What is Technical SEO, and Why Should I Care?
As a business owner, you likely understand the importance of marketing – getting your message to the right people. Technical SEO is the foundation that allows your marketing efforts to work. It’s about ensuring search engines like Google can find, understand, and index your website properly. Think of it as building a clear, well-organized road for Google’s “bots” (the automated crawlers) to explore your site. If those roads are blocked or confusing, Google can’t show your website to potential customers. This isn’t about ranking tricks; it’s about basic website hygiene.
What's a Sitemap, and Why Do I Need One?
A sitemap is essentially a list of all the important pages on your website. It's like a table of contents for Google. While Google is pretty good at finding pages on its own by following links, a sitemap helps it discover all your pages – especially new ones – more efficiently. This is particularly important for larger websites, or sites with complex navigation.
Why it matters: Helps Google find and index your pages, ensuring they can appear in search results. A missing or outdated sitemap can mean Google misses crucial content.
How to check: You can often find your sitemap by typing `yourdomain.com/sitemap.xml` into your browser (replace `yourdomain.com` with your actual website address). Many CMS platforms (like WordPress) automatically generate sitemaps. You can also use Google Search Console to submit and monitor your sitemap.
What to tell your developer: "Please ensure we have a valid XML sitemap and that it’s updated automatically whenever we add or remove pages from the website. Submit it to Google Search Console."
What is Robots.txt, and How Can it Hurt My SEO?
The robots.txt file is a set of instructions for web crawlers. It tells them which parts of your website not to crawl. This is useful for blocking access to admin areas, duplicate content, or pages that aren’t meant to be public. However, incorrect configuration can accidentally block Google from crawling important pages, effectively removing them from search results.
Why it matters: Prevents crawling of unimportant areas, but can disastrously block essential pages if configured incorrectly.
How to check: Type `yourdomain.com/robots.txt` into your browser. You’ll see a list of “User-agent” directives and “Disallow” rules. Be very cautious when editing this file.
What to tell your developer: "Please review our robots.txt file to ensure it's not unintentionally blocking any important pages. Common mistakes include blocking the entire site with `Disallow: /` or blocking CSS/JS files that Google needs to render the page."
User-agent: *
Disallow: /admin/
Disallow: /temp/
Allow: /public/ Note: The above example allows all bots (*) to crawl everything except the `/admin/` and `/temp/` directories, but specifically allows crawling of the `/public/` directory.
Why is HTTPS Important for SEO?
HTTPS (Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure) is the secure version of HTTP. It encrypts the data transmitted between your website and visitors, protecting sensitive information. Google has publicly stated that HTTPS is a ranking signal. More importantly, modern browsers flag websites without HTTPS as “not secure,” eroding user trust.
Why it matters: Enhances security, builds trust with users, and is a minor ranking factor. Without HTTPS, you’ll be penalized by both Google and user perception.
How to check: Look for the padlock icon in your browser’s address bar when visiting your website. Also, use an online SSL checker tool.
What to tell your developer: “Ensure our website is served over HTTPS, and that all resources (images, CSS, JavaScript) are also loaded securely via HTTPS. Check for and fix any ‘mixed content’ warnings.”
What are Redirects, and Why Do They Matter for SEO?
Redirects tell browsers and search engines that a web page has moved to a new location. They’re crucial when you change website URLs (e.g., during a website redesign) or when you’ve reorganized your content. Using redirects properly preserves link equity (the value of backlinks) and prevents broken links, which harm user experience and SEO.
Why it matters: Prevents broken links, preserves link equity, and ensures users and search engines reach the correct pages.
How to check: Use a browser extension like “Redirect Path” to check if redirects are set up correctly when you navigate to old URLs. You can also use a website crawler to identify broken links.
What to tell your developer: "When we change a URL, implement a 301 (permanent) redirect from the old URL to the new URL. Avoid ‘redirect chains’ (multiple redirects in a row), as they slow down loading times. Check for and fix any broken links on the site."
<html>
<head>
<meta http-equiv="refresh" content="0; url=https://eikeland.ca/" />
<title>Redirecting to eikeland.ca</title>
</head>
<body>
<p>You are being redirected to a new page...</p>
</body>
</html>Note: This is a basic HTML redirect, preferred over Javascript redirects. Server-side redirects are best for SEO and user experience.
What are Crawl Errors, and How Do I Fix Them?
Crawl errors are problems that Google encounters when trying to crawl your website. These can include 404 errors (page not found), server errors, or blocked pages. Ignoring crawl errors can prevent Google from indexing your content.
Why it matters: Prevents Google from accessing and indexing your content, impacting your search visibility.
How to check: Use Google Search Console. The “Coverage” report lists all crawl errors Google has detected.
What to tell your developer: "Regularly monitor Google Search Console for crawl errors and fix them promptly. Common fixes include restoring deleted pages, updating broken links, and unblocking pages in the robots.txt file."
Technical SEO isn’t about overnight results. It’s a foundational effort that creates the conditions for long-term organic growth. Addressing these elements improves your website’s visibility and ensures you’re not unintentionally hindering your SEO performance. At Eikeland SEO, we specialize in these often-overlooked areas to provide a robust foundation for our clients’ digital marketing success. If you’d like us to conduct a comprehensive technical SEO audit of your website, please contact us.