Why does my website on Webflow only show in Google search when searching for the specific domain name, but not when searching for other related keywords or phrases?

Your Webflow site only appearing in Google Search when using the exact domain name likely indicates an issue with SEO optimization, indexability, or backlinks.

1. Check If Your Site Is Indexed

• Go to Google and search for site:yourdomain.com.
• If no pages appear, it means Google hasn't indexed your site.
• In Webflow, go to Project Settings > SEO and confirm that "Disable Webflow subdomain indexing" and "Disable indexing" are unchecked under SEO Settings and General Settings.

2. Submit the Site to Google Search Console

• Set up a Google Search Console account at search.google.com/search-console.
• Add your Webflow custom domain and verify ownership.
• Use the URL Inspection Tool to request indexing of key pages.
• Submit your sitemap, typically located at yourdomain.com/sitemap.xml.

3. Optimize Page Content for Keywords

• Make sure your page titles, meta descriptions, headers, and on-page copy include relevant keywords users might search for.
• Go to Page Settings in the Webflow Designer and edit the Title Tag and Meta Description thoughtfully for each page.
• Use headings <H1>, <H2>, etc., consistently and include your target terms.

4. Improve Internal and External Linking

• Ensure pages are interlinked through meaningful anchor text—this helps Google understand the site structure and relationships.
• Seek to gain backlinks from other reputable websites in your niche. Google ranks pages partially based on the number and quality of inbound links.

5. Check for Technical SEO Issues

• Use tools like Google Search Console, Ahrefs, or Screaming Frog SEO Spider to detect crawl errors or missing metadata.
• Confirm that each page includes:
• A unique title tag and meta description
• Descriptive alt text for images
• A clear URL structure
• Make sure your site is mobile-friendly and fast-loading, which are both ranking factors. Webflow handles much of this inherently, but test with Google PageSpeed Insights.

6. Allow Time and Activity

• New sites or recently published pages can take time (weeks to months) to rank for keywords beyond the domain name.
• Continually add high-quality content, keep the site updated, and promote it via social media and inbound links.

Summary

Your site only ranks for your domain likely because it’s either not indexed properly, lacks SEO keyword optimization, or has insufficient backlinks. Use Google Search Console to monitor indexing and performance, optimize your content for relevant search queries, and focus on earning links to increase visibility beyond branded searches.