Lets talk about the most critical SEO errors and mistakes that we see when working on WordPress websites that we haven’t built.
We know a lot of people like to DIY their WordPress website, so these insights are specifically tailored for those building with WordPress, although many of these same mistakes are also made on Shopify, Squarespace, Wix, Showit, Webflow and websites on other platforms.
Be sure to keep this as a handy guide, particularly if you’re just starting out with WordPress websites.
Avoiding Common WordPress SEO Mistakes
SEO is crucial for any website, and WordPress websites are no exception. Let’s explore some common WordPress-specific SEO mistakes that a lot of people make, especially during the early days of their website build.
1. Failing to Turn on No Index During Development
One of the most common mistakes is forgetting to enable “no index” while developing and initially building their WordPress website. It’s easy to start a new site and leave it indexed, allowing Google to crawl an incomplete site.
You don’t want draft content indexed by Google, or Google to decide your site doesn’t have worthy content, and so relegate it to the list of websites it only crawls to check very infrequently.
This issue becomes even more problematic if you’ve created a staging website or cloned your website for development purposes, but left it indexed. If both the live and staging sites get crawled, indexed, and appear in Google Search, it can result in duplicate content, harming your site’s SEO.
“If you have both the live and staging or clone site live in Google search, you’re going to create duplicate content and harm the SEO.”
2. Not Disabling No Index After Launch
On the flip side, another critical error is not disabling “no index” once the website is launched.
It’s shocking how often a website is fully developed, finished, and sent live, but is never indexed because this simple setting was overlooked.
We’ve seen circumstances where years have gone past without the website appearing in Google searches due to this oversight. Make sure you double-check this setting to ensure your hard work doesn’t remain hidden.
3. Changing URLs Without Doing Redirects
When you rebuild a website, URLs often change. Ignoring the need for redirects can lead to significant SEO issues, such as losing link equity and creating 404 errors.
Many new developers aren’t aware of proper URL handling and might mess up existing SEO by not using redirections. This is a critical area to focus on, especially when dealing with built or existing websites.
4. Letting Clients Dictate Content Structure
While some clients may understand content marketing, most clients are not website or SEO specialists. It’s really necessary to get experienced website developers and website designers to guide the content structure.
Clients may provide extensive documents, often not optimised for web presentation. Getting a website professional to structure this content ensures a more coherent, SEO-friendly website.
5. Skipping Page Titles and Meta Descriptions
Page titles and meta descriptions are often left blank, especially if an experienced website designer with SEO expertise didn’t create the original site. This is not something to leave to lay clients; it’s essential as an SEO building block, to have a professional complete these basic SEO tasks as part of the website build.
6. Mismanagement of H Tags
H tags are heading tags. It’s common to use at least H1, as well as some H2’s and H3’s on a website, although some detailed content heavy websites will descend into H4’s, H5’s and H6’s as well.
Improper use of H tags is another frequent issue. Some are unaware of the correct use, confusing font sizes with the purpose of H tags. Understanding and implementing H tags correctly is very important for good SEO practices.
7. Obsessing Over Perfection
Perfectionism can be a huge obstacle in SEO.
It’s essential to optimise continuously, rather than seek perfection from the start. Over-analyzing can stall your progress and prevent you from implementing effective SEO strategies.
“Don’t get stuck in perfection. Remember, SEO is about optimisation and growth, a continuous process.”
Final Thoughts
By keeping these common SEO mistakes in mind, you’ll be well-positioned to enhance your WordPress SEO strategies.
Use this guide as a checklist and keep learning continuously. Remember, progress and learning go hand-in-hand, leading to more efficient processes as you advance.
We hope you’ve picked up some valuable lessons for your WordPress project.
