If people can't find you on Google, you're invisible to everyone who hasn't already heard of you. Google Search Console is the free tool that fixes that — and almost no ministry uses it.
Most new supporters look you up before they ever reach out. They search for what you do, not your name — and if you don't show up, the relationship never starts. Google Search Console (GSC) is how you make sure Google can find, understand, and show your site. It's free, it takes about twenty minutes to set up, and here's how to do it, step by step.
What Google Search Console actually does
Think of it as a direct line between your website and Google. It tells you whether Google can read your pages, lets you hand Google a map of your whole site, lets you ask Google to look at new or updated pages, and shows you exactly what people searched to find you. It's the single most useful free tool for getting found — and it's made by Google itself.
Step 1 — Create your account
Go to search.google.com/search-console and sign in. Use a Google account that belongs to your ministry, not a staff member's personal Gmail — you want this to outlive any one person's role. If a teammate has a different relevant account, you can add them as a user later.
Step 2 — Add your site (and verify it)
Google will ask for a "Domain" or "URL prefix" property. Choose Domain — it covers every version of your site at once (with and without "www," http and https), so nothing slips through. Google will show you a short TXT record to add to your DNS.
"DNS" is just the settings for your domain name, managed wherever you registered or host it — GoDaddy, Namecheap, Cloudflare, Squarespace, your web host, etc. Log in there, find DNS records, add the TXT record Google gave you, save, and click Verify. If it doesn't verify immediately, give it a few minutes (DNS changes take time) and try again.
Step 3 — Submit your sitemap
A sitemap is a simple file listing all your pages, so Google doesn't have to guess. Most sites have one at /sitemap.xml or /sitemap_index.xml — type your address plus that into a browser to find yours. Then in Search Console, open Sitemaps in the left menu and submit the full URL (for example, https://www.yoursite.org/sitemap.xml).
If it briefly says "Couldn't fetch" right after you submit, don't panic — that status often lags and clears on its own within a day. Submit it once and leave it.
Step 4 — Ask Google to index your key pages
Submitting the sitemap helps Google discover your pages; "Request indexing" jumps the line for your most important ones. Use the URL Inspection bar at the very top of Search Console: paste a page's address, wait for it to inspect, then click Request indexing. Do this for your homepage and a handful of your most important pages. There's a daily limit, so focus on the pages that matter most, and know that indexing can still take anywhere from hours to a couple of weeks.
Step 5 — Shape what shows up under your name
A few things you actually control about how you appear in search:
- Your title and description — the headline and summary Google shows come from each page's title tag and meta description. Write them for humans.
- Sitelinks — the indented sub-links under your result aren't set by hand; Google generates them from a clear site structure, good navigation, and descriptive page titles. Tidy structure earns them.
- Your info card — the panel on branded searches comes largely from a Google Business Profile. If you don't have one, create it at business.google.com.
Step 6 — Read your data (the best part)
Come back in a week or two and open the Performance report. It shows the actual searches you're appearing for, how often you show up, and how often people click. This is gold: it tells you what people really want from you, so you can sharpen your pages toward it. Check it monthly.
One more: don't forget Bing
Bing powers DuckDuckGo, Yahoo, and a growing share of AI search (including ChatGPT and Copilot). Set up Bing Webmaster Tools too — it has a one-click "Import from Google Search Console" option, so it takes about two minutes and widens your reach.
That's it — you're findable
Do these steps and you've done more for your discoverability than most ministries ever will. This is the free, do-it-yourself version, and it genuinely works.
If you'd rather it just be done right — or you want your whole site built from the ground up to be found — that's a big part of what we do. You can see how we approach it on our websites page, or start with a free blindspot audit to find out whether "getting found" is even your biggest gap right now.