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Recent Posts
- Thinking About Switching From WordPress? What Should You Consider Before You Move?
- The Airtable Acquisition Raises a Bigger Question: Do You Really Own the Software Your Business Runs On?
- How to Use Google Search Console’s New Generative AI Data to Improve Your SEO
- How to Update the Same Website Content on Multiple Pages at Once
- Discovered vs. Crawled Not Indexed in Google Search Console: What’s the Difference and How to Fix Each
- The Small Business Guide to Auditing Google Ads and Website Costs
- Do Professional Writers Still Need SEO in the Age of AI?
- Search Engine First vs. People First Content: Why Generic FAQ Dumps Harm Your SEO
- Looking for a Website Builder Without AI? Which One Should You Choose?
- Keyword Cannibalization: How to Find and Fix the Pages Stealing Your Own Google Traffic
- Why Great Content Gets Stuck on Page 8 (And How to Fix It)
- Why MySQL FULLTEXT Search Returns 0 Results (And How to Fix It)
- The Reality of Domain Speculation on New TLD Launches: Is It Still Worth It?
- The Hidden Domain Name Lock-In: Which Registrars Restrict Nameservers?
- Paying $10,000 a Month for SEO? Here’s How to Tell If You’re Getting Your Money’s Worth
- Introducing New WordPress Magazine Layouts in UltimateWB 9 (With Early Access)
- How to Fix the WordPress “Critical Error” on the Widgets Page After a PHP Upgrade
- The Hidden Risk of SaaS Website Builders: Lessons from the Recent Wix Outage
Categories
Tag Archives: xml sitemap
Discovered vs. Crawled Not Indexed in Google Search Console: What’s the Difference and How to Fix Each
When you log into Google Search Console (GSC) to check your site’s coverage, it can be very frustrating to find your URLs shoved into the "Not Indexed" bucket. But pay close attention to the specific reason GSC provides.
Two of the most common - and easily confused - statuses are "Discovered - currently not indexed" and "Crawled - currently not indexed."
While they might sound like minor variations of the same problem, they point to two completely different stages in
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Posted in Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Tagged backlinks, crawl budget, crawled - currently not indexed, crawler, currently not indexed, discovered - currently not indexed, discovered vs crawled, domain authority, Google Search Console, Googlebot, gsc, internal linking, internal links, seo, seo missteps, seo tips, sitemap, xml sitemap
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Do Professional Writers Still Need SEO in the Age of AI?
With AI tools flooding the web with generic, automated content, many professional writers are asking the same question: If you have 10+ years of writing experience, do you still need to learn SEO to stay relevant?
The short answer is no - you don't need to become a technical SEO engineer. But you do need to understand content SEO: how people search, what they are actually looking for, and how modern search engines and AI assistants discover and understand
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Posted in AI, Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Web Content
Tagged ai, ai slop, authority, bloat, content seo, core web vitals, crawl budget, fast website, fresh content seo, header tags, javascript, keyword stuffing, schema markup, search intent, seo, site architecture, sitemap, technical seo, third-party plugins, writer, xml, xml sitemap
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How to Diagnose a Sudden Traffic Drop: The Technical SEO Checklist
A founder or developer logs into their website dashboard, sees a cliff-like drop in the traffic charts, and instantly panics. The immediate accusation almost always targets the exact same phantom: “Google penalized us!”
Before you start ripping apart your content, changing URL structures, or panic-hiring an expensive recovery agency, take a deep breath.
Most sudden traffic drops are not Google penalties. Jumping to conclusions usually leads to changing random SEO settings out of desperation, which can often break a
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Posted in Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Website Traffic
Tagged 301 redirect, 404 errors, canonical tags, data tracking glitch, database optimization, disallow, disavow toxic backlinks, email blacklist, google ads, google algorithm penalties, google analytics, google penalties, Google Search Console, Googlebot, gsc, linkedin ads, mail reputation tools, Meta advertising, migration error, MXToolbox, noindex, organic traffic, paid ads, robots.txt, seo, server failure, sitemap, thin content, traffic drop, visbility, xml, xml sitemap
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How can I start SEO on my own website?
That's a good question and an important one - marketing is key to any business, and for websites a big part of it is SEO! Here is a guide we have put together...
Starting Your SEO Journey: A Beginner's Guide
SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, is the practice of improving a website's visibility and ranking in search engine results pages (SERPs) like Google. Here's a basic roadmap to get you started:
1. Keyword Research:
- Identify relevant keywords:
Posted in Ask David!, Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Tagged alt tags, alt text, backlinks, bloat, clean code, code bloat, fast loading times, keyword research, local seo, long-tail keywords, mobile-friendly, off-page seo, on-page seo, optimize images, organic traffic, responsive, responsive app, search engine optimization, search engine optimization tips, search engine results pages, seo, serps, sitemap, sitemap generator, social media, technical seo, website traffic, xml, xml sitemap
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Best Practices for Improving Search Engine Visibility
Here are some specific best practices you can incorporate into your SEO strategy:
On-Page Optimization
- Keyword Placement: Strategically place your target keywords in your page title, meta description, headings, and body content. Avoid keyword stuffing.
- Content Quality: Create high-quality, informative, and engaging content that meets the search intent of your target audience.
- Page Structure: Use a clear and logical structure with headings and subheadings to improve readability and search engine understanding.
- Image Optimization: Use descriptive alt text for images, compress
Posted in Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Tagged alt tags, baclinks, clean urls, compress images, fast loading times, headings, high-quality content, image optimization, local seo, mobile friendly, off-page seo, on-page optimization, on-page seo, page speed, page structure, pretty urls, sitemap, sitemap generator, social media, subheadings, target keywords, technical seo, url structure, xml, xml sitemap
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What techniques do you use to improve website crawlability and indexability?
Good question! A well-designed website is only half the battle. For your website to truly thrive online, it needs to be seen by search engines and potential visitors. This is where crawlability and indexability come into play...
Conquer the Crawl: Techniques to Boost Website Crawlability and Indexability
Simply put, crawlability refers to how easily search engine bots (also known as crawlers) can navigate and access your website's content. Indexability determines whether those crawled pages are deemed worthy of inclusion in
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Posted in Ask David!, Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Tagged analytics, backlinks, content creation, content is king, crawl, crawlers, engagement, fast loading times, Google Search Console, indexing, interactive, mobile friendly, organic traffic, responsive, responsive app, search engine crawl, search engine optimization, search engine optimization tips, search engine results pages, seo, serps, sitemap, sitemap generator, website speed, xml sitemap
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Should you block bots and crawlers from your website?
“Ask David!” question: "Is it a bad idea for SEO and search engine indexing and ranking to block bots and crawlers from accessing your website?"
Short Answer: Yes.
Blocking search engine bots and crawlers from accessing your website is generally a bad idea if your goal is to achieve good SEO rankings and search engine indexing. Here's why:
- Invisibility to Search Engines: When you block bots and crawlers, your website becomes invisible to search engines like Google. They won't be
Posted in Ask David!, Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Website Traffic
Tagged backlinks, bots, cloaking, crawlers, fast website, fast-loading times, high-quality content, invisibility, keyword ranking, meta robots, mobile optimization, organic traffic, responsive app, search engine crawl, search engine optimization, search engine ranking, seo, sitemap generator, target keywords, webpage indexing, website speed, xml sitemap
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What are the steps to do an e-commerce website SEO?
Optimizing an e-commerce website for SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is crucial to drive organic traffic and improve your online visibility. Here are the steps to effectively perform e-commerce website SEO:
- Keyword Research:
- Start by researching relevant keywords that your potential customers are likely to use in search engines. Use tools like Google Keyword Planner, SEMrush, or Ahrefs to identify high-value keywords.
- On-Page SEO:
- Optimize each product page and category page with target keywords in mind. This includes optimizing
Posted in Ask David!, E-commerce, Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Tagged alt tags, backlinks, blogging, content creation, content marketing, e-commerce, fast loading times, https, keywords, meta description, mobile friendly, navigation menu, on-page seo, responsive app, search engine optimization, secure website, seo, sitemap, sitemap generator, target keywords, title, user experience, user-friendly, ux, xml, xml sitemap
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What’s the Best Website Builder for SEO?
Looking for the best website builder for SEO? If you want to rank high on Google, the builder you choose can make or break your site’s success. Some make it harder to optimize your site’s performance, speed, and structure. Others require third-party plugins that add unnecessary bloat and potential security risks.
If you're looking for a builder that's optimized for search engines right out of the box, UltimateWB is the clear winner. Let’s break down what makes a website builder
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Posted in Ask David!
Tagged accessibility, accessibility signals, alt tags, best website builder for seo, bloat, boost ranking, bounce rate, clean code, clean urls, core web vitals, crawl, engagement, fast loading times, fast website, faster indexing, high-quality content, index, keywords, lazy load images, lazy loading, meta description, meta tags, meta title, mobile-friendly, page title, pagespeed insights, pretty urls, responsive, responsive app, search engine crawl, search engine optimization, search engine ranking, security issues, seo, sitemap, sitemap generator, speed, styles manager, third-party plugin, user-friendly, W3C Markup Validation Service, W3C validation, webp, webp converter, website builder, WordPress, xml, xml sitemap
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