Technical SEO basics

Welcome to the world of Technical SEO – your secret weapon in the digital realm! Think of it as the backstage crew of a great show, making sure everything runs smoothly behind the scenes.

This unsung hero ensures your website is easy for search engines to find and understand, which is crucial for boosting your online presence on Google.

We're diving into key areas like crawlability, indexation, and mobile-friendliness, breaking them down into bite-sized, easy-to-grasp concepts.

Crawlability

Crawlability is Google's way of exploring your website, like a tourist wandering through a new city. The easier it is for Google to navigate and understand your site's layout, the better your chances of showing up in search results.

How to improve Crawlability

Keep your site's navigation clean and straightforward. Link your major pages directly from the homepage and interlink related content smartly. This is like laying down a breadcrumb trail – tasty and easy to follow for bots.

Screaming Frog audits are a great way to check your site’s technical SEO and crawlability. It can spot any roadblocks in your site's layout, ensuring bots can glide through your content without a hiccup.

Indexation

Think of indexation as Google's way of bookmarking your web pages. It's like saying, "Yep, this page is good enough for my search results library." But here's the catch – not all pages make the cut.

Your site's structure and content quality play big roles. Imagine Google as a picky librarian. If it stumbles upon a 'noindex' tag or gets lost in a poorly structured site, it might skip indexing that page.

It’s important to keep tabs on your site with Google Search Console. It makes it easy to see if your pages are indexed.

It’s also important to note that just because a page is indexed, doesn't mean it's guaranteed to rank well.

On-page Optimization

On-page optimization is all about making each page on your website an SEO star. It's like setting up your storefront to be both appealing and easy to navigate.

• Content is King: Ensure your content is unique and valuable. Don't just repeat what others say; add your unique insights or solutions. Make it valuable for your audience.
• Meta Matters: Meta tags, including titles and descriptions, are like signboards that guide search engines and users. When used strategically, they effectively boost your ranking.
• Canonical Tags: Use these to point search engines to the original version of content if you have similar or duplicate content across pages. It’s like telling Google, "This is the main article; focus on this one."

Remember, the goal is to make each page as informative, readable, and search-engine-friendly as possible.

Additionally, on-page optimization is one of the most important factors in ranking on Google. Use this photo for an example of how meta tags play a role. Every article in the top results has “technical SEO” in both the title and description.

Site Speed

Site speed is like the fast lane on the internet highway. Everyone, including search engines, prefers the fast lane! Fast-loading websites not only offer a better user experience but also rank higher in search results.

Why?

Because search engines know that users hate waiting. Slow load times are like traffic jams – they drive visitors away which tanks your rankings as a result.

Use Google’s PageSpeed Insights to check your site’s speed. It's like a speedometer for your website.

An effective way to boost speed is by optimizing images. Large images can bog down your site like a heavy load in a race car. However, if you can shrink them down without sacrificing quality, you’ll still have captivating visuals–and a speedy page.

Mobile-friendliness

In today's world, browsing on the go is the norm. Similar to page speed, mobile-friendliness isn't just nice to have; it is essential. Websites that aren’t optimized for mobile are like stores with narrow doors – they turn away a significant portion of potential visitors.

Search engines prioritize mobile-friendly sites, knowing that most users are on their phones.

Check your website’s mobile-friendliness with Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test tool (built into Google Search Console). It’s like a health check-up for your site on a mobile device.

Technical SEO Basics: What’s Next

From ensuring your site is easy for search engines to crawl and index to the need for speed and mobile-friendliness, you’ve got a solid understanding of technical-SEO now. Remember, a well-optimized site is like a well-oiled machine – it runs smoothly and gets noticed.

But this is just the beginning. Keep exploring the depths of technical SEO; there's always more to learn and apply. Check out advanced resources such as the Ahrefs blog or SEMrush blog.

Don't let your website get left in the digital dust. Start implementing these tips today. Dive into the world of SEO, tweak, test, and watch your site soar up the search engine ranks!