Assessing the Impact of URL Structure Changes on Site Indexing: A Sign of Sabotage or a Step Forward?
Recently, I implemented a reorganization of my website’s URL structure, and the results have been quite intriguing. Within hours of deploying the changes, I observed a substantial increase in the number of pages indexed by Google, which suggests a potentially significant shift in how my site is being crawled and understood by search engines.
A Surge in Indexed Pages: What Does It Mean?
To provide some context, my website hosts approximately 1.5 million pages. Following the URL restructuring, I noticed that Googlebot, along with other Google crawlers—possibly including the upcoming Gemini bot—visited and re-crawled my site nearly two million times over the past week. This is a marked increase from the previous average of roughly 10,000 to 15,000 hits per day.
Here’s a snapshot of the recent indexing activity:
https://i.imgur.com/ki47hRE.png
Such a rapid escalation in crawl activity and page indexing raises a fundamental question: Is this a healthy indicator of improved crawling and indexing, or just a transient anomaly?
Interpreting the Data: Growth or Fluke?
In SEO, increased crawl frequency and page indexation can be signs of positive developments—such as successful site restructuring, improved crawlability, or resolved technical issues. However, they can also be temporary spikes caused by crawlers discovering new URLs or even potential issues like duplicate content or crawler overreach.
Given that the number of pages is still a fraction of the total 1.5 million, it’s understandable that many pages remain unindexed, and future fluctuations are expected.
Key Considerations Moving Forward
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Indexation Stability: Will this surge result in sustained, increased coverage? It’s important to monitor whether the newly crawled pages remain indexed over time.
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Site Health & Crawl Budget: Large sites must optimize crawl budget and ensure that significant pages aren’t overshadowed by less relevant URLs.
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Content Quality & Structure: Continue refining URL structure and internal linking to facilitate better crawl efficiency and content discoverability.
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Performance Metrics: Keep an eye on live data—such as indexed pages, crawl errors, and traffic patterns—to evaluate the long-term impact of these changes.
Conclusion
While it’s tempting to interpret this rapid indexing as an immediate success