A technical checklist for a small business site

Can a search engine reach the pages

Start with access. A page must be reachable, not blocked by mistake, and listed so it can be found. Our page on how Google crawls a website explains the process.

Check your robots file does not block pages you want seen, and that no page carries a no-index instruction by accident. Our pages on robots files and no-index tags cover both.

A quick test helps. Search for your business name, then check that your main service pages are listed in Search Console. If an important page is missing from the report, the cause is often one of these two settings or a page that nothing links to.

The checklist

Work down the list below once for the whole site, then repeat after any large change. Each item is explained in the sections that follow, and most take minutes to check.

• Every page loads over a secure address, with no mixed content
• A sitemap lists your pages and is connected in Search Console
• Moved or removed pages redirect with the right status code
• Missing pages return a real not-found status with a helpful page
• Every page works on a phone without zooming or sideways scrolling
• Page addresses are short, readable and consistent
• Structured data describes your business and validates without errors

Secure, mobile and fast

A secure address is the baseline, as our page on HTTPS and SSL explains. Google mostly judges a site by its phone version, so the mobile page must hold everything the desktop page does.

Loading speed affects visitors first and search second. Compress images, remove scripts you do not use and test on a phone. Our page on Core Web Vitals describes how page experience is measured.

Images are the usual cause of slow pages. Resize photos before you upload them, use modern formats where your builder supports them, and keep the hero image modest. Each plugin, chat widget and tracker adds weight, so remove any you do not use.

Addresses, redirects and errors

Keep addresses stable. When a page moves, send visitors and search engines to the new one with a permanent redirect, not a dead end. Our page on redirects shows which type to use.

A missing page should return a true 404 status with a branded page that offers a way back. A page that says not found while returning a normal status confuses search engines, as our page on broken links explains.

Click through your own site once a quarter, menu by menu, and follow every link in the footer. A single broken link is a small matter, but a pile of them tells visitors that nobody is looking after the site, and that costs trust.

Sitemaps and structured data

A sitemap lists the pages you want found. It does not make a search engine index them, but it helps it discover them, and Search Console shows which were read. Our page on sitemaps and indexing covers it.

Structured data labels who you are and what you offer in a form machines read. Use only facts that are true and visible, and test it. Our page on schema markup shows the common types.

Do not mark up anything a visitor cannot see on the page, such as reviews you do not display or services you do not offer. Structured data should describe the page truthfully. Google requires structured data to reflect what is visible on the page, and markup that does not match can be left out of rich results or lead to a manual action.

How often to check

Run the list when you launch, after any redesign and every few months afterward. Most problems appear after changes: a moved page, a new plugin, a forgotten setting.

Use Search Console between checks. It reports pages it could not read or index and tells you why. A site built with Website Builder Studio carries many of these items by default, but a check of the live site is still your job.

Pick one day each quarter and put it in your calendar. Open Search Console, scan the report for new errors, and click through the main menu on your phone. If you find a problem, fix that first and leave the rest of the list for the next visit.