SEO Issues You Can’t Ignore

It’s easy to get caught up in the day-to-day business routine and neglect the ongoing maintenance of your website. Then one day when the leads come creeping to a halt, you ask why. Often key SEO issues are to blame for declining organic traffic. It’s best to be vigilant about SEO issues, as these can potentially harm your search visibility and lead generation efforts.

Here are several important SEO issues that you can’t ignore.

1. Low index coverage. Ideally, you want almost all of your website’s pages to be in Google’s index, so they can show up in organic search engine results. Submitting a sitemap in Google Search Console can encourage indexing of your website pages. However, if you’re seeing less than half of your submitted pages indexed, you may need to be concerned. If this is a widespread issue, then it can limit your search engine visibility and the leads you get from it. A few simple fixes to low index coverage: check your no-index settings or resubmit your sitemap to get rid of outdated errors.
2. Mobile usability errors. Increasingly, search engines prioritize websites that load fast on mobile phones and provide a positive user experience. If mobile website elements overlap, text is unreadable, or content is larger than the screen width causing the user to expand the width, it can frustrate the user. If mobile usability drops, this can have a negative effect in search rankings. Search engines want to rank websites with high mobile usability. Google Search Console highlights pages with mobile usability errors, so you can use this tool to improve problematic pages’ layout.
3. Redirect chains. A redirect chain is a simple term for when one page redirects to a page which redirects to another page, and so on. This usually happens when a website has a lot of redirects and the page that is redirected to gets deleted or is out of date, and redirected elsewhere. Redirect chains are problematic because they provide a negative user experience — a user might see a page show up in search results, click on it, and keep on being redirected until they land on a page that doesn’t have anything to do with what they were looking for. To fix redirect chains, audit your redirects, ensure that you don’t redirect to 404 pages, and only redirect from the original URL to a final, relevant destination page.
4. Missing or multiple H1s. An H1 tag is wrapped around a relevant keyword at the top of your page, signaling the theme of your website’s content to both search engines and users. Search engines see multiple H1s on a single page as spammy, with keyword stuffing. Missing H1s are a missed opportunity for SEO purposes and user purposes. The key is to wrap relevant keywords in one H1 tag at the top of your page to maximize your keyword optimization opportunity.
5. Structured data errors. Structured data, implemented through schema tags, helps search engines digest information about your organization. It spoon feeds name, address, phone, and business category information to search engines. This increases the likelihood of your business information appearing in dynamic search engine results like rich text snippets, which looks good and can answer common questions. However, sometimes the structured data tags are implemented incorrectly — wrapped around the wrong information, structured in a misleading way, or containing syntax errors. Google Search Console and the Structured Data Testing Tool can help detect and debug any structured data errors to avoid penalties and maximize your opportunity.

So, now that we know Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is vital to a website’s success, and certain issues can seriously harm your rankings and traffic if not addressed. Here is additional information on SEO issues you can’t afford to ignore:

1. Duplicate Content

Duplicate content refers to content that appears in more than one place on the web, either on your own site or across different sites. This can confuse search engines, leading to ranking penalties or lower visibility for both pages.

Why it matters:

• Search engines may struggle to determine which version of the content to rank, diluting your SEO efforts.
• It can lead to indexation issues and hurt your domain authority.

How to fix it:

• Use canonical tags to tell search engines which version of the page is the “official” one.
• Regularly audit your content for duplication, especially after website redesigns or content migrations.

2. Slow Page Load Speed

Website speed is a critical ranking factor. A slow-loading website negatively affects both user experience and SEO performance. Search engines, particularly Google, prioritize fast-loading websites because users expect quick access to content.

Why it matters:

• Slow page speeds lead to higher bounce rates, reducing dwell time, which can negatively impact rankings.
• It impacts mobile search rankings even more significantly, as mobile-first indexing is now standard.

How to fix it:

• Optimize images by compressing them and using correct formats.
• Use browser caching and enable content delivery networks (CDNs) to speed up load times.
• Minimize JavaScript and CSS files.

3. Mobile Unfriendliness

With Google’s mobile-first indexing, if your website isn’t optimized for mobile, it can seriously affect your rankings. A mobile-friendly site provides a seamless experience across all devices, particularly for users searching via smartphones.

Why it matters:

• Most web traffic now comes from mobile devices. If your site isn’t optimized, you’ll miss out on these users.
• Google penalizes websites that don’t deliver a good mobile experience.

How to fix it:

• Ensure your site uses a responsive design that adapts to various screen sizes.
• Optimize images and buttons for mobile use.
• Test your site with Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test tool and make necessary adjustments.

4. Broken Links

Broken links (404 errors) are not just frustrating for users—they also harm your site’s SEO by preventing search engine crawlers from indexing your content effectively.

Why it matters:

• Broken links can negatively affect the user experience and increase bounce rates.
• They can waste your crawl budget, reducing the chances that search engines will crawl important pages.

How to fix it:

• Use tools like Google Search Console or third-party SEO tools to identify broken links.
• Regularly audit your site for broken links and update or remove them.

5. Poor On-Page Optimization

On-page SEO factors like keyword usage, meta tags, and heading structure play a major role in search rankings. Neglecting these fundamental aspects can result in low visibility on search engines, even if your content is excellent.

Why it matters:

• Proper use of target keywords and meta descriptions helps search engines understand your content’s relevance.
• Optimized headings (H1, H2, H3) improve readability and SEO performance.

How to fix it:

• Conduct keyword research to identify relevant search terms and incorporate them naturally into your content.
• Optimize title tags, meta descriptions, and headers with relevant keywords.
• Ensure that each page has unique meta tags and descriptions.

6. Lack of Quality Backlinks

Backlinks are one of the most important ranking factors in SEO. If your site lacks quality inbound links from authoritative websites, it will struggle to rank against competitors who have established a solid backlink profile.

Why it matters:

• Backlinks act as endorsements from other websites, signaling to search engines that your content is valuable.
• A poor or nonexistent backlink profile can limit your site’s authority and ranking potential.

How to fix it:

• Develop a link-building strategy by creating high-quality content that other sites will want to link to.
• Engage in guest blogging, outreach, and building relationships with industry influencers to earn backlinks.

7. Ignoring Local SEO

For businesses that operate in specific geographical areas, local SEO is crucial for attracting nearby customers. If you fail to optimize for local search, you’ll miss out on traffic from users who are looking for businesses like yours in their area.

Why it matters:

• Most local searches result in conversions, especially for mobile users looking for nearby businesses.
• Without optimizing for local SEO, you won’t appear in local pack results or on Google Maps.

How to fix it:

• Claim and optimize your Google Business Profile (formerly Google My Business).
• Ensure your name, address, and phone number (NAP) are consistent across all platforms.
• Encourage positive reviews from local customers to boost your visibility.

8. Thin or Low-Quality Content

Search engines prioritize high-quality, informative content that addresses user needs. Thin content—pages with little useful information or poorly written text—can harm your site’s rankings and user experience.

Why it matters:

• Search engines aim to provide users with the best possible answers, so sites with thin content may be penalized.
• Poor content engagement (low time on page, high bounce rates) signals to search engines that your content isn’t valuable.

How to fix it:

• Conduct a content audit and remove or improve thin or low-quality pages.
• Create in-depth, informative content that provides real value to your target audience.
• Use visuals, such as images and videos, to enhance content quality and user engagement.

9. Missing or Incorrect Robots.txt and Sitemap

Your robots.txt file tells search engines which pages to crawl and index, while your sitemap helps search engines find all the important pages on your site. If these are missing or incorrectly set up, it can hinder your SEO.

Why it matters:

• Without a proper robots.txt file, search engines may waste time crawling unimportant pages, like admin or duplicate content.
• A missing or broken sitemap can prevent important pages from being indexed.

How to fix it:

• Check your robots.txt file to ensure that important pages aren’t blocked from crawling.
• Use an XML sitemap generator and submit your sitemap to Google Search Console to help search engines crawl and index your site more effectively.

10. Poor Internal Linking Structure

Internal linking helps search engines understand the hierarchy of your site and which pages are most important. A poor internal linking structure can hinder the flow of link equity and confuse both users and search engines.

Why it matters:

• Internal links distribute page authority across your site and help improve rankings for key pages.
• They improve user navigation, keeping visitors on your site longer and reducing bounce rates.

How to fix it:

• Audit your internal linking to ensure that important pages are linked from other high-ranking pages.
• Use descriptive anchor text for internal links to give search engines more context.

In Summary:

Ignoring these SEO issues can drastically reduce your website’s visibility and effectiveness. Regularly auditing your site for SEO performance, fixing technical issues, and optimizing your content and backlinks will help improve your rankings and drive organic traffic.

Whether you own a pluming company, real estate agency, accounting firm, dentist office, or a moving company, it can be easy to put ongoing SEO maintenance on the back burner, but doing so will end up costing you money long term. As SEO is an ever-evolving beast, it’s important to keep on top of important updates so that it does not decrease your search engine rankings and ultimately a loss in lead generation.

Do you want a free SEO Audit Consultation to evaluate your website’s SEO liabilities and opportunities? Contact us today.