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What is Technical SEO? A Complete Guide
June 23, 2023
What is technical SEO? Find out in this complete guide to the key aspects of technical SEO and best practices so you can optimise your website performance.
What is Technical SEO?
Technical SEO is the process of optimising the technical parts of your website so that they are not only easy to understand for search engines, but also give the user a good experience.Some examples of technical SEO best practices are to make your site fast and easily crawlable for search engines. We'll talk a little more about these practises later on in this article.In short, Technical SEO is making sure that your site is healthy so that it can rank.Want to make sure your website is healthy and ranking? Check out our technical SEO checklist for beginners and experts.
Why Is Technical SEO Important?
The main reason why Technical SEO is important is that it helps search engines understand our site. If we don't optimise the technical components of our websites, then search engines might find it hard to find our content or trust it.However, nowadays, there is more to technical SEO than just making our sites easy to crawl. The other big aspect of technical SEO is giving our visitors a good experience, for example with a fast-loading site and not having 404 errors.If our sites are hard to crawl or give our users an annoying experience, no content or backlinks will help the site's rankings. For example, you might have a killer blog post but if search engines can't find it, it's not going to rank.So, technical SEO is just a piece of the puzzle that needs to be taken care of before you can rank for your targeted keywords.
Technical Parts of Your Website That Should Be Optimised
Technical SEO is quite a big part of optimising your website, so it would be quite hard to cover everything in one blog post. That being said, we have gathered the most important parts of your website that should be technically optimised to help you rank higher.
Site Speed
The first and one of the most important parts of your website to optimise is your site speed.While there have been some studies that suggest there isn't a correlation between site speed and rankings, many SEOs believe it's an essential part of optimising your website. It's also directly tied to your bounce rate and even your revenue, meaning even if it's not important for SEO, it is for your business.Plus, having a fast-loading site gives your users the best possible experience, so you can't go wrong by optimising the speed of your website.Here are some tips on speeding up your website:
- Remove anything that slows it down
- Minify Code & Scripts
- Compress Images
- Choose the right hosting company
- Embed media instead of uploading where possible
Duplicate Content
Search engines get confused when they find the same content on different pages or websites.That's why it's essential for your site health to remove any duplicate content. Otherwise, you will have a hard time increasing your rankings, no matter how good your on and off-page SEO is.
Structure
The next part of your site that needs to be technically optimised is the structure.This is a big one, as it helps search engines crawl through your site to find the pages. As you'd probably expect, if you don't get this part right, you will have trouble ranking.That's why it's essential to have a good interlinking structure and to also submit XML sitemaps. Doing so will make it easy for search engines to find your pages meaning they can rank. You should aim for everything to be a couple of clicks away from the home page as this won't only make it easy for search engines to crawl your site, but also for your users to find what they are looking for.Also, make sure that none of your pages are orphaned (i.e don't have any internal links to them) as this is a sign of a bad structure. If this is the case, those pages will rarely perform well.
Links
Also important is that all your links are going to valid URLs.If they go to invalid URLs and are broken, then this is a bad sign for search engines and will also hurt the user experience. Luckily, there are several tools to help you identify broken links meaning you won't have to go through and check all your pages manually.Plus, if you stick with us through the rest of this article, we are going to show you how you can identify broken links and all your other technical SEO problems for free.
Security
Lastly, your site should also be secure.This means your website should have an SSL certificate, as browsers only want to refer users to safe sites.Plus, if your users feel safe, they are much more likely to convert.
Need Help? (Get a FREE Audit!)
If you need help identifying the technical problems with your site, we would like to offer you a FREE SEO audit. To get your audit, just fill out the short form at the bottom of our SEO services page.We hope you have enjoyed this article if you would like to learn more about SEO, make sure to check out our other artilces that is full of in-depth tutorials, tricks, and more.And, always remember that Technical SEO is something that needs to be on-point for you to rank!
Frequently Asked Questions
Can Your Provide Case Studies Or Examples Of Previous Work?
Yes, we can provide case studies and examples of our previous work. Potential clients frequently request these to see concrete evidence of our past successes. They want to understand how we’ve helped similar businesses achieve their goals through SEO and website development. Our case studies typically highlight our clients’ challenges, the strategies we implemented, and the measurable results we achieved, such as increased traffic and higher conversion rates. This builds trust and demonstrates our ability to deliver on our promises.
Do You Offer Ongoing Maintenance And Support After The Website Is Launched?
Post-launch support is crucial for maintaining website performance and security. Clients want to know if the company provides:
Regular Updates: Ensuring the website remains up-to-date with the latest software versions and security patches.
Technical Support: Assisting with any issues that arise, such as bugs or downtime.
Content Updates: Offering services to update or add new content as the business evolves.
Performance Monitoring: We regularly check the site’s speed, uptime, and other critical metrics to ensure optimal performance. This ongoing support provides peace of mind, ensuring that the client’s website remains effective and secure over time.
What is SEO, And Why Is It Important For My Business?
SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) is a digital marketing approach focused on boosting your website’s presence on search engines like Google, Bing, and Yahoo. By refining different elements of your site—such as content, meta descriptions, and backlinks—SEO works to improve your website’s position in search engine results. This increased visibility is vital as it attracts more organic traffic, potentially leading to a rise in leads, sales, and overall business success. Businesses frequently discuss the basics of SEO, its importance in attracting targeted visitors, and how it supports wider business goals.
How Long Does It Take To See Results From SEO?
SEO is a strategy that requires a long-term commitment, and it's essential to have realistic expectations from the outset. Typically, businesses may notice significant improvements within 3 to 6 months. However, this can differ depending on factors such as the level of competition, the industry, and the website's current condition. While addressing technical issues can result in some early successes, meaningful increases in rankings and traffic usually develop over time. Clients often ask for a clear timeline to gauge when they might start seeing a return on their investment (ROI).
What Does Your SEO Process Involve?
Website Audit and Analysis: Conduct a thorough evaluation of the site to pinpoint strengths, weaknesses, and areas that can be enhanced.
Keyword Research: Identify relevant keywords that your potential customers actively search.
On-Page Optimisation: Improving various on-page elements such as meta tags, headers, content, and internal linking to increase site effectiveness.
Content Development: Crafting high-quality, engaging content tailored to the needs of your target audience.
Link Building: Securing backlinks from credible websites to enhance the site's domain authority.
Technical SEO:Ensuring the website is technically robust, with fast loading speeds, mobile responsiveness, and secure connections.
Ongoing Monitoring and Adjustment: Regularly track performance and make necessary adjustments based on data and trends. Clients ask about these steps to ensure they are investing in a thorough and effective SEO strategy.
How Do You Measure The Success Of An SEO Campaign?
Success in SEO is measured through a variety of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), including:
Organic Traffic: The number of visitors coming to the website from search engines.
Keyword Rankings: The position of targeted keywords in search engine results pages (SERPs).
Conversion Rates: The percentage of visitors who take desired actions (e.g., filling out a form, making a purchase)
.Bounce Rate: The percentage of visitors who leave the site after viewing only one page.
Domain Authority: A score that predicts how well a website will rank in SERPs based on factors like link quality.
ROI (Return on Investment): Evaluating the financial return from SEO activities in comparison to the cost. Clients want to understand these metrics to gauge the effectiveness and profitability of their SEO investments.
How Do You Stay Updated With The Latest SEO Trends And Best Practives?
SEO is an ever-evolving field, with search engines like Google regularly updating their algorithms. We make it a priority to stay ahead of these changes.This might involve:
Continuous Learning: Attending industry conferences, webinars, and training sessions.
Membership in Professional Organisations: Being part of SEO communities or organisations that provide the latest insights.
Regular Testing and Experimentation: Consistently testing new strategies and adapting to changes in algorithms.Industry Research: Staying informed with the latest studies, white papers, and expert opinions in the digital marketing sector.We are confident that our SEO strategies are current and that we are proactive in adopting best practices.
Do You Offer Ongoing Maintenance And Support After The Website Is Launched?
Post-launch support is crucial for maintaining website performance and security. Clients want to know if the company provides:
Regular Updates: Ensuring the website remains up-to-date with the latest software versions and security patches.
Technical Support: Assisting with any issues that arise, such as bugs or downtime.
Content Updates: Offering services to update or add new content as the business evolves.
Performance Monitoring: We regularly check the site’s speed, uptime, and other critical metrics to ensure optimal performance. This ongoing support provides peace of mind, ensuring that the client’s website remains effective and secure over time.
How Do You Ensure That My Website Is User Friendly And Optimised For Conversions?
Yes, we ensure that your website is both user-friendly and optimised for conversions. We understand that clients want a website that attracts visitors and encourages them to take action. To achieve this, we focus on several key areas:
User Experience (UX) Design: We create an intuitive and engaging interface that makes navigation easy and enjoyable for users.Responsive Design: We ensure your website is mobile-friendly and looks great on all devices.
Call to Action (CTA): We strategically place buttons and forms to prompt users to take the desired actions.
Speed Optimisation: We ensure fast load times to reduce bounce rates and keep users engaged.
Conversion Rate Optimisation (CRO): We analyse user behaviour and make data-driven adjustments to increase the percentage of visitors who convert.By incorporating these principles, we maximise the chances of turning your website visitors into customers.
