The Google Discover Optimization Checklist: What to Verify Before You Publish

Run through this before you consider Google Discover optimization actually done:

1. Write headlines that create curiosity without being clickbait — Discover specifically penalizes exaggerated or misleading headlines with reduced distribution.
2. Pair headlines with a genuinely high-quality, large image (Discover is a visual feed) — text-only or low-resolution thumbnails get skipped over.
3. Publish content tied to timely, currently-relevant topics when possible — Discover favors freshness more heavily than classic organic search does.
4. Keep headlines specific and concrete rather than vague — 'Why X happened' undersells if you can say exactly what X is in the headline itself.
5. Double-check this after any site migration or major redesign, not just at launch.

None of these individually take long. The value is in doing all of them, every time, instead of remembering most of them most of the time.

Pair this with the featured snippet optimization checklist if you're doing a fuller pre-launch pass.

Google Discover Headline Generator runs through most of this automatically.

Everything in this guide runs directly in your browser — no signup, no install.