What is Technical SEO?

Search engines discover pages by following links and reading sitemaps. Technical SEO ensures this process works efficiently: • XML Sitemap - A machine-readable list of all important URLs on your site. Submit to Google Search Console. • Robots.txt - Controls which pages search engines can crawl. Misconfigured robots.txt can block important pages. • Crawl budget - Large sites need to optimize which pages get crawled. Block low-value pages (filters, duplicates) to preserve crawl budget for important content. • Canonical tags - Tell search engines which version of a page is the "original" to prevent duplicate content issues. • Internal linking - A logical internal link structure helps search engines discover and understand the hierarchy of your content.

Page speed is a confirmed ranking factor. Key optimizations: • Minimize HTTP requests - Reduce the number of files the browser needs to download • Enable compression (Gzip/Brotli) - Compress text-based files before sending to browsers • Optimize images - Use modern formats (WebP, AVIF), compress, and lazy load below-fold images • Minimize CSS and JavaScript - Remove unused code, defer non-critical scripts • Use a CDN - Serve static assets from servers geographically close to users • Reduce server response time - Target TTFB under 200ms with proper hosting and caching • Implement browser caching - Set appropriate cache headers for static assets

Google uses the mobile version of your site for indexing and ranking. This means: • Your mobile site must contain the same content as desktop • Responsive design is the recommended approach • Mobile pages must be fast - mobile users are often on slower connections • Touch targets must be properly sized and spaced • Viewport meta tag must be set correctly • No horizontal scrolling or content wider than the screen • Pop-ups and interstitials should not block content on mobile

HTTPS is a confirmed ranking signal. Security best practices: • Install a valid SSL/TLS certificate on all pages • Redirect all HTTP URLs to HTTPS (301 redirects) • Use HSTS headers to prevent downgrade attacks • Ensure all resources (images, scripts, stylesheets) load over HTTPS • Keep certificates renewed before expiration • Monitor for mixed content warnings

Structured data helps search engines understand your content contextually: • Use JSON-LD format (Google's recommended format) • Implement relevant Schema types (LocalBusiness, Article, Product, FAQ, etc.) • Validate with Google's Rich Results Test • Monitor structured data in Search Console's Enhancements report • Keep structured data accurate and up-to-date Proper structured data can earn rich results (star ratings, FAQ dropdowns, product details) that improve click-through rates from search results.

A technical SEO audit should check: 1. Crawlability - Can search engines access all important pages? 2. Indexation - Are the right pages indexed? Are duplicates excluded? 3. Site speed - Do pages load within acceptable thresholds? 4. Mobile usability - Is the site fully functional on mobile devices? 5. HTTPS - Is the entire site served securely? 6. Structured data - Is Schema Markup implemented and valid? 7. Redirects - Are there redirect chains or loops? 8. Canonical tags - Are they pointing to the correct URLs? 9. Hreflang - For multilingual sites, are language tags correct? 10. Core Web Vitals - Do LCP, INP, and CLS meet thresholds? Our platform automates all of these checks with a 59-point deterministic scoring engine.