GSC Assistant Skill
Purpose
This skill helps manage Google Search Console indexing status by maintaining two markdown tracking files:
-
indexed.md - All indexed pages in two tables:
- "Indexed Public" - URLs confirmed in GSC export data
- "Indexed With Lag" - URLs confirmed via URL Inspection (not yet in export)
-
to-index.md - Pages awaiting indexing:
- Difference between sitemap and total indexed URLs
- Prioritized by categories (configurable)
- Tracks submission dates
When to Use This Skill
- User asks about "indexing status" or "GSC indexing"
- User wants to "compare sitemap with indexed pages"
- User mentions "URL inspection" or "false positives"
- User needs to "track submissions" or "indexing progress"
- User asks to "move indexed pages" or "update indexing status"
- User wants to "generate indexing report"
Key Concepts
GSC Data Lag
Google Search Console export data has approximately 2 weeks lag. Pages that show as indexed in URL Inspection may not appear in the export yet. These are tracked separately as "Indexed With Lag".
False Positives
When checking to-index pages via URL Inspection:
- If indexed: Mark as "false positive - indexed" in Submitted column
- Pre-processing moves these to indexed.md (Indexed With Lag table)
- The "Detected" date is inferred from when the entry was added to to-index
Priority Categories
to-index.md organizes pages by priority:
- Priority 1: High-value content series
- Priority 2: Recent content (current/previous year)
- Priority 3: Specific content collections
- Lower priorities: Archive pages, pagination, etc.
File Schemas
indexed.md
# Indexed Pages
## Indexed Public (GSC Export)
*Last updated: YYYY-MM-DD*
*Source: gsc-export.csv*
| # | URL | Last Crawled |
|---|-----|--------------|
| 1 | https://example.com/page-1/ | 2025-12-01 |
| 2 | https://example.com/page-2/ | 2025-12-02 |
## Indexed With Lag (URL Inspection Confirmed)
*Pages confirmed indexed via URL Inspection but not yet in GSC export*
| # | URL | Detected | Confirmed |
|---|-----|----------|-----------|
| 1 | https://example.com/new-page/ | 12 Dec 2025 | 12 Dec 2025 |
to-index.md
# Pages To Index
*Generated: YYYY-MM-DD*
*Total: X pages*
## Priority 1: [Category Name]
| # | URL | Submitted |
|---|-----|-----------|
| 1 | https://example.com/important-page/ | 12 Dec |
| 2 | https://example.com/another-page/ | - |
## Priority 2: [Category Name]
| # | URL | Submitted |
|---|-----|-----------|
| 1 | https://example.com/recent-post/ | - |
Workflow
Initial Setup
- Import GSC export CSV to create indexed.md (Indexed Public table)
- Extract sitemap URLs
- Calculate difference (sitemap - indexed = to-index)
- Categorize to-index pages by priority
- Generate to-index.md
Regular Updates
- Pre-processing: Scan to-index.md for "false positive - indexed" entries
- Move false positives to indexed.md (Indexed With Lag table)
- Set "Detected" date from when entry was in to-index
- Set "Confirmed" date to current date
- Remove from to-index.md
- Update counts and statistics
Manual Operations
- Mark submissions: Update "Submitted" column with date
- Check status: Use URL Inspection, mark result
- Refresh data: Import new GSC export, recalculate
Configuration
Create working files in project directory:
project/
├── gsc-export.csv # GSC indexed pages export
├── sitemap.xml # Site sitemap (or use dist/sitemap.xml)
├── indexed.md # Tracking file (generated)
└── to-index.md # Tracking file (generated)
Commands
Generate Initial Files
"Generate indexing tracking files from GSC export and sitemap"
Pre-process False Positives
"Process false positives and update indexed list"
Update Submission Status
"Mark [URL] as submitted on [date]"
Refresh From New Export
"Update indexed list from new GSC export"
Generate Statistics
"Show indexing progress statistics"
Statistics Output
INDEXING STATUS SUMMARY
=======================
Indexed Public (GSC): 789 pages
Indexed With Lag: 12 pages
Total Indexed: 801 pages
Sitemap Total: 2,054 pages
To Index: 1,253 pages
Progress: 39.0%
By Priority:
- Priority 1: 55 remaining (4 false positives moved)
- Priority 2: 7 remaining
- Priority 3: 290 remaining
Example Usage
User: "I just checked some URLs in GSC URL Inspection and marked them as false positive - indexed. Process those and update the tracking files."
Claude will:
- Scan to-index.md for entries with "false positive - indexed"
- Extract those URLs and their original detection dates
- Add them to indexed.md Indexed With Lag table
- Remove them from to-index.md
- Update row numbers and counts
- Report changes made