How To Fix 15 of The Most Common Technical SEO Issues

Learn how to effectively fix 15 of the most common technical SEO issues that can impact your website's performance and search engine rankings.

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For many years, SEO Local Business has been conducting site audits, and our clients often share the frustration of repeatedly encountering the same common technical SEO issues. This article highlights the most common technical SEO problems seen by SEO Local Business during our numerous site audits. We hope that our suggested solutions prove helpful when you come across these SEO challenges on your site. 

What Is Technical SEO? 

When we talk about technical SEO, we refer to updates to a website and/or server that you have immediate control over, and these updates have a direct or indirect impact on your web pages’ crawlability, indexation, and, ultimately, search rankings. Components like page titles, title tags, HTTP header responses, XML sitemaps, 301 redirects, and metadata fall under technical SEO. 

Technical SEO does not encompass analytics, keyword research, backlink profile development, or social media strategies. In our Search Experience Optimisation framework, technical SEO serves as the first step in creating a better search experience. Other SEO projects should follow after ensuring your site has proper usability, although for an enterprise site, staying on top of potential SEO problems can be challenging. 

Here are the most common technical SEO and how to fix them: 

  • No HTTPS Security 
  • Site Isn’t Indexed Correctly 
  • No XML Sitemaps 
  • Missing or Incorrect Robots.txt 
  • Meta Robots NOINDEX Set 
  • Slow Page Speed 
  • Multiple Versions of the Homepage 
  • Incorrect Rel=Canonical 
  • Duplicate Content 
  • Missing Alt Tags 
  • Broken Links 
  • Not Enough Use of Structured Data 
  • Mobile Device Optimisation 
  • Missing or Non-Optimised Meta Descriptions 
  • Users Sent to Pages with Wrong Language 
  1. No HTTPS Security

Ensuring a secure website through HTTPS is paramount for user trust and search engine rankings. Without HTTPS, visitors might encounter a “not secure” warning, potentially leading to a loss of user confidence and increased bounce rates. Acquiring and implementing an SSL certificate from a Certificate Authority is the fundamental solution to establishing a secure connection. 

Site security with HTTPS is more critical than ever. If your site is not secure, users may see a “not secure” warning, potentially causing them to leave. 

How to Check It: To check if your site is HTTPS, simply type your domain name into Google Chrome. If you see the “secure” message, your site is secure. 

How to Fix It: To convert your site to HTTPS, you need an SSL certificate from a Certificate Authority. Once installed, your site will be secure. 

  1. Site Isn’t Indexed Correctly

Proper indexation is fundamental for a website’s visibility on search engines. When pages aren’t indexed correctly, they essentially remain invisible to search engine crawlers, leading to a severe impact on organic search traffic. Addressing this involves adding your URL to search engine indexes, resolving issues causing excessive indexing, or tackling obstacles such as site-hacking spam or outdated versions of the site. 

When users search for your brand name in Google, your website should show up in the search results. If not, there might be an issue with indexation. 

How to Check: Type “site:yoursitename.com” into Google’s search bar to view the count of indexed pages for your site. 

How to Fix It: 

  • If your site isn’t indexed, add your URL to Google. 
  • If there are more results than expected, check for site-hacking spam or old versions of the site. 
  • If there are fewer results than expected, audit the indexed content against your desired ranking pages. 
  1. No XML Sitemaps

XML sitemaps play a pivotal role in guiding search engine bots through a website’s structure. These sitemaps provide a roadmap for efficient crawling, ensuring that all relevant pages are discovered and indexed. Websites without XML sitemaps may experience challenges in search engine visibility. Creating a sitemap or using tools like Yoast SEO for WordPress can facilitate the automatic generation of XML sitemaps. 

XML sitemaps help search bots understand your site pages better for effective crawling. 

How to Check: Type your domain name into Google and add “/sitemap.xml” to the end. 

How to Fix It: If your website lacks a sitemap, create one or use tools like Yoast SEO for WordPress to generate XML sitemaps. 

  1. Missing or Incorrect Robots.txt

The robots.txt file serves as a guide for search engine bots, instructing them on which pages to crawl or avoid. A missing or misconfigured robots.txt file can have significant consequences, potentially impacting a website’s organic traffic.  

How to Check: Type your website URL into your browser with a “/robots.txt” suffix. 

How to Fix It: 

  • If you see “Disallow: /,” consult your developer. 
  • For complex robots.txt files, review them line-by-line with your developer. 
  1. Meta Robots NOINDEX Set

Meta Robots NOINDEX tags play a nuanced role in signalling the importance of specific pages to search bots. When misconfigured, these tags can adversely affect a website’s search visibility.  

How to Check: Right-click on your site’s main pages and select “View Page Source.” Search for lines that read “NOINDEX” or “NOFOLLOW.” 

How to Fix It: 

  • If you find “NOINDEX” or “NOFOLLOW,” check with your web developer. 
  • If no specific reason exists, change it to <meta name=”robots” content=” INDEX, FOLLOW”> or remove the tag. 
  1. Slow Page Speed

Page speed is a critical factor influencing user experience and search engine rankings. In a digital landscape where users expect instant results, slow-loading pages can lead to higher bounce rates. 

How to Check: Use Google PageSpeed Insights to identify speed issues. Check both desktop and mobile performance. 

How to Fix It: Solutions range from image optimisation to server response time improvement. Collaborate with your web developer for the best solution. 

  1. Multiple Versions of the Homepage

The existence of multiple URL versions for the homepage can create confusion and dilute a website’s search visibility. This often arises due to variations like HTTP and HTTPS or different URL structures. Confirming that different versions consistently lead to one standard URL and implementing 301 redirects are essential strategies for resolving this issue. 

How to Fix It: 

  • Confirm if different versions of your URL lead to one standard URL. 
  • Use “site:yoursitename.com” to identify indexed pages from multiple URL versions. 
  • Set up 301 redirects and specify your canonical domain in Google Search Console. 
  1. Incorrect Rel=Canonical

The rel=canonical tag is a critical element for avoiding confusion in the presence of duplicate content. Dynamically generated pages, such as category pages on e-commerce sites, may appear duplicative to search bots. 

How to Fix It: Spot check your source code and follow Google’s guide. Consult your web developer for assistance. 

  1. Duplicate Content

Duplicate content issues often arise from dynamically created websites, content management systems, and global SEO practices. 

How to Fix It: 

  • Use proper rel=canonical for store items on multiple URL versions. 
  • Configure printer-only web pages correctly. 
  • Implement hreflang tags for multilingual content. 

Google’s support page offers additional solutions, such as using 301 redirects and limiting boilerplate content. 

  1. Missing Alt Tags

Broken images and missing alt tags are SEO opportunities. Alt tags help search engines understand image content. 

How to Fix It: Regularly audit your image content with SEO tools to manage and update alt tags across your website. 

  1. Broken Links

Good internal and external links are crucial for content quality. Broken links disrupt the user experience and indicate lower quality content. 

How to Fix It: 

  • Regularly audit internal links. 
  • Use site audits to find and fix broken external links. 
  1. Not Enough Use of Structured Data

Structured data helps search crawlers understand page content. It can enhance SERP listings with rich snippets. 

How to Fix It: Identify opportunities for structured data as you roll out new content. Collaborate between content creators and SEO teams. Regularly review GSC reports for any structured data issues. 

  1. Mobile Device Optimisation

Mobile-first indexing is prevalent, requiring mobile-friendly sites for an exceptional user experience. 

How to Fix It: For “.m” mobile sites, ensure proper hreflang code, update meta data, and add structured data to match mobile URLs. 

  1. Missing or Non-Optimised Meta Descriptions

Meta descriptions provide short content blurbs, influencing how users perceive your page. 

How to Fix It: 

  • Run SEO audits to find pages missing meta descriptions. 
  • Evaluate pages based on performance and update meta descriptions during edits or changes. 
  1. Users Sent to Pages with Wrong Language

Hreflang tags ensure users receive content in their preferred language. Implementing hreflang requires attention to detail. 

How to Fix It: Use third-party tools for an in-depth hreflang audit. Ensure correct code and update links during page updates or redirects. 

If you find your website grappling with SEO challenges, fear not – SEO Local Business is your reliable partner for effective solutions. Our SEO experts have a comprehensive understanding of the intricate facets of SEO, and we’re ready to tackle the specific issues outlined above.

Whether it’s securing your site with HTTPS, rectifying indexation problems, optimising meta descriptions, or any other technical SEO concern, we’ve got you covered.  

Don’t let these issues hinder your online success. Contact SEO Local Business today for a thorough website audit tailored to your needs and let us pave the way for enhanced search visibility and success on the web.  

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