Being familiar and using Google Webmaster Tools is an important asset if you want to optimize your site. It is a set of tools by Google that can give you an insight of what is happening on your website. Also, you will be able to make decisions according to real evidence instead of just making guesses about what to do.
There are several steps to take when you decide to log in to Google Webmaster Tools. First you need to add your website and to confirm that you are the owner of the site. After verifying your ownership, you will start seeing data on a dashboard. You will be able to have a look at a range of useful stuff such the amount of traffic you get, the pages that have been indexed by Google, etc.
For better ranking of your page, it is important that your website is configured. For example, configuration with site mapping will help Google to define what the pages on your website are so that it will be easier for them to index them. It is related to the traffic, the more indexed sites, the more traffic you get. Sitemaps are submitted in XML format with less than 50,000 URLs. On the other hand, if you don’t want some pages to be indexed, like private logins, you can create robots.txt file to block all the searching engines including Google.
The Diagnostic section is a useful part which tells you if something went wrong on your website. Even more, it can direct you how to solve the problem. For instance, any programs that may disrupt your computer may be discovered and you will get a warning like “Google has detected a malware on this site”. It is necessary to avoid getting malware on your server. Google will not rank your website if there is any danger of going to an infected site. No one wants to get their computer infected by being careless. Make sure to do a cleanup if you notice any malware.
These are some of the features Google Webmaster Tools offer to website owners. There are many more benefits you might enjoy if using it. It is completely free and it is worth having as it will guide you throughout the traffic by giving instructions what you need to do in order to improve your Google Traffic.
Go for it!