To get your website to show up on Google, Google has to find your pages, store them in its index and understand what each one is about. For a new site, that means checking nothing is blocking search engines, verifying the site in Google Search Console, submitting a sitemap and giving Google reasons to visit, such as links from your Google Business Profile. Once a page is indexed it can appear in results, even before it ranks well.
Showing up and ranking on the first page are different problems. This article is about the first one: making sure Google can see your website at all.
How a website gets onto Google
Google does not list every website automatically. It works in three steps.
- Crawling: Google’s crawler, Googlebot, discovers a page by following a link or reading a sitemap.
- Indexing: Google processes the page and decides whether to store it in its index.
- Serving: when someone searches, Google picks the most relevant indexed pages to show.
If a page never gets crawled or indexed, no amount of good writing will make it appear. So start by confirming where your site sits in that chain.
Step 1: Check whether Google can see your site
Type site:yourdomain.com.au into Google. The results give a rough picture of which pages are indexed. If nothing comes back for a site that has been live for a few weeks, something is probably blocking it.
Common blockers on new websites
- The “discourage search engines” box in WordPress settings was left ticked after the build.
- Pages carry a noindex tag, often a leftover from the staging site.
- The robots.txt file blocks the whole site or key folders.
- The site still sits behind a password or a “coming soon” page.
- The domain points to the wrong server, or both the www and non-www versions load without redirecting to one.
Any of these can keep a finished website invisible. Ask your web designer to check each one at launch.
Step 2: Verify the site in Google Search Console
Google Search Console is free, and it is the only place Google tells you directly how it sees your site. Verify your domain, preferably as a domain property so every version of the site is covered, and make sure the account is in your business’s name rather than your designer’s.
Once verified, the Pages report shows which URLs are indexed and the reasons others are not. The URL Inspection tool lets you test a single page and request indexing when it is new or has changed.
Step 3: Submit your XML sitemap
A sitemap lists the pages you want Google to know about. Most WordPress SEO plugins create one automatically, usually at an address like /sitemap_index.xml. Submit it in Search Console under Sitemaps. It does not guarantee indexing, but it gives Googlebot a complete map instead of leaving it to stumble across pages.
Step 4: Give Google paths to your pages
Googlebot finds pages by following links, so give it plenty of routes in.
Internal links
Every important page should be linked from your menu or from other pages. A page with no links pointing to it, sometimes called an orphan page, is easy for Google to miss.
Links from elsewhere
Add your website to your Google Business Profile, your social profiles and reputable directories for your industry. These links help Google discover a new domain and give it a reason to crawl again.
Step 5: Set up your Google Business Profile
For a local business, the map results are often the fastest way to appear on Google. A verified Business Profile can show your business for local searches while your website is still building trust. Use your real business name, the right primary category and the same address and phone number shown on your website. We cover the setup in more detail in our guide to Google Business Profile.
Step 6: Make every page worth indexing
Google does not index everything it crawls. Thin pages, near-copies of other pages and placeholder content are often skipped. Give each page a clear purpose, a unique title and enough useful detail to answer the searcher’s question. A service page with two sentences on it gives Google little reason to store it.
What to expect after launch
New pages can be indexed within days, but it can also take several weeks, especially for a brand new domain with no links. Search for your exact business name first. That is usually the first result to appear. Searches for your services take longer, because that is where ranking against competitors begins.
If you want help with that next stage, our SEO services in Perth pick up where being indexed leaves off.
Frequently asked questions
Do I have to pay Google to be listed?
No. Appearing in the normal search results is free. Google Ads are a separate, paid placement marked as sponsored.
Why does my site appear for my business name but not my services?
Your name is unique, so there is little competition for it. Service searches have many competing pages, which is a ranking issue rather than an indexing one.
What does “Discovered, currently not indexed” mean?
Google knows the page exists but has not crawled it yet. It is common on new sites, and stronger internal links and useful content usually resolve it over time.
Should I request indexing for every page?
No need. Submit the sitemap, then use URL Inspection for your most important pages or ones you have just changed.
Make sure Google can find you
If your new website is live but missing from Google, a quick technical check usually finds the cause. Talk to our Perth SEO team or book a discovery call and we will check what is stopping Google from seeing your site.
