In the first 90 days, a new website mainly needs four things in this order: a clean technical foundation with Search Console and a sitemap, a connected Google Business Profile, around ten pages that answer concrete customer questions, and the first links from directories and partners. Notable rankings in this time are the exception. What's realistic is that Google fully knows the website and the first pages appear for low-competition search terms.
The website has been online for two weeks, and on Google it only appears when you type in the company name. That's the normal case, not a fault. A new domain has no history with Google: no links, no visitors, no proof that the content is accurate. The first 90 days exist to provide that proof. If you tackle them in the right order, after three months you'll have a website that Google fully knows and that appears for the first search terms. What you shouldn't expect in these 90 days: position 1 for the main term in your industry.
What's realistic
Google has never confirmed that a "sandbox" exists, meaning a fixed waiting period for new websites. What can be observed, though, is that new domains take weeks to months before their pages appear for competitive terms. The reason isn't a penalty but a lack of information. Experience from projects with regularly published posts: the first movement in rankings after six to eight weeks, noticeably more enquiries usually from the fourth month onwards. These are experience values, not a guarantee, and they apply to websites that receive content continuously during this time. How long SEO takes overall is described under How long does SEO take?.
The order: technology, profile, answers, links
1. Technology (week 1)
Before content is created, Google needs to be able to read the website.
- Set up Search Console and verify the domain. Guide: Setting up Search Console.
- Generate an XML sitemap and submit it in Search Console. Most systems generate it automatically under /sitemap.xml.
- Check that no "noindex" is left over from the development phase and that robots.txt allows crawling.
- Decide on one version of the address (https, with or without www) and redirect all others to it.
- Set page titles and meta descriptions for every page, no placeholders like "Home" or "New Page".
- Check loading time on mobile, especially image sizes.
2. Google Business Profile (week 1 to 2)
For businesses with customers from the local area, the profile is the fastest route to visibility, because it works regardless of the domain's age. Create or claim the profile, choose the main category, add your services, and set the contact page of the new website as the address. The address on the website and in the profile must match exactly, character for character.
3. Ten answer pages (week 2 to 10)
The service pages are in place at launch. What the website needs in the first few months are pages that answer the questions customers ask before getting in touch. Ten of these in eight weeks is a realistic goal, so a little more than one a week. Find topics from three sources: questions that come up on the phone, search terms from the business profile, and the suggestions Google shows under "People also ask" for your industry.
Start with concrete, low-competition questions. "How much does a heat pump cost" is competitive; "Heat pump in a terraced house: where does the outdoor unit go?" is not. A new website can appear for the second question after just a few weeks; for the first, it takes months. Each answer page links to the matching service page.
4. First links (week 4 to 12)
Links from other websites are the proof a new domain needs most. For an SME, the first sources are obvious: industry directories like local.ch and search.ch, the trade association, the local council website with its business directory, suppliers and partners who mention references, and your own social media profiles. Ten such links in the first three months is more than most new websites have. Purchased links from link networks violate Google's guidelines and are especially risky for a new domain.
What to check and when
| Timing | What to check | What you should see |
|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Search Console, "Pages" report; sitemap status | Sitemap read, first pages "indexed" |
| Week 4 | "Pages" report: Are all pages indexed? "Performance" report: first impressions? | All required and service pages indexed, impressions for the company name |
| Week 8 | "Performance" report: which answer pages have impressions, for which search terms? | First impressions for concrete questions, usually still position 20 to 50 |
| Week 12 | "Performance" report: clicks per page; business profile: views and calls | First clicks for low-competition questions, profile brings in calls |
If pages show as "Crawled, currently not indexed" in week 4, that's normal for new websites. If it's still the case in week 8, check the causes described under Page not indexed. Usually the page is missing an internal link or doesn't have enough content of its own.
What not to do in the first 90 days
- Don't restructure the site every week. Google needs time to categorise a page; if you keep changing the addresses, you reset the clock.
- Don't create twenty location pages to cover your catchment area. One location page is enough.
- Don't wait for rankings on the main term and judge success by that. Measure indexing, impressions and the first concrete questions.
- Don't stop publishing content after six weeks. Most new websites don't fail because of the technology, but because nothing more gets added after launch.
After the 90 days
After three months, Google has fully read the website, the profile is bringing in the first calls, and Search Console shows which questions generate impressions. From here on, you work with this data: pages with impressions in position 10 to 30 are expanded, and new answer pages follow the search terms that are already appearing. You can check in around a minute whether the website is readable for AI systems like ChatGPT and Perplexity with the AI check. If you don't want to write the answer pages yourself, you can hand the third stage over to a blog system like BlogPilot, which creates posts from industry search queries. The technical setup and the profile remain the task that everything starts with, in every case.
Frequently asked questions
Does the Google sandbox for new websites really exist?
Google has never confirmed a sandbox, that is, a deliberate waiting period for new websites. What can be observed, though, is that new domains without history and without links need time before Google trusts them. The effect is the same as a waiting period, but the cause is a lack of information, not a penalty.
Should I only publish the website once all the pages are finished?
No. The sooner Google knows the domain, the sooner the clock starts ticking. Publish with the mandatory pages and the most important service pages, and add the rest on an ongoing basis. A growing website is a better signal to Google than one that's finished and never changes again.
Does it help to buy an old domain?
Rarely, and with risk. A domain with someone else's history brings their links with it, but also their topics and any penalties. For an SME, your own new domain with the company name is almost always the better choice. You build up the history yourself over a year.
When should I run Google Ads to bridge the waiting period?
As soon as the service pages are in place and the contact form works. Ads have no influence on organic ranking, but they bring visitors and show you which search terms actually lead to enquiries. You can then use this insight for the answer pages.