A few weeks after a new website launched, a client got in touch, worried: the site was barely findable on Google, it probably wasn’t indexed. A quick check showed: the pages were in the index. They just weren’t ranking high yet. Those are two different things. Indexing can be checked instantly. Good rankings take time, because a new site has no history with Google yet.
The case
After a launch, the expectation is often: the site is live, so it should be found. But to Google, a new site is unknown at first. It has no links from other sites, no user signals and no track record. That doesn’t change with a setting, but over weeks and months.
Indexing and ranking, simply explained
| Indexing | Ranking | |
|---|---|---|
| Question | Does Google know the page? | How high does Google show it? |
| How to check | Search Console or a search with “site:” | Search Console over several weeks |
| How fast | Usually visible after a short time | Builds up slowly |
| If it’s missing | Often a technical problem | Usually a matter of time, content and links |
When it really is a problem
- Pages are missing from the index, even though the sitemap has been submitted.
- Search Console reports exclusions, for example from a search engine block that was accidentally left on after launch.
- Important pages have incorrect references to other URLs.
In these cases, we act immediately. If everything is properly indexed, patience is the right answer, together with good content and internal links.
Your takeaways
- Check the index first, before you worry about rankings. It takes a minute.
- A new site has no history. Good rankings build up, they don’t get switched on.
- Tell tech apart from time. Technical errors need fixing right away, missing visibility needs content and links.
- Talk about expectations before launch. If you know what’s normal in the first weeks, you won’t panic.
Not sure whether your new site is getting picked up properly by Google? We’ll check it and tell you honestly whether there’s a problem or it just needs time.