Technical SEO Workbook + 90-Day Checklist (No Coding)

Module 1: How Google finds and reads your pages

Google crawls (fetches) pages by following links and sitemaps, renders them like a browser, then decides whether to index them. Your job is to remove anything in the way.

1. Search site:yourdomain.com on Google

   A rough look at what's indexed. It isn't an exact count. Use the Search Console Pages report for real numbers.

2. Run URL Inspection on your homepage and top money page

   Check 'URL is on Google', the Google-selected canonical and the crawled page (Test live URL > View tested page > Screenshot). If the screenshot is blank or missing content, Google can't see what humans see.

3. Fill in the 'Indexed?' column of your money pages list

   Any 'N' goes straight to Module 2.

Module 2: Indexing: get the right pages shown

Open Indexing > Pages > 'Why pages aren't indexed'. Use this table to decide what each reason needs. Google says many of these are normal.

Module 3: Sitemaps and robots.txt without fear

• yourdomain.com/robots.txt loads and does not block the whole site

  Open it in a browser. It's a short text file you can read.

• robots.txt is not used to hide pages from search results

  Google says robots.txt controls crawling, not indexing. A blocked URL can still be indexed without its content. Use noindex to keep a page out, and let Google crawl it so it can see the tag.

• robots.txt lists your sitemap (a line like 'Sitemap: https://yoursite.com/sitemap.xml')

  It helps any crawler find the sitemap, not just Google.

• The sitemap lists only canonical URLs that return status 200

  No redirects, no 404s, no noindexed pages. Google's limit is 50,000 URLs or 50 MB uncompressed per sitemap file.

• The sitemap is submitted in Search Console and the Sitemaps report shows Success

  If it says 'Couldn't fetch', Google isn't reading it.

• You've decided which AI crawlers you allow

  AI tools like OpenAI, Perplexity and Anthropic send their own crawlers that you can allow or block by name in robots.txt. Google says AI Overviews and AI Mode need no extra crawler or file: indexed and snippet-eligible is enough.

Module 4: Internal links that push buyers to money pages

Money page URL: ____
Internal links pointing to it (Search Console > Links > Internal links): ____
Linked from homepage? Y/N
Linked from main menu? Y/N
Clicks from homepage to reach it: ____
3 related pages that should link to it:
1. ____  anchor text: ____
2. ____  anchor text: ____
3. ____  anchor text: ____

Money page: /bathroom-remodel-cost/
Internal links pointing to it: 2
Linked from homepage? N   Linked from main menu? N   Clicks from homepage: 4
New links added:
1. /bathroom-remodel/ (service page)  anchor: 'what a bathroom remodel costs'
2. /blog/small-bathroom-ideas/  anchor: 'bathroom remodel cost guide'
3. /about/ (projects section)  anchor: 'see typical remodel prices'
After: 5 internal links, 2 clicks from homepage

Module 5: Speed and Core Web Vitals, fixed with free tools

Google's 'good' thresholds, at the 75th percentile of real visits: LCP 2.5 s or less, INP 200 ms or less, CLS 0.1 or less. Poor starts above 4 s, 500 ms and 0.25. INP replaced FID as a Core Web Vital in 2024.

• Each money page tested in PageSpeed Insights on the Mobile tab

  Read the real-user data at the top first. The lab score below is a test, not what customers felt.

• Search Console > Core Web Vitals checked for Poor URL groups on mobile

  A group takes the status of its worst metric, so one template fix can clear many URLs.

• Big images compressed (WebP or AVIF) and resized to the size they're shown

  Large images are a common cause of slow LCP. Squoosh (squoosh.app) is free in the browser.

• The main hero image is NOT lazy-loaded

  web.dev says lazy-loading the LCP image delays it. Lazy-load images further down instead.

• Unused plugins, chat widgets and pop-up tools removed

  Practical advice: every script competes for the main thread, which hurts INP.

• Images, ads and embeds have reserved space (width and height set)

  Stops the page jumping as things load, which is what CLS measures.

Module 6: Mobile-first: your site on a phone

• Every money page opened on a real phone: text readable without zooming, buttons easy to tap

  Google uses mobile-first indexing, so the mobile version is the one that counts.

• The mobile version has the same main content as desktop

  If content is hidden or missing on mobile, Google may not see it.

• Titles, meta descriptions, structured data and robots tags match on mobile and desktop

  Google's mobile-first guide asks for the same metadata on both.

• No pop-up covers the main content as soon as the page opens on mobile

  It blocks the reader and can push layout around. Use a small banner instead.

• Phone number and booking button are visible without hunting

  Practical advice: mobile buyers want to call or book fast.

Module 7: Redirects, redesigns and broken links

• Crawl the site with Screaming Frog SEO Spider (free up to 500 URLs) and export 4xx and 3xx

  Shows broken internal links and redirect chains. The paid licence (£199/year) removes the 500-URL limit; most small sites don't need it.

• Internal links that point to redirects or 404s now point to the final URL

  Saves crawling and keeps link signals clean.

• Every changed URL has a server-side 301 (or 308) to its closest new page

  Google treats permanent server-side redirects as a strong signal the page moved. Use the Redesign SEO checklist for a full move.

• No redirect chains (old > older > new)

  Point every redirect straight at the final URL.

• Many old URLs are not redirected to the homepage

  Google says redirecting lots of old URLs to one unrelated page might be treated as a soft 404.

Module 8: Structured data basics

1. Pick the types that match your pages

   Common ones for small businesses: Organization or LocalBusiness on the homepage, Product on product pages, Article on blog posts, BreadcrumbList site-wide.

2. Add it as JSON-LD

   Google recommends JSON-LD. Many CMS plugins add it without code.

3. Test it

   Use the Rich Results Test for Google features and the Schema Markup Validator for general schema.org errors.

4. Keep it honest

   Markup must match what's visible on the page. Misleading markup can lead to a manual action, and valid markup doesn't guarantee a rich result.

5. Skip FAQ stars

   Google stopped showing FAQ rich results from 7 May 2026. Don't spend time adding FAQ schema for a feature that no longer appears.

Module 9: Your 90-day technical SEO checklist

• Days 1-7: Search Console (Domain property) and Bing Webmaster Tools set up, sitemap submitted, robots.txt and noindex checked

  Nothing else matters if Google can't get in.

• Days 1-7: URL Inspection run on all 10 money pages, baseline numbers written down

  This is your fix list and your before picture.

• Days 8-30: full crawl done, broken links and redirect chains fixed, one preferred domain version enforced

  Cleans the hallways before you add more rooms.

• Days 8-30: PageSpeed Insights run on money pages, biggest image and script problems fixed

  Start with LCP on mobile. It's usually images or a slow server.

• Days 31-60: every money page gets at least 3 relevant internal links with descriptive anchors

  Practical advice: this is the cheapest ranking lever most small sites ignore.

• Days 31-60: thin and duplicate pages merged, improved or removed

  Fewer weak pages, clearer signals.

• Days 61-90: structured data added and validated on homepage and key page types

  Helps Google understand who you are and what each page is.

• Days 61-90: weekly 10-minute Search Console routine running, including the Generative AI performance report

  That report shows how often your pages appear in AI Overviews and AI Mode (impressions only). Use the Search Console weekly checklist.

• Day 90: re-run the Day 1 baseline and compare

  Write the before and after numbers down. That's your proof it worked, or your clue where it didn't.

Common mistakes

• Fixing speed before checking indexing

  A fast page Google can't index earns nothing. Door first, then foundation.

• Treating every 'not indexed' reason as a problem

  Redirects, canonical alternates and deleted pages are normal. Only act on money pages.

• Blocking a page in robots.txt and adding noindex

  Google can't see the noindex if it can't crawl the page.

• Redirecting all old URLs to the homepage after a redesign

  Map each to its closest new page instead.

• Adding schema for things the page doesn't show

  It breaks Google's structured data policies.

• Doing all 10 modules in one weekend, then never checking again

  Problems come back with every plugin update and redesign. The weekly routine catches them.