5 Crawl Errors on Found on Large Websites and How to Fix Them

Simran September 10, 2024 85 views

Imagine your website as a popular city. Search engines like Google are like tourists, constantly exploring its streets to understand what it offers. But what if there are roadblocks and dead ends hindering their exploration? That’s precisely what crawl errors do – they prevent search engines from efficiently indexing your valuable content, ultimately hurting your website’s visibility and organic traffic. So, as an accomplished SEO company in India, we want to share how you can tackle crawl errors.

Large websites, with their complex architecture and vast content libraries, are particularly susceptible to crawl errors. But there’s no reason for worry! By understanding these common roadblocks and following a few simple steps, you can create a smooth, search engine-friendly experience for both visitors and bots.

First, let’s understand what the problem is all about.

What are Crawl Errors?

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Ever tried to open a webpage and encountered a frustrating error message? Well, crawl errors are the digital equivalent, occurring when search engine crawlers (also known as spiders or bots) encounter problems accessing or analysing your website’s content. When clients onboard us as their trusted SEO company in Delhi, our SEO audit contains crawl errors and their fixes as a critical component.

These errors can prevent search engines from fully understanding what your website offers, leading to:

• Lower Search Engine Ranking: Crawl errors can negatively impact your website’s ranking in search results pages (SERPs). Search engines prioritise well-structured, easy-to-navigate websites when determining which pages deserve the top spots.
• Reduced Organic Traffic: Since crawl errors prevent search engines from indexing your content, potential visitors won’t be able to find your website through organic searches. This translates to fewer visitors and missed business opportunities.
• Frustrated Users: If crawl errors lead to broken links or inaccessible pages, it can create a frustrating user experience. Visitors who encounter these issues are more likely to leave your website and look elsewhere.

Why Do Crawl Errors Matter?

Crawl errors are more than just annoying glitches; they can significantly impact your website’s search engine optimisation (SEO) performance, something that the experts at our SEO company in India actively work on improving. Here’s why crawl errors matter:

1. Limited Crawl Budget: Search engines allocate a specific crawl budget to each website. This signifies the number of pages they’re willing to crawl and index. Crawl errors lead search engine crawlers down dead ends, wasting their crawl budget and limiting their ability to discover your valuable content.
2. Poor User Experience: Crawl errors often manifest as broken links or inaccessible pages, hindering a smooth user experience. Users expect your website to function flawlessly, and encountering errors can damage your brand reputation and increase bounce rates.
3. Negative Impact on Rankings: Since search engines prioritise user experience and technical SEO factors, encountering crawl errors can negatively impact your website’s ranking in search results. This can significantly reduce your website’s visibility and organic traffic.

How to Fix Crawl Errors?

Now that we understand the importance of addressing crawl errors, let’s tackle the five most common crawl errors found on large websites and how to fix them efficiently (if you want professional help on this, the specialists at our SEO company in Delhi would be happy to help).

• Server Errors (5xx)

This category of errors signifies that the server hosting your website is encountering problems and cannot process the request from the search engine crawler. Common causes include server overload, downtime, or configuration issues.

Solution:

• Monitor Server Performance: Utilise server monitoring tools to identify and resolve any performance bottlenecks or downtime issues.
• Upgrade Your Hosting Plan: As your website grows, its hosting needs might change. Consider upgrading your hosting plan to accommodate increased traffic and ensure seamless website performance.
• Consult a Web Developer: If the problem persists, consider consulting a web developer to diagnose and fix server-side configuration issues.

• Not Found Errors (404)

These errors occur when a search engine crawler tries to access a page that no longer exists on your website. This can happen due to broken links, deleted pages, or website restructuring without proper redirects.

Solution:

• Fix Broken Links: Use a website crawler or SEO tools to identify broken internal and external links. Fix internal links by pointing them to the correct, existing page. For external links beyond your control, consider removing them or replacing them with relevant alternatives.
• Utilise 301 Redirects: When deleting or restructuring website pages, implement proper 301 redirects to indicate to search engines and visitors the new location of the moved content.
• Utilise Custom 404 Pages: Create a custom 404 page that guides users towards relevant content on your website. This improves user experience and prevents visitors from leaving your website immediately upon encountering a broken link.

• Redirect Chains

A website redirect tells a search engine crawler or user to a different location. While a single redirect is usually harmless, redirect chains (multiple redirects in a row) can confuse search engines and waste crawl budgets.

Solution:

• Identify Redirect Chains: Use SEO tools to identify and analyse redirect chains on your website. Aim to simplify the redirect structure by eliminating unnecessary redirects and consolidating them into a single, efficient redirect.
• Implement Permanent Redirects: Use 301 redirects for all necessary redirections to signal to search engines that the content has permanently moved to a new location.
• Monitor Redirect Performance: Regularly check your website’s redirect performance to ensure they are functioning as intended and not causing any issues.

Also read: Mobile-First Indexing: How SEO Companies are Adapting to Search Engine Algorithm Changes

• Excessive JavaScript

While JavaScript can enhance website interactivity, excessive use can slow down page loading times and hinder search engine crawlers from properly indexing your content.

Solution:

• Optimise JavaScript: Minimise JavaScript file sizes, combine scripts, and leverage asynchronous loading techniques to reduce the impact on page load times.
• Use a Content Delivery Network (CDN): Distribute JavaScript files across multiple servers worldwide to improve delivery speed and reduce latency.
• Prioritise Critical Rendering Path: Identify the elements essential for initial page rendering and optimise their loading to improve perceived performance.

• Duplicate Content

Search engines penalise websites with duplicate content, which can occur due to various reasons, including multiple versions of a page, syndicated content, or poorly configured URL structures.

Solution:

• Canonicalise URLs: Specify the preferred URL version for each piece of content using canonical tags to avoid duplicate content issues.
• Manage Syndicated Content: If you syndicate your content on other websites, ensure proper attribution and no-index tags are used to indicate the original source.
• Consolidate Duplicate Pages: Identify and merge duplicate pages with similar content, redirecting to the preferred version using 301 redirects.

By addressing these common crawl errors, you can significantly improve your website’s search engine visibility, user experience, and overall SEO performance. Remember, a well-optimised website is not only more likely to rank higher in search results but also provides a better experience for your visitors.

Additional Tips

To ensure optimal website performance and search engine visibility, it’s crucial to regularly monitor crawl errors using tools like Google Search Console. Additionally, submitting an XML sitemap to search engines provides a structured overview of your content, aiding in efficient crawling.

As the current digital scenario calls for mobile responsiveness at every step, prioritising mobile-friendliness is essential, as Google gives preference to mobile-first indexing. Moreover, optimising image files by compressing them reduces file size and improves page load times. Lastly, continuously working on enhancing website speed is vital for improving user experience and boosting search engine rankings.

By implementing these strategies and staying vigilant in addressing crawl errors, you can create a website that not only attracts more visitors but also thrives in the competitive era of search engine optimisation, which is only going to get more competitive with each passing day.

If you want to have experienced professionals work on your website’s SEO and fix these errors, don’t hesitate to get in touch with RepIndia, the most reputed SEO company in India. We’ll help you adopt a strategic approach to fix your website’s crawl errors among other things to help you achieve consistent organic traffic growth.