Technical SEO Optimization – Best Practices, Tools & Tips

Technical SEO is the foundation of a healthy, high-ranking website. While content and keywords get the attention, technical SEO ensures your content can be crawled, indexed, and ranked.

 In this detailed guide, Adex360 breaks down every key aspect, from JavaScript handling to 404 errors, so you can optimize your website for performance, visibility, and search engine trust.

1. JavaScript and SEO

What It Is

JavaScript (JS) powers interactive features like sliders, popups, infinite scroll, and dynamic product filtering. While it’s great for user experience, it poses SEO challenges because search engines don’t always process JS like a browser would.

Why It Matters

If important content or links are only accessible after JavaScript runs, Google may miss or delay indexing them. Improper JS can also inflate load times, impacting Core Web Vitals and rankings.

How to Do It:

• Use Server-Side Rendering (SSR) or hydration to ensure key content is visible pre-render.
• Carefully implement lazy loading, especially for above-the-fold content.
• Test how Google renders your pages using URL Inspection Tool in GSC.
• Avoid loading menus or internal links solely through JS.

Best Practices:

• Prioritize progressive enhancement: build content-first pages that work even if JS fails.
• Keep JS files lean and load non-critical scripts asynchronously.
• Monitor how often Googlebot crawls JS and rendered content.

Real-World Example: If your eCommerce product listings only load with JavaScript after a user scrolls, search engines may miss them. Fixing this via SSR or pre-rendering improves discoverability and indexing.

Tools to Use:

• Google Search Console (URL Inspection Tool)
• Chrome DevTools (Rendering tab)
• Prerender.io
• Screaming Frog (JavaScript rendering audit)
• Rendertron (for prerendering)
• Google Search Console (URL Inspection Tool)
• Lighthouse
• Prerender.io
• Screaming Frog (JS rendering audit)

2. Robots Meta Tags

What It Is:

These HTML tags tell search engines how to crawl and index individual pages.

Why It Matters:

If improperly configured, robots meta tags can block search engines from indexing valuable pages; or worse, allow low-quality pages into the index.

How to Do It:

• Place the robots tag inside the of your HTML:
  • index, follow – allow indexing and following of links.
  • noindex, nofollow – block both indexing and link following.
  • noarchive – prevent cache copies.

Best Practices:

• Ensure you don’t accidentally use noindex on key landing pages.
• Use meta tags for fine-grain control over indexing (not just robots.txt).

Tools to Use:

• Yoast SEO or RankMath
• Screaming Frog
• Google Search Console (Coverage Report)

3.  Sitemap and Indexing

What It Is:

A sitemap is a structured XML file listing all index-worthy URLs.

Why It Matters:

It acts as a roadmap for search engines, ensuring new or hard-to-find pages are discovered quickly.

How to Do It:

• Generate a sitemap including important pages.
• Submit it via Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools.
• Monitor regularly for errors and exclusions.

Best Practices:

• Exclude URLs with noindex or canonical pointing elsewhere.
• Update sitemaps dynamically after changes.

Tools to Use:

• Yoast SEO / Rank Math
• XML-sitemaps.com
• Google Search Console
• Screaming Frog (for sitemap validation)

4. Site Architecture

What It Is

Site architecture is the hierarchical organization of your website’s pages. A well-designed structure ensures users and crawlers can easily access all pages and understand their relationship.

Why It Matters:

Search engines use internal links and site depth to assess page importance. A confusing or inconsistent structure can result in orphaned pages or poor crawl distribution.

How to Do It:

• Structure your site like a pyramid: Homepage > Categories > Subcategories > Individual pages.
• Use breadcrumb navigation to show users and bots where they are.
• Implement clear internal linking between related topics.
• Avoid deep nesting—important content should be within 3 clicks of the homepage.

Best Practices:

• Use flat architecture to minimize crawl depth.
• Avoid duplicate category paths.
• Use XML sitemaps and HTML sitemaps to reinforce structure.

Real-World Example: A fashion eCommerce store with confusing categories (e.g., both “Tops” and “Blouses” linking to the same items) can split link equity. Streamlining this under one clear hierarchy improves user flow and SEO.

Tools to Use:

• Screaming Frog (Crawl depth analysis)
• Ahrefs Site Audit
• Lucidchart / Whimsical (for visual site maps)
• VisualSitemaps.com
• Screaming Frog (Crawl Depth)
• Ahrefs Site Audit
• Lucidchart / Whimsical (for planning structure)

5. URL Structure

What It Is

The way URLs are formatted and organized across your site.

Why It Matters

Clean, keyword-rich URLs help with click-through rates and give search engines context about page content.

How to Do It:

• Use short, descriptive slugs.
• Include your target keyword.
• Separate words with hyphens (-).

Best Practices:

• Avoid dynamic parameters (e.g., ?id=123).
• Don’t change URLs unnecessarily—use 301 redirects if you do.

Tools to Use:

• Screaming Frog
• Ahrefs
• Yoast SEO

6. Structured Data

What It Is

Structured data is code (typically in JSON-LD format) that helps search engines understand the content of your page. It can describe products, articles, events, reviews, and more.

Why It Matters

When implemented correctly, structured data can trigger rich results in SERPs, such as star ratings, price, availability, and FAQs, significantly increasing CTR.

How to Do It:

• Add JSON-LD schema markup to each relevant page.
• Use schema types such as Product, Article, FAQ, Review, or BreadcrumbList.
• Follow Google’s guidelines and test using their Rich Results Test.

Best Practices:

• Avoid marking up content not visible to users.
• Keep your structured data updated—outdated prices or reviews can harm trust.
• Use only schema types relevant to your content.

Example: For a product page, include schema like:

{

  “@context”: “https://schema.org”,

  “@type”: “Product”,

  “name”: “Leather Crossbody Bag”,

  “image”: “https://example.com/bag.jpg”,

  “description”: “Stylish crossbody bag made from genuine leather.”,

  “brand”: { “@type”: “Brand”, “name”: “LuxeStyle” },

  “offers”: {

    “@type”: “Offer”,

    “priceCurrency”: “USD”,

    “price”: “79.99”,

    “availability”: “https://schema.org/InStock”

  }

}

Tools to Use:

• Google Rich Results Test
• Schema.org (guidelines)
• Merkle Schema Markup Generator
• Yoast SEO (for basic structured data)
• Schema.org
• Google Structured Data Testing Tool
• Merkle Schema Generator

7.  Thin Content

What It Is:

Pages with little or no value; too short, duplicated, or spammy.

Why It Matters

Thin content hurts rankings and may get indexed.

How to Do It:

• Expand pages with unique, informative content.
• Consolidate or delete unnecessary thin pages.
• Avoid doorway pages.

Best Practices:

• Aim for 500+ words per page.
• Add visuals, FAQs, or stats to boost value.

Tools to Use:

• Google Analytics (bounce rate)
• Ahrefs (thin content flags)
• Surfer SEO

8.  Duplicate Content

What It Is

Identical or very similar content across multiple pages or domains.

Why It Matters

It confuses search engines and splits ranking potential.

How to Do It:

• Use canonical tags.
• Set preferred domain (www or non-www).
• Manage URL parameters in GSC.

Best Practices:

• Avoid copying product descriptions from manufacturers.
• Rewrite and merge similar blog posts.

Tools to Use:

• Copyscape
• Siteliner
• Screaming Frog
• Google Search Console

9. Hreflang Tags

What It Is:

Hreflang tags help search engines serve the correct language or regional version of a webpage.

Why It Matters:

If your site serves content to multiple languages or regions, hreflang ensures users see the right version in search results, reducing bounce rates.

How to Do It:

• Add hreflang tags in the or HTTP headers.
• Use ISO language and country codes (e.g., en-us, fr-fr).
• Ensure bidirectional linking between regional pages.

Best Practices:

• Include x-default for fallback versions.
• Avoid duplicate content issues by properly using hreflang and canonical together.

Tools to Use:

• Merkle Hreflang Tag Generator
• Screaming Frog (International SEO audit)
• Google Search Console (International targeting)

10.  Canonical Tags

What It Is

Canonical tags tell search engines which version of a page is the preferred one when multiple URLs have similar content.

Why It Matters

They help consolidate duplicate content signals and pass link equity to the correct URL.

How to Do It:

• Add <link rel=”canonical” href=”https://example.com/page”> to the head of the preferred version.
• Use self-referencing canonicals on all pages.
• Be consistent with canonical URLs across desktop/mobile.

Best Practices:

• Use canonicals alongside hreflang for international SEO.
• Avoid multiple or conflicting canonical tags on the same page.

Tools to Use:

• Yoast SEO / Rank Math
• Screaming Frog
• Google Search Console

11. 301 Redirects

What It Is

A 301 redirect is a permanent redirection from one URL to another.

Why It Matters

It passes up to 90–99% of link equity and helps preserve SEO value when URLs change or pages are moved.

How to Do It:

• Set up redirects via your CMS or server (e.g., .htaccess for Apache, NGINX config).
• Always redirect to the most relevant live page.
• Avoid long redirect chains or loops.

Best Practices:

• Update internal links to point directly to the new URL.
• Use 301s when consolidating duplicate pages.
• Test redirects to ensure proper implementation.

Tools to Use:

• Screaming Frog
• Ahrefs (redirect chains & loops)
• HTTP Status Code Checker (e.g., httpstatus.io)

12. 404 Errors & Broken Links

What It Is

A 404 error appears when a page no longer exists. Broken links (internal or external) lead to these non-existent URLs.

Why It Matters

Broken links harm user experience, waste crawl budget, and interrupt link equity flow. If search engines repeatedly hit 404 pages, they may not prioritize crawling your site.

How to Fix It:

• Use site crawlers to identify broken links.
• Redirect removed pages to a relevant page (or homepage if no match).
• Create a branded 404 page offering navigation back to key sections.
• Reach out to webmasters to fix external broken backlinks.

Best Practices:

• Run monthly broken link checks.
• Avoid redirect chains when fixing.
• Prioritize fixing internal links over external ones.

Real-World Example: If you delete a blog post that had backlinks, redirecting it to a similar article retains some of its SEO value. Leaving it as a dead end (404) wastes potential traffic.

Tools to Use:

• Google Search Console (Coverage report)
• Ahrefs (Broken backlinks tool)
• Screaming Frog SEO Spider
• BrokenLinkCheck.com
• Google Search Console (Coverage Report)
• Ahrefs (Broken links report)
• Screaming Frog

13. Robots.txt

What It Is

The robots.txt file instructs search engines which parts of your site they can or cannot crawl.

Why It Matters

Misconfigured robots.txt can block important pages from indexing, or allow sensitive ones.

How to Do It

• Place the robots.txt file in your site’s root directory.
• Disallow crawl of admin or duplicate content folders.
• Allow CSS and JS if required for rendering.

Best Practices

• Don’t block your entire site or critical assets.
• Use “User-agent” and “Disallow” rules carefully.

Tools to Use:

• Google Search Console (robots.txt Tester)
• SEO Site Checkup
• Screaming Frog

14. SEO Audits

What It Is:

An SEO audit is a comprehensive evaluation of your website’s technical, on-page, and off-page SEO health. It identifies issues that could affect your site’s visibility in search engines.

Why It Matters

Just like a car needs regular servicing, your website needs regular audits to stay optimized. Audits reveal hidden errors, outdated practices, and opportunities for growth.

How to Do It:

• Perform a full crawl of your site.
• Check for issues with indexing, crawlability, metadata, content quality, mobile usability, and speed.
• Audit backlink profiles and internal link structures.
• Benchmark against competitors.

Best Practices:

• Conduct audits quarterly or after major updates.
• Prioritize issues based on impact (e.g., fixing a noindex tag is urgent).
• Document findings and monitor changes over time.

Example: You discover that several key pages have noindex tags set by mistake. An audit catches this, and fixing it brings those pages back into Google’s index.

Tools to Use:

• Google Search Console
• Ahrefs Site Audit
• SEMrush
• Screaming Frog SEO Spider
• SEOptimer
• Ahrefs Site Audit
• SEMrush
• Google Search Console
• Screaming Frog

 At Adex360, we ensure that every technical SEO element on your website is optimized for performance, crawlability, and long-term growth. Reach out for a tailored SEO strategy that works with your unique business goals!

Get Your Free Quote!