How long does it take for a new website to generate traffic? Will my site’s pages be indexed by Google? These are common questions SEO beginners ask themselves when launching their own website.
The answer is simple even if the process is complicated: Google sends both bots and humans to test your site. You won’t get a second chance to make a great first impression — your website must be perfectly ready for your audience. Here’s how Google handles it.
1 – Google starts crawling your site
When Google detects a new website or even a new page, its algorithms begin by crawling it. Crawling means sending bots, known as crawler bots, to download the text content and media from the new site.
At this stage, it’s important that all pages are available for indexing. And for that, there’s one rule: the page depth from the homepage must not exceed 2. This means a user should need no more than 2 clicks from your homepage to access any of your pages.
But if Google hasn’t fully indexed a new site, don’t panic — non-indexed and/or non-indexable pages can be viewed in the “Pages” section of your Search Console.
2 – Google proceeds with indexing
Once crawling is complete, Google’s algorithms attempt to determine the topic of the new website. This is the indexing phase, during which tags (meta title, meta description, image alt attributes, etc.) are thoroughly examined.
Google checks whether one or more pages on your new site resemble content already published elsewhere on the internet. It also verifies whether your content thoroughly covers the topic. Duplicate pages, known as “cannibal pages“, are penalized.
You can view details of “Duplicate pages without user-selected canonical” in Search Console.
It’s during this phase that Google uses the most resources, comparing your content to millions of others online. This allows for a first ranking based on the relevance and uniqueness of your content.
3 – Google presents your content to the public
Once indexed, your content is tested by the audience. This phase determines the success or failure of your site. Google begins by showing your content to users most likely to be interested. Their reactions influence Google’s evaluation.
Note that you can take the lead and add links to your website as soon as it’s published to help it gain visibility.
First possibility: normal interaction
Users click, read, scroll… just like on other sites. In this case, your site is considered “average” and ranked accordingly. Some pages may perform well while others may not even be indexed.
Second possibility: poor interaction
If user signals are below average (clicks, scrolling, navigation…), Google gives your SEO a low score. The issue could be with the content or the site speed — to find out, check the Core Web Vitals in Search Console or test your pages with Page Speed Insights.
Third possibility: good interaction
Early users engage better than average: more time spent, more navigation, more shares. This positive behavior helps your new website climb the rankings. To encourage such interactions, optimize UX and performance in advance — especially the LCP (Largest Contentful Paint).
In short, launching a new website is like opening a new restaurant. Everything must be perfect so your first visitors come back… and bring others with them.