Your website isn't showing up on Google. You search your business name, you search your service — nothing on page one, sometimes nothing at all. It's almost never bad luck or "Google hates me." It's one of five specific causes, and they're all diagnosable in 30 minutes. Here's how to figure out which one's killing your visibility, and what to do about each.
Search Google for site:yoursite.com (replace with your actual domain). If you see pages from your site listed, you're indexed — Google knows you exist. The problem is ranking, not visibility, and the fix is different. If site: shows zero results, Google literally doesn't know your site exists yet. That's a different (usually faster) fix. Either way, run through the 5 causes below. The diagnosis tells you the order to fix.
1Google hasn't crawled you yet
If your site is less than 8 weeks old, Google might just not have indexed it yet. New sites take time. There's no premium tier — every site goes in the queue.
How to check: log into Google Search Console (free, takes 5 minutes to set up). It'll show you which pages are indexed and which aren't.
How to fix: submit a sitemap in Search Console, then click "Request Indexing" on your most important pages. This pushes you to the front of the queue.
2You're blocked by robots.txt or noindex
This one's embarrassing but stunningly common. Your site has a setting that tells Google "don't index this page" or "don't read this whole site" — and you've never noticed.
It usually happens when a developer launches a site with "block all" turned on during development, then forgets to turn it off when going live.
How to check: visit yoursite.com/robots.txt in a browser. If you see "Disallow: /" or "noindex" on your important pages, that's the problem.
How to fix: remove the blocking rules. If you're on WordPress, the toggle is under Settings → Reading → "Discourage search engines." Make sure it's unticked.
0.63% of users click past the first page of Google search results — Backlinko 2024. At Bare Bayside Labs, we routinely see businesses spending money on ads while their organic visibility quietly stays broken — a noindex tag silently costing them years of free traffic.
3Your site is too thin
A 4-page website with one paragraph on each page won't rank for anything competitive. Google ranks pages, not businesses, and pages need real content to rank.
"Real content" doesn't mean walls of text. It means each page answers a specific question thoroughly — typically 600-1,500 words for service pages, 1,500+ for blog content.
How to check: count the visible words on your homepage and service pages. If they're under 300 words each, that's likely the issue.
How to fix: expand each service page to fully cover one question someone in your category actually types into Google. Add a blog with monthly posts that target related questions.
4You haven't targeted clear keywords
A page can be 3,000 words long and still rank for nothing. The page has to be clearly about a specific search query — and most local business websites are written like brochures, not like answers.
"We provide quality plumbing services to homes and businesses" doesn't rank for anything. "Emergency plumber in Sandringham, available 24/7" ranks for a real, useful query.
How to check: read each page out loud. Can you name in one sentence what Google query someone would type to land here? If you can't, the page is too vague.
How to fix: rewrite each page around one specific service + one location. Your service page count should match your service count, not the other way around.
5The competition is too entrenched
Some keywords are unwinnable for a new local site. "Plumber Sydney" against 50 established sites with 1,000+ pages each is a fight you can't win in year one.
The fix isn't to try harder. It's to target queries the entrenched sites haven't bothered with — suburb-level, service-line-specific, "near me", problem-based queries.
How to check: search the keyword you want to rank for. If the top 10 results are all big established sites (or Google's own panels), it's too competitive for now.
How to fix: ladder up. Win suburb-level queries first (3-6 months), then category queries (6-12 months), then broader terms (year 2+). Don't fight head-to-head from day one.
The top 3 organic results capture 54% of all clicks on a search results page — Sistrix 2024 CTR study. At Bare Bayside Labs, we see that the difference between rank 3 and rank 10 isn't 50% of traffic — it's 90%. Climbing one position is worth more than launching a fifth ad campaign.
6The diagnosis order
Run through these in this order — the earlier ones are quick and definitive:
- Check robots.txt and noindex (5 minutes — biggest payoff if it's the problem)
- Check Google Search Console for indexing status (5 minutes)
- Count words on each page (5 minutes)
- Read each page out loud, name the query (10 minutes)
- Check the competition for your target keywords (10 minutes)
If you've cleared all five and still aren't ranking, the next layer is structural — site speed, mobile experience, backlinks, and competitor analysis at the page level.
Key takeaways
- 5 specific causes cover almost every "not showing on Google" case.
- Robots.txt + noindex first — embarrassing but stunningly common.
- Thin content doesn't rank — 300-word service pages compete with 1,500-word competitor pages.
- Vague pages rank for nothing. Every page should answer one specific search query.
- Don't fight entrenched competitors head-on. Win suburb + niche queries first, then ladder up.
- Google Search Console is free and tells you exactly what's indexed.
Common questions
How long should I wait before worrying?
If your site is under 8 weeks old, give it more time and check Search Console for any errors. Over 12 weeks with no visibility for your own business name — there's a fixable problem.
Can I just pay Google to index faster?
No. Google Ads are completely separate from organic ranking. Buying ads doesn't help you rank organically, and running ads doesn't hurt you either.
Will changing my domain help?
Almost never. A new domain starts you from zero. Fix the underlying issues on the domain you have instead.
What about AI search (ChatGPT, Perplexity)?
Same fundamentals apply — if Google can't crawl or read your site, AI tools can't either. They use the same web infrastructure. Get the basics right first, then layer in AI-specific tactics like FAQ schema and clear answer blocks. See AI Search Is Coming.
Do I need an SEO agency?
For diagnosing these 5 issues, no — they're DIY. For ongoing content + competitive analysis + technical optimisation, that's where outside help earns its place.
Related articles
See how your site stacks up against the top 30 in your category
Niche Website Explorer pulls and scores the top 30 sites in your niche across 6 conversion dimensions — and shows you exactly which gaps you can own. 48-hour delivery.
Explore your niche→