Technical SEO: A Comprehensive Guide for Small Businesses
As a leading digital agency committed to delivering exceptional online solutions, we understand the critical importance of technical SEO optimisation in boosting Google rankings for small businesses.
In this comprehensive guide, we will delve into the world of technical SEO, exploring its significance, common tools for optimisation, key technical issues that might affect search engine rankings, and practical steps for small businesses to ensure their websites are technically optimised for SEO success.
Table of Contents
What is Technical SEO and Its Importance for Small Businesses?
Technical SEO involves optimising a website for search engines’ algorithms. This is of paramount importance as it enables search engines to comprehend and index your website accurately. Moreover, technical SEO optimisation plays a pivotal role in enhancing click-through rates and organic search traffic, resulting in greater online visibility and improved search rankings.
To achieve technical SEO excellence, it is crucial to optimise various aspects of a website, including its architecture, code, loading speed, and mobile responsiveness. At Agile Digital Agency, we recognise the profound impact that technical SEO can have on a small business’s online presence, and we are dedicated to empowering businesses with the knowledge and tools needed for SEO success.
Essential Tools for Technical SEO
For small businesses seeking to perform technical SEO, a range of powerful tools can facilitate the process. Among the most effective tools are:
- Screaming Frog: Screaming Frog is a versatile website crawler that provides valuable insights into a website’s SEO performance. It offers in-depth analysis, identifying potential issues related to URLs, meta tags, headers, and more. With its comprehensive reports, small businesses can uncover optimisation opportunities and rectify existing problems.
- Google Search Console: Google Search Console is a free, indispensable resource for website owners. It enables them to monitor their website’s indexing status, track search performance, and receive critical notifications about potential issues. Utilising Google Search Console helps small businesses identify and address technical SEO problems to enhance their online presence.
- Ahrefs, SEMrush, and Ubersuggest: These powerful SEO suites offer comprehensive technical audit capabilities, allowing small businesses to analyse backlinks, competitor performance, and keyword rankings. By leveraging these tools, businesses can gain valuable insights into their SEO strategies and make data-driven decisions to improve their rankings.
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Common Technical SEO Issues Impacting Search Rankings
The following are some common technical SEO issues that can negatively affect a website’s search engine ranking:
1. Poor Website Loading Speed
Website speed is a critical factor in technical SEO. Slow-loading websites not only receive lower rankings from Google but also lead to frustrated users. To ensure optimal loading times, businesses can utilise tools such as Pingdom Website Speed Test or Google Page Speed to analyse and optimise website performance.
You can use these tools to get reports about areas where you can improve your web performance.
If you own a WordPress website, ensuring it runs on the latest version is essential. As WordPress consistently introduces new features and enhances security, keeping your site updated becomes crucial. Updating your WordPress site is a straightforward process but we recommend hiring an experienced WordPress Agency to handle it on your behalf.
2. Poor Mobile Experience
With the increasing prevalence of mobile users, having a mobile-friendly website is paramount. Small businesses must prioritise mobile optimisation, ensuring responsive designs and fast loading times on mobile devices.
A number of technical SEO issues can lead to poor mobile experiences, such as poorly optimised pages or slow-loading pages. As more people use mobile devices to access the internet, your website must be mobile-friendly.
3. Content Duplication
Content duplication can severely hinder search engine rankings. It occurs when the same content is published on multiple URLs or when multiple pieces of content are very similar on the same website. Small businesses should conduct site audits and use tools to identify and address duplicate content issues.
It can occur when the same content is published on multiple URLs, or when multiple pieces of content are very similar on the same website. When content is duplicated, search engines may not be able to distinguish it from other content, which can result in lower search engine rankings. In severe cases, Google may even ban your website.
Running a site audit and looking for duplicate content is the best way to determine if there is any duplication on your site. Whenever you find duplicate content, either change it or remove it.
4. Broken Links
Broken links negatively impact a website’s ranking as search engine crawlers halt crawling when encountering them. Using website crawlers like Screaming Frog or Xenu can help small businesses identify and fix broken links promptly.
5. Server Errors
Server errors indicate that a website is unavailable, resulting in decreased visibility and rankings. Small businesses must address server errors promptly to maintain optimal website performance and search engine visibility.
Read also: Website Crawling: The Key to Search Engine Visibility and Indexing
Ensuring Your Website is Technically Optimised for SEO
Here are key steps for ensuring your website is technically optimised:
1. Review Website Structure
An intuitive and user-friendly website structure is essential for effective SEO. Businesses should ensure a clear website hierarchy and logical navigation, allowing users and search engine crawlers to find information easily.
2. Make Your Site Accessible to Search Engines
Make sure your website is accessible to search engines by using a robots.txt file and a sitemap.xml file. Sitemaps make it easier for users and search engine spiders to find and navigate your site. Robots.txt allows you to exclude parts of your site from crawling with the disallow command.
Make sure your website is accessible to search engines by using a robots.txt file and a sitemap.xml file. Sitemaps make it easier for users and search engine spiders to find and navigate your site. Robots.txt allows you to exclude parts of your site from crawling with the disallow command.
3. Fix Broken Links
Regularly audit your website for broken links using Google Search Console and other audit tools. Fixing broken links enhances user experience and improves search engine rankings.
4. Select Adequate Keywords
Keyword research is crucial for SEO success. Use relevant keywords and phrases strategically in your website’s content and titles to attract targeted organic traffic.
5. Remove Duplicate Content
Identify and remove duplicate content to avoid SEO penalties. Regularly audit your website for duplication issues and take corrective actions promptly.
6. Ensure a Responsive Website
With mobile users on the rise, a mobile-friendly and responsive website is vital. Optimise your website’s design and performance for various devices to cater to a diverse audience.
7. Optimise Images
Optimising images is essential for faster loading times. Use compressed and appropriately sized images while incorporating relevant keywords in file names, alt text, and title tags to improve search engine visibility.
Do you want to know how to increase traffic to your website with images? What about making your website more accessible for screen readers with alt text for an image? Tune in to this insightful Search Off the Record podcast, where you’ll discover valuable insights on Googlebot’s image crawling frequency, enhancing page visibility via image search, and optimising alt text for better image accessibility.
Read also: W3C – How to use the alt attribute of the IMG element in various situations
Conclusion
Technical SEO is a fundamental pillar to drive small business success.
At Agile Digital Agency, we understand the essence of top SEO tactics, and we are passionate about guiding small businesses on their journey to SEO success.
Partner with us today, and, together, we can help you achieve greatness and secure a prominent position at the top of search engine rankings.
Juan Pineda Managing Partner at Agile Digital Agency. Juan is an experienced digital professional with more than 20 years of experience in web solutions, digital marketing, and innovation. He holds a degree in Computer Sciences, and has worked internationally for renowned digital agencies. Juan provides clients with his skills and expertise in the digital field to create successful online solutions.
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