demonstrates Google's evolving standards for content evaluation and indexing. Website owners must balance technical compliance with quality content creation to achieve search visibility in an increasingly competitive digital environment.

Key Terms Explained

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Search engine optimization represents the practice of improving website visibility in organic search results through technical and content modifications. SEO encompasses multiple disciplines including keyword research, content optimization, technical implementation, and link building strategies. The field has evolved from simple keyword placement to sophisticated content quality assessment, requiring marketers to balance search engine requirements with genuine user value creation.

Indexing Indexing refers to the process by which search engines discover, analyze, and store web content in their databases for future retrieval during search queries. Google's indexing system involves crawling websites, processing content for relevance and quality, and determining which pages deserve inclusion in search results. The indexing process has become increasingly selective, with search engines prioritizing high-quality content over comprehensive coverage.

Crawling Crawling describes the automated process where search engine bots systematically browse the internet to discover and access web content. Google's crawling infrastructure uses sophisticated algorithms to determine crawl frequency, priority, and resource allocation across billions of web pages. Crawling efficiency depends on technical factors including server performance, site architecture, and content freshness signals.

Quality Threshold Quality threshold represents Google's internal benchmarks for determining whether content meets standards for indexing and ranking in search results. These thresholds encompass content originality, user value, technical implementation, and engagement signals. Google's quality assessment systems have become more stringent over time, requiring higher content standards for search visibility.

Zero-Click Searches Zero-click searches occur when users obtain desired information directly from search engine results pages without clicking through to external websites. These searches have increased dramatically with the introduction of AI Overviews and featured snippets, fundamentally altering traffic patterns for content publishers. Zero-click behavior represents a shift toward direct answer delivery rather than traditional click-through engagement.

Mobile-First Indexing Mobile-first indexing describes Google's approach of primarily using mobile versions of websites for crawling, indexing, and ranking purposes. This methodology reflects the dominance of mobile web browsing and ensures search results prioritize mobile-friendly content. The transition to mobile-first indexing completed in July 2024, making mobile optimization essential for search visibility.

AI Overviews AI Overviews represent Google's artificial intelligence-powered feature that provides direct answers to search queries within search results pages. These AI-generated summaries synthesize information from multiple sources to deliver comprehensive responses without requiring users to visit external websites. AI Overviews have significantly impacted click-through rates and traffic distribution patterns.

Content Quality Assessment Content quality assessment encompasses Google's evaluation systems that analyze multiple factors including originality, user value, technical implementation, and engagement metrics. These automated systems determine whether content meets standards for indexing and ranking in search results. Quality assessment has become increasingly sophisticated, incorporating user behavior signals and content depth analysis.

Organic Search Traffic Organic search traffic represents website visits generated through unpaid search engine results, excluding paid advertisements and direct navigation. This traffic type serves as a primary metric for SEO success and content marketing effectiveness. Organic traffic patterns have shifted significantly with the introduction of AI-powered search features and changing user behavior patterns.

IndexNow Protocol IndexNow protocol enables websites to instantly notify search engines about content changes through push-based notifications rather than waiting for traditional crawling cycles. Microsoft Bing and Yandex have adopted this protocol, while Google maintains independent crawling infrastructure. The protocol represents an alternative approach to content discovery that prioritizes real-time updates over comprehensive crawling coverage.

Timeline

• July 15, 2025: John Mueller responds to CarBuyerHelp.co.uk's indexing inquiry on Bluesky
• July 15, 2025: Site inspection report shows 28 pages inspected with most excluded from indexing
• July 5, 2024: Google completes mobile-first indexing transition
• September 8, 2024: Google clarifies Indexing API quota and usage requirements
• August 26, 2024: Baidu blocks Google and Bing from indexing content
• August 21, 2024: Google explains 'Discovered - Currently Not Indexed' status
• December 30, 2024: Google's absence from IndexNow raises questions about web indexing standards
• July 2, 2025: ChatGPT referrals surge as Google searches hit zero-click records