Indexing and SEO: 9 Steps to Get Your Content Indexed by Google and Bing

No indexing means no visibility. Follow these essential steps to ensure your content gets indexed and seen in search results.

Why Indexing Matters for SEO

Are you constantly seeing the frustrating “Discovered – currently not indexed” message in Google Search Console? You’re not alone.

Many website owners focus too much on ranking without ensuring their content is actually indexed. But without indexing, your content won’t appear in search results—whether it’s Google SERPs, Bing, AI-generated results, or other platforms like Google Discover, News, and Shopping.

From experience, around 9% of valuable content pages—products, articles, listings—never get indexed by Google and Bing. So how do you fix it? Follow these nine steps to improve your indexing and boost your search visibility.

1. Audit Your Content for Indexing Issues

Start by checking your website for indexing problems. In Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools, submit separate sitemaps for different content types:

• One for products
• One for articles
• One for videos
• And so on

Once submitted, monitor indexing status in the Pages interface to identify exclusions. Common reasons include:

Technical SEO Errors

• Blocked pages in robots.txt
• Incorrect canonical tags
• Noindex directives
• 404 errors
• Redirect issues

Low-Quality Content

If Google flags pages as soft 404s or low quality, ensure the content is:

• Rendered properly server-side
• Unique, valuable, and engaging

Processing Issues

Some pages are stuck in limbo with messages like “Discovered – currently not indexed.” This requires patience and optimization, which the next steps will help resolve.

2. Submit a News Sitemap for Faster Article Indexing

If you publish news, blogs, or updates, submit a News Sitemap to Google. This increases the chances of getting indexed quickly, even if your content isn’t traditionally “news.”

3. Use Google Merchant Center for Product Indexing

If you run an eCommerce site, submit your products to Google Merchant Center to enhance indexing and visibility in Shopping results.

4. Submit an RSS Feed to Speed Up Crawling

Google and Bing crawl RSS feeds more frequently than regular XML sitemaps. To speed up

• Create an RSS feed with new content published in the last 48 hours
• Submit it to Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools

5. Use Indexing APIs for Faster Discovery

To accelerate indexing, integrate:

• IndexNow API (Bing & Yandex) – Unlimited submissions
• Google Indexing API – Limited to job posting or event pages (but some SEOs use it beyond that)

6. Strengthen Internal Linking for Indexing Signals

Googlebot and Bingbot prioritize pages with strong internal links. Improve indexing by:

• Adding related content links
• Using breadcrumbs & pagination
• Highlighting new, non-indexed pages on your homepage

7. Block Non-SEO Relevant URLs

Too many unnecessary pages dilute indexing power. In robots.txt, block:

• Faceted navigation (filters, search results)
• Tracking parameters
• Duplicate content pages

8. Use 304 Responses to Help Crawlers Prioritize New Content

Most crawl resources are spent refreshing indexed pages. Instead of returning 200 OK, use 304 Not Modified for unchanged content, so crawlers focus on new pages.

9. Manually Request Indexing for Hard-to-Index Pages

For stubborn pages, use Google Search Console’s “Request Indexing” tool. But note:

• There’s a 10-request daily limit
• Bing manual submissions aren’t more effective than IndexNow API

At Earn SEO, we specialize in helping businesses in New York achieve better search visibility through expert SEO consulting. Our team ensures that your content is properly indexed, optimized, and ranked on Google and Bing. Struggling with indexing issues? Let us handle the technical SEO challenges so your content gets the visibility it deserves. Get in touch with us today and let’s improve your search rankings!