New Website SEO Checklist: 20 Steps to Appear on Google and in AI Answers

SEO for a new website starts with three things: the site can be crawled properly, every page clearly explains what it is about, and search engines are told that the site exists. The checklist below is split into four parts — technical, content, local and registration — so you can tick it off item by item.

Technical: the foundations to get right first

1. HTTPS is active on every page (addresses start with https://).
2. Mobile-friendly: text is readable without zooming, buttons are easy to tap, and there is no sideways scrolling.
3. Fast. Google measures page experience with Core Web Vitals. The “good” thresholds according to web.dev:

4. An XML sitemap lists every important page, and its address is in robots.txt.
5. robots.txt does not block pages you want found.
6. One main address (canonical) per page, and old addresses permanently redirected (301/308) when anything moves.
7. Structured data (JSON-LD) for key information such as your organisation, services, FAQs or articles. It helps machines understand the page, although it is not required to appear.
8. Language versions marked with hreflang if the website has more than one language.

Content: what makes people (and machines) choose your page

9. One main topic per page, with a title that uses the words people actually search for.
10. A meta description summarising the page in one or two sentences.
11. One H1 per page, then H2/H3 subheadings that reflect the structure.
12. Answer the question up front. The first sentence should answer the core question, followed by the explanation.
13. Alt text on images describing what they show.
14. Internal links between related pages, such as from an article to a service page.
15. Verifiable facts. Cite sources for outside figures, and keep prices and business details identical across pages.

Local: for businesses serving a particular area

16. A complete Google Business Profile: category, opening hours, photos and a link to your website.
17. Consistent name, address and phone number across your website, Google Business Profile and social media.
18. A contact page with your address, map and opening hours.

Registration: telling search engines you exist

19. Google Search Console: verify ownership, submit the sitemap, then monitor indexed pages and the queries bringing clicks. Search Console now also has a dedicated report for impressions in Google's AI features.
20. Bing Webmaster Tools and IndexNow: register the site with Bing, then use the IndexNow protocol to notify Bing and other supporting search engines whenever a page is added or changed. The Bing index also powers results in Microsoft Copilot.

What about AI Overviews, ChatGPT and other answer engines?

Google states that there are no additional requirements or special optimisations to appear in AI Overviews and AI Mode. Foundational SEO, technical compliance and helpful, people-first content remain the key. Google also says files such as llms.txt are not used by Google Search, and there is no special schema.org markup for AI features.

In practice, what helps every answer engine is the same as good SEO: a clear answer up front, a tidy heading structure, tables for comparisons, consistent and sourced facts, and crawlable pages. Also make sure robots.txt does not block the search engine and AI assistant crawlers you want to serve.

Frequently asked questions

How long until a new website appears on Google?

It usually starts being indexed within 1–2 weeks of submitting the sitemap in Google Search Console. Ranking for competitive keywords takes longer and depends on content quality.

Do I have to pay to appear on Google?

Not for normal (organic) results. Google Ads are paid and shown separately from organic results.

Do PintuWeb websites already meet this checklist?

The technical and on-page parts — HTTPS, mobile-friendly design, a sitemap, meta tags, structured data and a PageSpeed score target of 90+ — are included in every website package. If you would like help setting up Search Console or a Google Business Profile, ask during your consultation.