Fixing Google & Naver Search Visibility After Changing Your Blogger URL
Fixing Google & Naver Search Visibility After Changing Your Blogger URL
Changing your Blogger blog address might seem like a simple update, but behind the scenes, it can cause major SEO disruption. In my case, I lost nearly all visibility on both Google and Naver immediately after switching to a new Blogspot URL. Here's a comprehensive breakdown of how I diagnosed and resolved the issue—and how you can too.
What Happens When You Change Your Blogspot URL?
Although Blogger allows seamless URL changes, search engines treat the new address as an entirely different site. As a result:
- Existing posts are removed from search results
- Submitting a sitemap to Google Search Console triggers errors
- Naver no longer indexes your blog content
Initially, I assumed it was just a temporary indexing delay. But days passed and my content was still invisible in both search engines.
Step 1: Registering the New URL in Google Search Console
Instead of using a domain-level property, I added my new Blogspot URL as a URL prefix property in Google Search Console. This provides more control for Blogger users.
I attempted to submit the following sitemaps:
- /sitemap.xml
- /atom.xml
- /feeds/posts/default?orderby=updated
Unfortunately, all three resulted in "Couldn't fetch" errors.
Step 2: Custom robots.txt Configuration
Under Blogger settings → Search preferences, I manually added the following robots.txt:
User-agent: * Disallow: /search Allow: / Sitemap: https://[your-blog].blogspot.com/atom.xml
This allows search engines to index regular content while excluding dynamic search result pages. Still, Google continued to reject my sitemap submissions.
Step 3: Requesting Manual Indexing
Next, I used the URL Inspection tool in Search Console to manually submit indexing requests—starting with the most important posts. I submitted 10 URLs per day, and after a few days, posts began reappearing in search results.
Bottom line: even without a working sitemap, manual indexing requests can restore search visibility effectively.
Step 4: Registering with Naver Search Advisor
I then registered the new blog address in Naver Search Advisor. Using meta tag verification, I confirmed ownership and passed their robots.txt test.
From there, I manually submitted individual post URLs for crawling. This proved more reliable than sitemap submission in Naver's case.
Summary Checklist
- Add the new URL as a prefix property in Google Search Console
- Manually configure
robots.txtand verify it's accessible - If sitemap submission fails, use manual indexing
- Register the site with Naver Search Advisor and verify ownership
- Use internal linking and content updates to reinforce relevance
Final Thoughts
While changing a Blogger URL is technically simple, it has real implications for SEO. Search engines treat it as a new site unless guided otherwise. Since Blogger doesn't offer redirect or server-level tools, manual SEO adjustments and index requests are your best options.
I hope this walkthrough helps other Blogger users maintain search visibility after a URL change.
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