Recently, many business websites on the Wix platform have disappeared from Google index. If you have a Wix-powered site, you may have noticed a sharp decline in activity. Well, there’s a situation that Google is working on and the Wix platform is at the center of it.
Wix Users Turn to Forums
Webmasters have sought answers in Google Webmaster Help Forums. Wix users want to know what would cause Google to say “remove site from Google index.” One webmaster reported as much as 85 percent of his site’s page missing from index. Another stated he had a 50 percent page disappearance. At the moment, this type of steep drop is common for Wix users. In the worst cases, entire sites have been de-indexed.
Google is Testing Canonicals
Webmasters are guessing at what has caused this sudden onslaught of de-indexing, but no one knows for sure. Some speak about testing “canonicals” or the process of “canonicalization.” This is what webmasters refer to when they talk about testing homepage urls. For example, let’s say a website has more than one url for a home web page. The goal is to select which url is the best match for that particular page.
Take “www.example.com” and “example.com.” Even though both reference the same page, search results may not see it that way. It must go through the process of canonicalization. Webmasters must decide on their “canonical” preference and be consistent with it. Accomplishing this is tricky. If you try to remove site from Google index yourself, you could remove your entire domain by accident. If this occurs, you’d have to fill out a reinclusion request.
Canonicals may or may not be the root of the problem. Nonetheless, Google is aware of the situation and has since apologized. In a forum post, it stated that it’s working hard on testing canonicals. It’s doing what it can to re-index those dropped Wix sites.
How to Tell if Google Index Has Dropped Your Site
Look at your search data from two weeks ago until today. You might have to look even 30 days back to tell if there was a strong drop in user activity. Ask yourself three questions:
- When it comes to index counts, does my Google Search Console show a severe decline?
- Have there been any drastic changes in my Search traffic over the past two weeks or thirty days?After you’ve answered those two questions above, use Google to search for your site. Now, answer the third question.
- Can I access my Wix site?
If the answer is “no,” then Google index has dropped your site. If you answered “yes,” you’re one of the lucky few. Don’t get too excited though. Check all your pages. If you’re not affected now, you might be soon.
The Side Effects of Google Index Not Finding Your Website
The whole point of building a website is to get more visibility. You want as many people all across the globe to see your website, visit it, and then buy something. This isn’t possible if your online website business presence is non-existent to the world.
With each passing day that your Wix site goes without index, no one sees your site. They do see your competition’s site if it’s on another platform.
Why Businesses Choose Wix
Entrepreneurs like Wix because it doesn’t cost much to get a site up and running. In 2015, shared services were from free to under $25. Some plans were as low as a little over $4 with most under $10. Wix’s free version comes with 500MB of bandwidth and the storage limit is 500MB too for non-paying sites. You can scale up from there.
Webmasters also appreciate Wix’s easy website building platform. It almost eliminates the learning curve for building websites. A novice can create a professional, polished website in the shortest amount of time.
Business owners get the chic, crisp look of a big business website without having a large budget. By comparison, you’d have to hire a developer to create a website as functional as the average Wix site. This would cost you at least hundreds of dollars, but more likely, thousands. When businesses choose Wix, they invest little and get much in return.
What Wix Doesn’t Offer in its Free Plans
Your free Wix website won’t be ad-free. This is the typical set-up for free hosting sites. The site has to fund itself somehow to keep the free website plan offering available.
Businesses can’t do everything they want with a free Wix account either. Since Wix webmasters share the same Wix platform, they’re limited in what they can code.
One Problem Fits All: Premium Sites Are Also Affected By the Google De-Indexing Situation
Whether your Wix website is a free plan or paid one, all Wix sites share the same platform and the same de-indexing problem. It’s evident in forum posts, and there’s a growing concern among webmasters who have paid for hosting services. They say the de-indexing of their website is hindering business activity. It is affecting them and their clients. Some conclude that Wix isn’t to blame. Developers are doing what Google’s promoting: using state-of-the-art technologies to create powerful, functional websites.
Another Way to Get Your Business Back on Google
This is a great time to think about reviewing other easy website building tools. Over the last decade, WordPress has become more sophisticated. It has a variety of plugins available that increase website functionality. Stylish templates are available for all plans, both free and premium. Consider using WordPress to build a professional-looking site that highlights your business’s offerings.
The bottom line is that Google’s Search index is where your business wants to be. The higher the ranking, the more money you’ll likely make. For instance, a number five ranking can bring in thousands of unique visitors on a monthly basis. This can equate to thousands of dollars in revenue just based on your placement in the index. If Google doesn’t index your Wix site, your business is losing money.