Launching and Monitoring Your Nuxt Site

Pre-Launch Checklist

Before deploying to production, verify these items:

• Production domain configured and SSL certificate active
• robots.txt allows search engine crawlers
• No noindex meta tags on pages you want indexed
• Sitemap generated and accessible at /sitemap.xml
• Canonical URLs point to production domain (not localhost)
• Social preview images working
• Mobile-friendly design (use Google's Mobile-Friendly Test)
• Core Web Vitals passing in development
• 404 pages return proper status codes
• Redirects from old URLs configured (if redesigning)

Don't delay your launch chasing perfection. Ship with working fundamentals, then iterate.

Going Live

Your site needs two things to appear in search results: be crawlable and be indexed.

Crawlability means search engines can access your pages. Indexing means they've added your pages to their database.

Read the Going Live guide for deployment strategies and common pitfalls.

Submitting to Search Engines

Google and Bing won't automatically know your site exists. Submit your sitemap directly:

Google Search Console:

1. Visit search.google.com/search-console
2. Add your property (domain or URL prefix)
3. Verify ownership (DNS record, HTML file, or meta tag)
4. Submit your sitemap at Indexing > Sitemaps

Bing Webmaster Tools:

1. Visit bing.com/webmasters
2. Add your site
3. Verify ownership (similar methods to Google)
4. Submit your sitemap

Indexing takes days to weeks. Google prioritizes sites with backlinks and regular content updates.

Monitoring Indexing Status

Check if Google has indexed your pages:

# Search for your domain
site:yourdomain.com

# Check specific page
site:yourdomain.com/specific-page

Google Search Console shows detailed indexing data under Coverage or Page Indexing reports. Look for:

• Indexed pages: Successfully added to Google's index
• Discovered - currently not indexed: Google found it but hasn't indexed it yet
• Crawled - currently not indexed: Google crawled it but chose not to index it
• Excluded: Pages blocked by robots.txt, noindex tags, or redirects

Not every page needs indexing. Admin panels, login pages, and duplicate content should stay excluded.

Performance Tracking

Set up these tools after launch:

Google Search Console:

• Tracks impressions, clicks, and position in search results
• Shows which queries bring traffic
• Alerts you to indexing issues
• Free and directly from Google

Google Analytics:

• Monitors organic traffic trends
• Shows user behavior after they arrive
• Tracks conversions from search traffic
• Free with detailed reporting

Third-party tools (optional):

• Ahrefs: Backlink monitoring, keyword rankings, competitor analysis
• SEMrush: Similar to Ahrefs with additional marketing features
• Plausible/Fathom: Privacy-focused analytics alternatives

Start with Search Console and Analytics. Add paid tools only when you're actively working on SEO growth.

What to Monitor

Track these metrics weekly:

Search Console:

• Total impressions (how often you appear in search)
• Click-through rate (CTR)
• Average position for target keywords
• Coverage errors (pages failing to index)

Analytics:

• Organic traffic trends
• Bounce rate on landing pages
• Time on page for key content
• Conversion rates from organic traffic

Manual checks:

• site:yourdomain.com count in Google
• Target keyword rankings (search them yourself)
• Mobile usability errors
• Core Web Vitals scores

Don't obsess over daily fluctuations. Search rankings shift constantly. Look for trends over weeks and months.

Building Initial Momentum

New sites start with zero authority. Accelerate indexing:

Submit to directories:

• Industry-specific directories relevant to your niche
• Local business directories if applicable
• Avoid spam directories—they hurt more than help

Create backlinks:

• Guest posts on established sites
• Share on social media
• Ask partners or clients to link to you
• Create linkable content (tools, research, guides)

Publish consistently:

• Search engines favor sites that update regularly
• Add new content weekly if possible
• Update existing pages with fresh information
• Fix broken links and outdated content

Quality backlinks from authoritative sites matter more than quantity from spam sites.

Common Post-Launch Issues

Site not indexing after weeks:

• Check robots.txt isn't blocking crawlers
• Verify no noindex meta tags
• Confirm sitemap submitted correctly
• Build a few backlinks to signal the site is real

Pages indexed but not ranking:

• Normal for new sites—patience required
• Check if content matches search intent
• Improve title tags and meta descriptions
• Add internal links from other pages

Indexing dropped suddenly:

• Check Search Console for manual actions
• Verify hosting is stable (no downtime)
• Look for accidental noindex tags after updates
• Review recent code deployments

High impressions, low clicks:

• Improve title tags and meta descriptions
• Check if content matches what users expect
• Look at competing results for better positioning
• Consider featured snippet opportunities

Next Steps

Focus on these after your site is indexed:

1. Monitor Search Console weekly for issues
2. Track your most important keyword rankings
3. Build backlinks through outreach and content
4. Keep publishing high-quality content
5. Fix technical issues as they appear

SEO is a long game. Most sites take 3-6 months to see meaningful organic traffic.

Continue reading about going live strategies ->