Your Flax site will not appear in public search results while it uses a temporary Flax address. Connect and publish a custom domain first. Once it is live, search engines still need to crawl (visit) and index (store for possible search results) its pages. This takes time, and being indexed does not guarantee a high position.
Connect Google Search Console (GSC) after your custom domain is live. Flax can use it to show real Google Search clicks and impressions in your site stats, and authorized AI agents can read these search insights in the monthly search report. Google explains this data in its Search Console Performance report guide. Search Console also helps you check which pages Google has indexed and what may be stopping other pages from appearing.
Site indexing issues
New sites need time to be crawled
A new site can take several days to a few weeks to appear. Google says a new page may take a day or two to a few weeks to be crawled and indexed, depending on the site and page. Google's troubleshooting guide and Bing Webmaster Tools guidance give similar advice for new sites. These are rough timeframes, not guarantees.
To make a quick check on Google, search for site:yourdomain.com. When no site is selected, replaceyourdomain.com with your custom domain. If results appear, Google has indexed at least some of your site. This search does not list every indexed page, so use Google Search Console to check a specific page. Read Google's guide to the site: search for its limitations.
Check Search Console for errors
Open the Google Search Console Page indexing report to look for patterns, then use URL Inspection on an important page. Check for common problems such as:
- Google cannot crawl the page because a
robots.txtrule blocks it. - A
noindexinstruction tells Google not to include the page in search results. - Google could not load the page, or the page returns a missing page (404) or server error (5xx).
- Google treats the page as a copy of another page and chose a different main address (canonical URL).
- Google may not know about a page that is not linked from other pages. Check that your sitemap has been read in Search Console; Flax creates a sitemap for your published site. See Google's sitemap guide.
- You are checking the wrong domain version in Search Console, such as
www.yourdomain.cominstead ofyourdomain.com.
After you fix a problem, test the live page and request indexing if needed. A request asks Google to revisit the page; it does not guarantee that Google will index it or show it in search.
My site is not showing on Google, Bing, or DuckDuckGo
First, check the exact custom domain and page address, including whether your site uses www. Make sure the site is published and publicly accessible. A private or password-protected page cannot be crawled like a public page.
For Google, inspect the homepage and an important page in Search Console. For Bing, add and verify your domain in Bing Webmaster Tools and use its URL Inspection tool to check crawl and index status. A recent site may take a couple of weeks to appear there too.
DuckDuckGo says its traditional web results largely come from Bing, while it also uses its own crawler and indexes. If your site is missing there, check Bing first and make sure search crawlers can reach your public pages. Search engines choose what to include, so submitting a page does not guarantee it will appear.
If Google finds your site but it does not appear for a service or nearby-area search, the issue may be visibility (ranking), rather than indexing. Google says local results depend mainly on relevance, distance, and prominence. Google explains local ranking. For survey-ranked local factors, see the chart below. See also why your site may be so far down the list for practical ways to build visibility.
Discovered - currently not indexed
Search Console usually gives a more specific status: “Discovered - currently not indexed” means Google knows the page address but has not crawled it yet. “Crawled - currently not indexed” means Google visited the page but has not added it to the index. Check the report for the reason and focus on useful pages that should have their own search result.
Some Flax content, such as FAQs and reviews, may appear only as items within a homepage section. Google may treat those items as part of the homepage instead of separate pages to show in search. Check the section's maximum items setting and show a useful, focused selection on the homepage. Whether these items are indexed can change as a page grows and offers more unique, useful content. See the guides to FAQs, reviews, and services for help improving this content.
A service detail page with only a name and a short, repeated description may not give people enough information to be useful. Add original details about what the service includes, how your business provides it, who it is suitable for, and what a customer can expect. Avoid copying the same description across several services. Google recommends helpful, reliable content written for people, and does not set a preferred word count. Read Google's people-first content guidance and Flax's guide to service detail pages.
Why is my site so far down the list?
There is no single, permanent place for a website in Google. Results change with the search phrase, the searcher’s location, and whether Google is showing regular web pages or nearby businesses in Maps. A business can appear in different places for different searches and locations. Google says local results mainly depend on relevance, distance, and prominence, and there is no way to request or pay for a better local position. Read Google’s guidance on local ranking.
A new site or business starts with little history, few mentions around the web, and often no reviews. Set expectations: visibility usually builds over time, and there is no guaranteed date or review count that puts a business at the top. First work out whether you want to improve regular search results or Maps; they need different checks.
Regular Google search results
These are web pages shown for a search, outside the map results. Help each important page answer a real customer question with accurate, useful details about your service, products, business, and location. Use a clear page title and main heading, and link to the page from related pages on your site. Avoid making many near-identical pages that only swap in a different town name.
Check first that Google can find and index the page. Use the Search Console checks above; Google Search Console can show which searches bring impressions and clicks. Google recommends useful, original content written for people in its people-first content guidance.
Google Maps and nearby business results
Check that your Google Business Profile is claimed, verified, and accurate. Keep your category, services, hours, contact details, and real business address or service area current. Your website should describe the same business and the services customers can actually get from you.
Distance matters: a business may appear for a search near its location and be much lower farther away. You cannot control where a customer searches, so do not use a false address or expect to rank at the top across an entire region.
Reviews matter, especially for a new business
A new business has no review history yet. That can make it harder to build prominence and trust in local results when nearby businesses already have years of reviews and recognition. Reviews are not the only factor, and more reviews do not guarantee a particular position.
After every completed job, ask that customer for an honest review. Make the request simple and consistent, and give every customer the same opportunity to share feedback. Do not offer a reward, ask only customers you expect to be positive, or pressure anyone to change a review. Google’s review guidance explains how to request reviews and what is not allowed.
Build consistent local mentions and coverage
Keep your business name, address, and phone number consistent on the important directories, trade associations, and local business listings your customers use. Correct listings help people confirm they have found the right business.
Also look for genuine ways to be mentioned by trusted organizations in your area. A useful story in a local news outlet, community publication, or industry website can create a real business mention and may link readers to a relevant page. Offer something worth covering, such as useful local expertise or a community project; avoid buying ranking links or creating fake listings. Google says local prominence can draw on information such as links, articles, directories, and reviews.
Top factors in an expert local-search survey
Whitespark's 2026 Local Search Ranking Factors report asked 47 local-search experts to score factors for local organic results and Maps. Here are the five highest-ranked factors in each list:
| Local organic search | Google Maps / Local Pack |
|---|---|
| 1. A dedicated page for each service | 1. The best-fit primary Business Profile category |
| 2. Service and area terms that match the page content | 2. Distance between the searcher and the business |
| 3. Quality and authority of links to the website | 3. Keywords in the Business Profile name |
| 4. A relevant title for the page linked from the profile | 4. Business address in the searched city |
| 5. Links from industry-relevant websites | 5. Being open at the time of the search |
The list reflects expert opinions, not a ranking formula published by Google. The Maps list includes keywords in a Business Profile name, but Google says the name must match the real-world business name. Do not add search terms to it; read Google's Business Profile name guidelines. See the full Whitespark lists for local organic search and Maps / Local Pack.
Track the searches that matter to you
Use the Flax monthly search report to compare selected search phrases and locations in regular Google results and Maps, and to review business listings. It checks the searches you choose, not every phrase or place, so compare the same searches over time and treat changes as a guide for what to improve. For clicks and impressions from Google Search, also check Google Search Console.