Fixing common problems with SEO
By Steve Mortiboy
Tools we’ll use
• Google Search• Google Webmaster Tools (aka Search Console)• Chrome Developer Tools• Why No Padlock• Moz Local Search Tool
How does Google work?
When Google crawls a site it checks:• Robots.txt• Sitemap.xml• Source code of each page it crawls • Meta tags in the source code• Content of each page crawled
SEO Meta Tags• The title tag
<title></title>
• The meta description<meta name="description" content="" />
Additional SEO Meta Tags
• NOINDEXNOFOLLOW
• NOODP• NOYDIR
<meta name="robots" content="noindex" />
Google doesn’t use my...
• #1 most frequently asked question in SEO:Why doesn’t Google use my title or description?
Google Quality Guidelines• Every page must have a title and description• Every title and description must be unique• Titles should be less than 60 characters• Descriptions should be less than 160 characters• Brand your titles• Titles and descriptions should be descriptive,
no keyword stuffing• Use NOODP and NOYDIR• Fix problems as soon as they occur
https://support.google.com/webmasters/answer/35624?hl=en
Checking the index date in SERPS
site:mydomain.com
GWT – HTML Improvements
Helpful Resources
• https://semperplugins.com/faqs/why-doesnt-the-title-and-description-i-set-appear-in-search-results/• https://semperplugins.com/documentation/checking-index-status-in-google-search-results/• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fpbpfjzEBAM• https://support.google.com/webmasters/answer/35624?hl=en• https://semperplugins.com/faqs/can-i-remove-the-date-from-google-search-results/• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fpbpfjzEBAM• https://semperplugins.com/documentation/google-webmaster-tools-how-to-fix-html-improvements-reports/• https://www.google.com/webmasters/tools/
Headings – H1, H2, H3
• Headings are important to visitors and Google• H1 headings should be for the page/post title only• There should only be one H1 heading on any page• H2 headings are for primary headings in content• H3 headings are for secondary headings in content• Never mix and match• Fix bad headings in theme template files
Blocked Resources
You can block Google using:• Robots.txt• NOINDEX meta tag• .htaccess• Search Engine Visibility setting in WordPress
(Settings > Reading)• Using some plugins
Robots.txt
GWT – Blocked Resources
Crawl Errors
Crawl Errors - CausesCommon causes of Crawl Errors:• Incorrect URL due to change in permalink
Examples:• Change to the permalink structure in WordPress• Change to page structure or category structure
i.e. move a top level page to a child page/wordpress-seo/ to /services/wordpress-seo/
• Change to page slug, i.e. rename a slug from /contact/ to /contact-us/
Crawl Errors - Causes
Common causes of Crawl Errors:• Incorrect URL due to bad hyperlink on your site
Examples: • you typed a URL wrong• you created a link to a page then deleted that page
so the link goes nowhere
Crawl Errors - Causes
Common causes of Crawl Errors:• Incorrect URL used in a backlink to your site
Examples:• Someone mistyped the URL when linking to your site• Someone linked to a page that no longer exists
Crawl Errors - Causes
Common causes of Crawl Errors:• Server issues• DNS issues• Plugin or theme issues
Crawl Error Details
Crawl Error Details
Crawl Error Details
Fixing Crawl Errors
• Use Broken Link Checker pluginhttps://wordpress.org/plugins/broken-link-checker/
• Use Redirection pluginhttps://wordpress.org/plugins/redirection/
Bad Backlinks
Bad Backlinks• https://support.google.com/webmasters/answer/2648487?hl=en• https://www.google.com/webmasters/tools/disavow-links-main
Mobile Usability
Mobile Usability
Mobile Testing Tool
Mobile Testing Tool
XML Sitemap Issues
XML Sitemap Issues
Structured Data – Schema markup
What is Structured Data / Schema markup?• Structured data is a type of markup that Google uses
to display rich snippets and Knowledge Graph cardsin search results
Examples of rich snippets include:• Product price and availability information• Star ratings• Recipe information• Event information
Structured Data – Schema markup
https://developers.google.com/search/docs/guides/intro-structured-data
Structured Data Issues
Structured Data Testing Tool
Page Speed
PageSpeed Recommendations
• Implement caching• Remove render blocking for above-the-fold content• Optimize images• Speed up server response time• Implement minification• Avoid redirects• Enable compression
Page Speed Testing
HTTPS Encryption
Local SEO Issues
• Name, Address and Phone (NAP) markup• Missing or incomplete Google Business listing• Missing, incomplete or conflicting business listings,
directory listings, social media information and review sites
Local SEO Tool
Questions?
Semper Fi Web Design• Support• Security• Performance
• Development• Design• SEO
http://semperfiwebdesign.com