TLDR / Key Summary:
- Site speed still directly impacts rankings. Aim for 90+ on Lighthouse.
- Mobile-first indexing means your mobile site must be flawless.
- Duplicate content is silently killing your rankings.
- Strategic internal linking gives your site structure and strength.
- Structured data (schema) can skyrocket your CTR.
- Crawl budget is limited. Don't waste it.
- Regular audits prevent costly SEO issues.
Everyone wants to talk about content. “Write valuable stuff and they will come.”
But the truth is: great content doesn’t matter if your site is a mess underneath.
If your technical SEO is broken, you're not just leaving traffic on the table — you're actively pushing it away.
Let’s walk through what actually moves the needle today.
1. Site Speed Still Matters More Than You Think
Your website needs to load fast. Not “good enough” fast. Actually fast.
Google’s Core Web Vitals update made it clear: performance is a ranking factor. You should be aiming for a Lighthouse score of 90+.
Easy wins:
- Compress your images.
- Use lazy loading on images and videos.
- Remove or defer render-blocking JavaScript.
We’ve seen sites jump 10+ positions just by doing the above.
One client’s travel site went from page 2 to top 3 after we fixed these issues. No new content. No extra backlinks. Just speed.
2. Mobile Optimization Isn’t Just “Responsive Design”
Google uses mobile-first indexing. That means your mobile version is your site as far as Google’s concerned.
Most businesses treat mobile like an afterthought: “It looks okay.”
That’s not enough.
Mobile optimization checklist:
- Fonts should be 16px or larger.
- Buttons should be easily tappable.
- Forms should be easy to fill out.
- Menus should actually work without pinching and zooming.
If your mobile experience isn’t smooth, users bounce and rankings drop.
3. Duplicate Content & Canonical Issues Are Wrecking Your Authority
You might not even know it’s happening.
Content duplication dilutes authority and wastes backlinks.
Here’s where we commonly see it:
- HTTP vs HTTPS versions
- WWW vs non-WWW
- URL parameters (filters, sessions, pagination)
- Multiple pages with nearly identical content
Fix this with canonical tags, proper redirects, and a clean site structure.
If Google isn’t sure which page to rank, it might rank none of them
4. Internal Linking Isn’t Random — It’s Strategic
You can’t just sprinkle links across your site and call it a day.
Internal linking signals your site’s hierarchy. It distributes link equity. It tells Google which pages matter.
Best practices:
- Link from high-authority pages to your most valuable ones.
- Use descriptive anchor text.
- Keep important pages close to the homepage.
The sites that rank well almost always have clean internal architecture.
5. Schema Markup Isn’t Optional Anymore
Want rich snippets? You need structured data.
Schema markup helps Google understand your content — and display it better in search results.
Most valuable types:
- FAQ
- How-to
- Product
- Review
- LocalBusiness
We had one client increase their CTR by 27% just by adding FAQ schema.
That’s the kind of result that makes technical SEO feel like magic.
6. Don’t Waste Your Crawl Budget
Google doesn’t crawl every page all the time. You have a limited crawl budget.
Big sites often waste it on:
- Thin content
- Duplicate pages
- Low-value product variants
- Archive pages
How to fix it:
- Clean up your robots.txt
- Optimize your XML sitemap
- Noindex junk pages
Focus your crawl budget on your best pages. That’s where the money is.
7. Audit Quarterly. Fix Monthly.
Set a recurring reminder.
We run light weekly audits and deep quarterly ones. Why?
Because SEO issues are cheaper to fix when you catch them early.
Look for:
- Broken links
- Redirect chains
- New crawl errors
- Changes in index coverage
Don’t wait until rankings drop. Stay ahead of it.
Final Word: Technical SEO Is the Foundation
That meme says it all: you're chasing perfect content, but technical SEO is grabbing you from behind.
Don’t ignore it.
Every site that ranks #1 has nailed their technical foundation. It's not the fun part, but it’s the necessary part.
Fix it before you write another blog post or chase another backlink.
That’s how you build a site that actually ranks.
If you need help from our SEO agency, let us know!
