• 7 min read
Crawlability first
Check robots.txt for accidental disallow rules, confirm the sitemap lists every indexable URL with absolute addresses, and make sure no important page depends on JavaScript-only navigation to be discovered.
Indexation
Look for pages that are crawled but not indexed, duplicate content across parameter URLs, and canonical tags that point away from the page they sit on — the single most common cause of a page's own metadata being ignored.
On-page fundamentals
Every page needs a unique title under 60 characters, a description under 160, one descriptive H1, and a logical heading hierarchy. Images need alt text that describes the content, not the filename.
Structured data
Organization or WebSite markup sitewide, Article on posts, Product on product pages, and BreadcrumbList on nested routes. Validate every schema — invalid markup is ignored entirely.
Performance and mobile
Core Web Vitals field data, responsive layout without horizontal scroll, and tap targets large enough on mobile. These are the checks that quietly cap organic growth long after the content is right.