What is Technical SEO? Technical SEO refers to the process of optimizing a website’s infrastructure to ensure search engines can crawl, index, and rank it effectively. It involves improving site speed, mobile-friendliness, URL structure, and fixing crawl errors.
Why is Technical SEO important? Technical SEO ensures that search engines can access and understand a website’s content, improving visibility, rankings, and user experience. Poor technical SEO can lead to indexing issues, slow performance, and lower rankings.
What are the key components of Technical SEO? Key components include site speed, mobile optimization, crawlability, indexability, structured data, URL structure, HTTPS security, and XML sitemaps.
Crawling & Indexing
What is the difference between crawling and indexing? Crawling is when search engine bots (like Googlebot) visit and scan web pages. Indexing is the process of storing and organizing those pages in a search engine’s database for ranking.
How can you check if a page is indexed by Google? Use site:example.com/page-url in Google search or check Google Search Console’s “URL Inspection” tool.
What is a robots.txt file, and how does it impact SEO? The robots.txt file instructs search engines on which pages or directories they can or cannot crawl. Misconfigurations can block important pages from being indexed.
How do you prevent search engines from indexing a page? Use noindex meta tag (<meta name="robots" content="noindex">) or block crawling via robots.txt (though noindex is more reliable).
What is the role of the XML sitemap in SEO? An XML sitemap helps search engines discover and prioritize important pages on a website, especially for large or complex sites.
How often should you submit an XML sitemap to Google? Only once unless the sitemap is updated. Google will automatically recrawl it periodically.
What are common crawl errors, and how do you fix them? Common errors include 404 (fix broken links), 500 (server errors), and 301/302 redirect chains (simplify redirects).
Site Architecture & URL Structure
Why is URL structure important for SEO? A clean, logical URL structure improves crawlability, user experience, and keyword relevance.
What are the best practices for URL naming? Use lowercase letters, hyphens for spaces, keep URLs short, descriptive, and include relevant keywords.
How does internal linking impact Technical SEO? Internal links help search engines discover pages, distribute link equity, and improve site structure.
What is canonicalization, and why is it important? Canonical tags (rel="canonical") tell search engines which version of a duplicate page is the original, preventing duplicate content issues.
How do you handle duplicate content issues? Use canonical tags, 301 redirects, or consolidate similar content into a single authoritative page.
Page Speed & Performance
Why does page speed matter for SEO? Faster pages improve user experience, reduce bounce rates, and are a ranking factor in Google’s algorithm.
What tools can you use to measure page speed? Google PageSpeed Insights, Lighthouse, GTmetrix, WebPageTest, and Pingdom.
How can you improve website loading speed? Optimize images, enable compression, leverage browser caching, minimize JavaScript/CSS, use a CDN, and improve server response time.
What is Core Web Vitals, and how does it affect SEO? Core Web Vitals (LCP, FID, CLS) measure user experience metrics. Poor scores can negatively impact rankings.
What is Lazy Loading, and how does it help SEO? Lazy loading delays loading offscreen images/videos until needed, improving initial page speed.
Mobile Optimization
Why is mobile-friendliness important for SEO? Google uses mobile-first indexing, meaning it primarily crawls and ranks based on the mobile version of a site.
How do you check if a website is mobile-friendly? Use Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test tool or inspect the site in Chrome DevTools’ mobile view.
What is responsive design, and why is it preferred for SEO? Responsive design adapts a site’s layout to any screen size, providing a consistent user experience across devices.
What are common mobile SEO issues? Unplayable content, small font sizes, slow loading, intrusive interstitials, and touch elements too close together.
HTTPS & Security
Why is HTTPS important for SEO? HTTPS encrypts data, improves security, and is a ranking signal. Chrome also marks HTTP sites as “Not Secure.”
How do you migrate a site from HTTP to HTTPS without losing rankings? Buy an SSL certificate, implement 301 redirects, update internal links, fix mixed content issues, and verify in Google Search Console.
What is mixed content, and how does it affect SEO? Mixed content occurs when an HTTPS page loads insecure HTTP resources (images, scripts), causing security warnings and potential ranking drops.
Structured Data & Schema Markup
What is structured data, and how does it help SEO? Structured data (Schema markup) helps search engines understand content better, leading to rich snippets and enhanced visibility.
What are common Schema markup types? Article, FAQ, Breadcrumb, Product, Review, Local Business, and Event.
How can you test if Schema markup is implemented correctly? Use Google’s Rich Results Test or Schema Markup Validator.
JavaScript & SEO
How does JavaScript impact SEO? Poorly implemented JavaScript can hinder crawlability and indexing if search engines can’t render it properly.
What is dynamic rendering, and when should you use it? Dynamic rendering serves a static HTML version to bots and JavaScript to users, useful for JS-heavy sites.
How can you make a JavaScript-heavy website SEO-friendly? Use server-side rendering (SSR), pre-rendering, or hybrid rendering to ensure content is crawlable.
International SEO & hreflang
What is hreflang, and why is it important? Hreflang tags tell search engines which language/country version of a page to serve to users, preventing duplicate content issues.
How do you implement hreflang correctly? Use <link rel="alternate" hreflang="x" href="url"> tags in HTML headers, HTTP headers, or XML sitemaps.
What are common hreflang mistakes? Missing return tags, incorrect language/country codes, and inconsistent URL references.
Technical SEO Audits
What is a Technical SEO audit? A comprehensive review of a website’s technical health, identifying issues affecting crawlability, indexability, and performance.
What tools do you use for a Technical SEO audit? Google Search Console, Screaming Frog, DeepCrawl, Sitebulb, Ahrefs, SEMrush, and Lighthouse.
What are critical areas to check in a Technical SEO audit? Crawl errors, indexation issues, page speed, mobile usability, structured data, internal linking, and security.
Advanced Technical SEO
What is log file analysis, and how does it help SEO? Log files show how search engine bots interact with a site, helping identify crawl budget waste and indexing issues.
What is a crawl budget, and why does it matter? Crawl budget is the number of pages Googlebot will crawl on a site. Efficient crawling ensures important pages are indexed.
How can you optimize crawl budget? Remove low-value pages, fix broken links, reduce duplicate content, and improve internal linking.
What is the impact of pagination on SEO? Pagination can split content across multiple pages, diluting ranking signals. Use rel="next" and rel="prev" or canonical tags.
How does site migration affect SEO, and how can you minimize risks? Site migrations (domain, URL, or platform changes) can cause traffic drops if not handled properly. Use 301 redirects, update internal links, and monitor indexing.
Troubleshooting & Fixes
How do you fix a sudden drop in organic traffic? Check for algorithm updates, indexing issues, technical errors, manual penalties, or lost backlinks.
What causes a website to be deindexed, and how can you recover? Reasons include manual penalties, security issues (hacking), or noindex tags. Fix issues and request a review in Google Search Console.
How do you handle infinite scroll for SEO? Implement “View All” pagination, use rel="next"/rel="prev", or dynamically load content with pushState for crawlability.
What is cloaking, and why is it bad for SEO? Cloaking shows different content to users and search engines, which violates Google’s guidelines and can lead to penalties.
How do you optimize images for SEO? Compress images, use descriptive filenames, add alt text, and use modern formats like WebP.
Future of Technical SEO
How do you prepare for Google’s evolving algorithms? Stay updated with SEO news, focus on user experience, and prioritize Core Web Vitals.
What role does AI play in Technical SEO? AI helps automate audits, detect anomalies, and optimize content, but human oversight is still essential.
Will voice search impact Technical SEO? Yes, voice search favors fast-loading, mobile-friendly, and structured data-rich pages.
Advanced Crawling & Indexing
How does Google handle infinite scroll for indexing? Google may not crawl dynamically loaded content well. Use the “History API” or a static paginated version as a fallback.
What’s the impact of robots.txt disallow on link equity flow? Blocking a page in robots.txt prevents crawling but doesn’t stop link equity from passing (unlike noindex).
How do you handle AJAX-heavy websites for SEO? Use dynamic rendering (e.g., Prerender.io) or hybrid rendering (SSR + CSR) to serve crawlable HTML.
What’s the difference between noindex and disallow? noindex blocks indexing but allows crawling; disallow blocks crawling but not indexing (if linked elsewhere).
How do you optimize for Google’s “Evergreen Crawler”? Ensure fast load times, high-quality content, and minimal JavaScript bottlenecks for frequent recrawling.
What’s the role of X-Robots-Tag in HTTP headers? It controls indexing directives (e.g., noindex, nofollow) at the server level for non-HTML files (PDFs, images).
How do you debug “Crawl Anomalies” in Google Search Console? Check for server errors (5xx), redirect loops, or blocked resources in the “Crawl Stats” report.
Why would Google ignore a noindex tag? If the page is blocked by robots.txt, the tag can’t be read. Fix by allowing crawling first.
How do you prioritize pages for crawling during a site migration? Submit key URLs via “URL Inspection” in GSC and update internal links to point to new pages.
What’s the impact of duplicate h1 tags on indexing? Not a direct ranking factor, but it may confuse crawlers about page relevance.
HTTP/2, HTTP/3 & Performance
How does HTTP/2 improve SEO? Multiplexing reduces latency, improving page load times (a ranking factor).
What’s server push in HTTP/2, and is it useful for SEO? It sends resources before the browser requests them. Use cautiously—overuse can harm performance.
How do you check if a site uses HTTP/2? Browser DevTools (Network tab) or tools like KeyCDN’s HTTP/2 Test.
What’s the SEO impact of QUIC (HTTP/3)? Faster connection setup improves mobile performance, indirectly benefiting rankings.
How do you optimize for HTTP/3? Ensure your server supports it (e.g., LiteSpeed, NGINX) and minimize DNS lookups.
Structured Data & Advanced Schema
What’s the difference between Article and BlogPosting schema? BlogPosting is a subtype of Article for blog-specific content.
How do you mark up a multi-step FAQ (accordion) for SEO? Use FAQPage schema and ensure content is crawlable (avoid JS-only expansion).
Can you use multiple schema types on one page? Yes (e.g., Product + BreadcrumbList), but avoid conflicting types.
What’s the Speakable schema, and when should you use it? Marks text for voice assistants. Useful for FAQs, news, and featured snippets.
How do you handle schema for out-of-stock products? Update availability to OutOfStock and keep markup to maintain rankings.
What’s the HowTo schema, and how does it impact SEO? Triggers rich snippets for step-by-step guides. Increases CTR but requires accurate markup.
How do you fix “Structured data with errors” in GSC? Validate with Rich Results Test, fix missing required fields, and resubmit.
What’s the Dataset schema, and who should use it? For publishers sharing datasets (e.g., research, government sites).
How do you mark up a video that autoplays? Use VideoObject schema and set autoplay to false (Google prefers user-initiated play).
What’s the impact of invalid schema on rankings? No direct penalty, but lost rich snippet opportunities.
Security & Advanced HTTPS
What’s HSTS, and should you enable it for SEO? HTTP Strict Transport Security forces HTTPS. Improves security and avoids redirect chains.
How do you fix “HTTPS with weak cipher suite” warnings? Update server configurations to disable outdated TLS/SSL protocols.
What’s the impact of self-signed SSL certificates on SEO? Browsers flag them as insecure, increasing bounce rates. Use certificates from trusted CAs.
How do you migrate to HTTPS for a large e-commerce site? Prioritize critical pages first, monitor mixed content, and update CDN/configurations.
What’s OCSP stapling, and does it help SEO? Speeds up SSL handshakes, improving TTFB. Indirectly benefits performance rankings.
JavaScript SEO (Advanced)
How do you debug “Content not indexed” for JS pages? Test with Google’s URL Inspection Tool (check “View Crawled Page”).
What’s the difference between CSR, SSR, and SSG? CSR (client-side rendering), SSR (server-side), SSG (static generation). SSR/SSG are better for SEO.
How do you lazy-load JavaScript without harming SEO? Use the loading="lazy" attribute or Intersection Observer API for images/iframes.
What’s the SEO impact of Web Components (Shadow DOM)? Google can crawl Shadow DOM content, but ensure critical text is in the light DOM.
How do you handle window.history.pushState for SEO? Ensure each URL returns a 200 status code and has unique metadata.
International SEO & Advanced hreflang
How do you handle hreflang for multi-regional sites (same language)? Use regional variants (e.g., en-US, en-GB) and combine with geotargeting in GSC.
What’s the x-default hreflang attribute? Specifies a fallback page for users whose region/language isn’t targeted.
How do you fix “hreflang return tags” errors? Ensure bidirectional linking between all alternate pages.
Should you use hreflang or canonical for translated content? Both—hreflang for language targeting, canonical for duplicate versions within the same language.
How do you implement hreflang for AMP pages? Add hreflang to both AMP and canonical versions.
Log File Analysis
How do you use server logs for SEO? Identify crawl budget waste, blocked resources, and orphaned pages.
What’s the difference between 200 and 304 status codes in logs? 304 means “Not Modified” (cached), while 200 is a full successful request.
How do you filter Googlebot traffic in logs? Verify IPs using Google’s SPF record or user-agent strings.
What’s the SEO impact of excessive 301s in logs? Wastes crawl budget. Replace chains with direct redirects.
How do you identify crawl budget leaks? Look for repeated crawls of low-value pages (e.g., filters, session IDs).
APIs & SEO
How do you optimize API documentation for SEO? Use static HTML versions, mark up with APIReference schema, and interlink endpoints.
What’s the impact of API rate limits on crawling? If Googlebot hits limits, it may crawl fewer pages. Use Retry-After headers.
How do you handle OAuth pages for SEO? Block login flows with noindex or robots.txt to avoid indexing issues.
Edge Cases & Troubleshooting
Why would a page show in search but return a 404? Google hasn’t recrawled it yet. Fix with 301s or reinstate the page.
How do you recover from an accidental noindex sitewide? Remove the tag, resubmit sitemap, and use “URL Inspection” to request indexing.
What’s the impact of meta refresh redirects on SEO? They’re treated as soft 301s but slower. Use server-side redirects instead.
How do you debug “Indexed, though blocked by robots.txt”? The page was indexed before being blocked. Unblock it, then use noindex or 404.
Why is Google ignoring my canonical tags? If the canonical URL is blocked or invalid, Google may choose its own.
