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Technical SEO Checklist for Small Business Websites

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Lachlan Nye
Author Lachlan Nye

Director of Growth at Salt Agency, a Brisbane-based performance and creative growth marketing agency. He leads…

Technical SEO Checklist for Small Business Websites

Technical SEO Checklist for Small Business Websites

Your website might be invisible to Google right now. And it’s not because your content isn’t good.

I see it all the time with small business owners here in Brisbane. They invest in beautiful design, write great copy, and still wonder why no one’s finding them. The culprit? Technical SEO.

Technical SEO is the stuff happening under the hood of your site. It’s what tells Google: “Hey, this page is worth showing to searchers.” Without it, all your other marketing effort is basically shouting into a void.

Let me walk you through a practical checklist. These are the things I check for every client at Salt Agency before we even think about keywords or content.

If you want the full backstory on SEO, jump over to our guide on what SEO is and how it works. But for now, let’s get into the checklist.

What is Technical SEO and Why Should You Care?

Think of technical SEO as the foundation of your house. You can have the best furniture (content) and the prettiest paint (design), but if the foundation is cracked, the whole thing falls over.

Technical SEO covers everything from site speed to mobile responsiveness to how search engines crawl your pages. It’s not glamorous, but it’s the reason your site gets indexed in the first place.

Google has said that core web vitals are a ranking signal. That means if your site loads slowly or has janky layout shifts, you’re losing rankings to competitors who’ve done the work.

The Technical SEO Checklist

Here’s exactly what I’d run through if you handed me your website tomorrow.

Site Speed – The Non-Negotiable

Google found that 53% of mobile users leave a page if it takes longer than three seconds to load. That’s more than half your potential traffic gone before they even see your homepage.

Run your site through PageSpeed Insights. If your score is under 90 on mobile, you’ve got work to do.

Common fixes: compress images, enable browser caching, and minimise CSS and JavaScript. I know that sounds technical, but your developer can knock these out in an afternoon.

Mobile Friendliness

Google uses mobile-first indexing. That means it looks at the mobile version of your site first when deciding rankings. If your mobile site is clunky or has text that’s too small, you’re getting penalised.

Test your site with Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test tool. Check that buttons are big enough to tap, text doesn’t require zooming, and content fits the screen without horizontal scrolling.

Crawlability and Indexing

Google needs to be able to find and read your pages. If it can’t crawl your site, it won’t index it.

Start with a sitemap.xml file. This tells Google which pages exist. Submit it through Google Search Console.

Then check your robots.txt file. Make sure you’re not accidentally blocking important pages. I’ve seen clients block their entire site because a developer copy-pasted a rule without thinking.

Also, look for pages that should be indexed but aren’t. Use the URL Inspection tool in Search Console to see if a page is marked “noindex” by mistake.

Secure and Accessible (HTTPS)

Google confirms HTTPS is a ranking signal. If your site still shows “Not Secure” in the browser bar, fix that now.

Beyond the padlock, make sure all resources (images, scripts) load over HTTPS too. Mixed content warnings can break your site and scare users away.

Structured Data (Schema Markup)

This is the secret sauce for rich snippets. Structured data helps Google understand what your page is about – a product, a review, an event – and display enhanced results in search.

For a small business, LocalBusiness schema is gold. It tells Google your address, phone number, and opening hours. That’s what powers the knowledge panel on the right side of search results.

Use Google’s Structured Data Testing Tool to check if your markup is valid.

How to Check Your Site’s Technical Health

You don’t need to be a developer to run these checks. Here are the free tools I use daily:

  • Google Search Console – see indexing issues, crawl errors, and manual actions.
  • PageSpeed Insights – get speed scores and specific fixes.
  • Screaming Frog (free version) – crawls your site and finds broken links, missing meta tags, and duplicate content.

At Salt Agency, we run a full technical audit for every new client before we touch their content strategy. It’s the only way to know we’re building on solid ground.

If you’re curious how this fits into a bigger SEO picture, check out our blog for more deep dives.

FAQ

How often should I check my site’s technical SEO?

At least once a quarter. But if you’re making regular changes to your site (adding pages, new plugins, redesigns), do a quick scan every time.

Do I need a developer to fix technical SEO issues?

Some fixes are easy – compressing images or adding a plugin for caching. Others, like restructuring your site’s code or setting up structured data, might need a developer. Either way, the checklist tells you what to ask for.

Will technical SEO guarantee me #1 on Google?

No. Technical SEO gets you in the game. Content, backlinks, and user experience then determine where you rank. But without the technical foundation, none of that matters because Google won’t even index your pages properly.

How long does it take to see results from technical SEO fixes?

It varies. Some fixes (like fixing a blocked page) can show results in days. Others, like improving site speed, might take a few weeks for Google to re-crawl and adjust rankings. Patience pays off.

What to Do Next

Start with one thing on this checklist. Run a speed test. Check your mobile friendliness. Submit your sitemap.

If you get stuck or want a professional set of eyes, I’m here. At Salt Agency, we help Brisbane businesses turn their websites into lead-generating machines. We handle the technical stuff so you can focus on running your business.

And if you’re wondering whether video content could boost your SEO even further, read about why video marketing works for Australian businesses.

Fix the foundation. Then build on it. That’s how you win online.

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