Why your website doesn't appear on Google (or Bing) — and how to fix it

"My website doesn't appear on Google" actually covers two situations. Either your site is not indexed: Google doesn't have it in its database, and it's invisible even when searching for your exact name. Or it is indexed but poorly ranked: it exists for Google, but it shows up on page 3 or 5, where nobody goes.

The test takes ten seconds: type site:your-domain.com into Google. If pages appear, you are indexed and your problem is a ranking problem. If nothing comes up, your problem is deeper — and takes priority.

The classic causes: a very recent site that crawlers haven't discovered yet, a "noindex" tag forgotten since launch (very common on rushed deliveries), a robots.txt file blocking everything, or a total absence of links pointing to the site.

The solution goes through Google Search Console, Google's free tool: you declare your site, submit your sitemap and can request indexing for each page. It's also what will tell you in black and white why a page is excluded. No serious website should live without it.

Bing is the default on Windows computers and powers the answers of several AI assistants, including ChatGPT. A real share of your customers — often older ones, on their desktop PC — search on Bing without even knowing it. Being absent there means letting those contacts slip away.

Bing Webmaster Tools is the equivalent of Search Console, also free, and it can even import your data from Google in a few clicks. Better still: with the IndexNow protocol, every new page on your site is reported instantly to Bing instead of waiting for a crawler to pass by. It's in place on this site, and it's a reflex very few local agencies have.

If your site is indexed but can't be found, the first cause is almost always content. A five-page site with three lines per page gives Google no reason to show you. Each page must answer a real search: "price", "quote", "restaurant with terrace Biarritz", "emergency plumber Bayonne".

Headings play a major role: a single H1 per page containing your main keyword, clear section titles, a unique title tag for each page. If all your pages are called "Home — MyCompany", Google simply cannot guess what you sell, or where.

For a shop or a tradesperson, the battle is not fought on "restaurant" but on "restaurant Saint-Jean-de-Luz". Your site must clearly state where you are and who you serve: towns mentioned in the copy, a page per service area if you travel, address and phone number visible and identical everywhere — website, Google profile, directories.

Complete it with a well-maintained Google Business Profile linked to your site: it's what makes you appear on Google Maps and in the "local pack", often before the classic results. Profile and website reinforce each other — one brings immediate visibility, the other credibility and conversion.

Schema.org structured data is markup invisible to your visitors but read by search engines: it states in black and white that you are a local business, with your address, opening hours, reviews and frequently asked questions. Google and Bing use it to enrich your results — stars, expandable FAQs, breadcrumbs.

A rich result attracts more clicks at the same position, and gives search engines a precise understanding of your activity. It's a one-off technical job with an excellent return — and one of the first things I check during an audit, because it's missing from most local websites.

A slow site, poorly displayed on mobile or without HTTPS starts with a handicap: Google measures the real experience of visitors through its Core Web Vitals, and the majority of local searches now happen on phones. A site that takes five seconds to display loses the visitor before the first line.

Finally, inbound links and time do the rest. A brand-new site won't overtake competitors established for ten years in three weeks: count on three to six months of regular effort — content, customer reviews, an active Google profile — to see the curve rise durably. Consistency beats intensity.