By Cas in Resources — 21 Sep 2025

Technical SEO & Performance | Module 5

By the end of this module, you'll know how to check your site's technical health and fix the issues you can control—like speed, mobile-friendliness, and HTTPS. Some issues will need a developer, and that's normal.

technical seo performance

Technical SEO & Performance | Module 5

Excerpt: By the end of this module, you'll know how to check your site's technical health and fix the issues you can control—like speed, mobile-friendliness, and HTTPS. Some issues will need a developer, and that's normal.

Technical SEO sounds complicated, but most of it comes down to making sure your website works properly. Think of it like a car service: you can check the tyres and oil yourself, but sometimes you need a mechanic. This module shows you what you CAN fix and what requires expert help.

What You'll Actually Be Able to Fix

As a beginner, you can handle:

Checking your site speed and compressing images
Making sure your site is mobile-friendly
Getting HTTPS set up
Finding and fixing broken links
Understanding what Core Web Vitals are

You'll likely need developer help for:

Complex speed optimisations (JavaScript, server response times)
Advanced Core Web Vitals fixes
Server configuration issues
Complex redirect problems

That's completely normal. Focus on what you control, and come back to this module after you've completed Modules 6-7 with more experience.

Step 1: Why Is My Site Slow and How Do I Fix It?

Do this:

Run your homepage through Google PageSpeed Insights.

Where to check: Go to: https://pagespeed.web.dev/ Enter your homepage URL Click "Analyze"

What you'll see:

Performance score (0-100)
Core Web Vitals status
List of issues

What beginners can fix:

1. Image file sizes (most common issue):

Large images are usually the #1 speed killer
Fix: Compress images before uploading (see Step 6)

2. Unnecessary images:

Fix: Only use images where they add value to users
Remove decorative images that don't help explain your content or service

3. Large font files:

Fix: Stick to standard web fonts (Arial, Georgia, system fonts)
Avoid custom fonts unless necessary

What needs a developer:

"Reduce JavaScript execution time"
"Minimise main-thread work"
"Reduce server response time"
"Remove unused CSS"

Check this worked: After compressing images, run PageSpeed Insights again. Your score should improve by 10-20 points.

Why this matters: Fast sites rank better and keep visitors from leaving. Focus on images first—that's where beginners get the biggest wins.

Step 2: Is My Site Mobile-Friendly?

Do this:

Test your site on your phone or use Google's Mobile-Friendly Test.

Where to check: Go to: https://search.google.com/test/mobile-friendly Enter your URL

What to look for:

Text is readable without zooming
Buttons and links are easy to tap (not too close together)
Content fits the screen width (no sideways scrolling)

Common issues you can fix:

Font size too small: Increase to at least 16px in your theme settings
Buttons too close: Add more space between clickable elements
Images too wide: Make sure images resize to fit mobile screens

Check this worked: The test says "Page is mobile-friendly"

Why this matters: Most searches happen on mobile. Google ranks mobile-friendly sites higher.

Step 3: Do I Need HTTPS and How Do I Get It?

Do this:

Look at your website URL in the browser address bar.

It should show:

https:// (not http://)
A padlock icon

If you don't have HTTPS:

Most hosting providers offer free SSL certificates:

WordPress/cPanel: Install "Let's Encrypt" SSL (usually one-click in hosting control panel) Shopify: HTTPS is automatic—nothing to do Wix/Squarespace: HTTPS is automatic—nothing to do

If you can't find the SSL option, contact your hosting provider. Say: "I need to enable HTTPS with a free SSL certificate."

After enabling HTTPS: Some hosts automatically redirect all http:// URLs to https://. Others don't. Test by typing http://yourdomain.com.au—it should automatically redirect to https://. If it doesn't, ask your hosting provider to set up the redirect.

Check this worked:

Your site loads with https:// and shows a padlock
Typing http:// in the address bar automatically redirects to https://
All pages use https://, not just the homepage

Why this matters: HTTPS keeps visitor data secure. Google gives HTTPS sites a ranking boost, and browsers warn users about non-HTTPS sites.

Step 4: Why Isn't Google Indexing My Pages?

Do this:

In Google Search Console, go to: Pages

Look at the "Why pages aren't indexed" section.

Common reasons and fixes:

"Crawled – currently not indexed":

What it means: Google saw the page but didn't think it was worth indexing
Beginner fix: Make the content more thorough and helpful—answer the question completely
Ensure the page matches what people are actually searching for (review Module 3 on search intent)

"Blocked by robots.txt":

What it means: Your robots.txt file is blocking this page
Beginner fix: Go to yourdomain.com.au/robots.txt
If it shows Disallow: / with nothing after the slash, this blocks everything—remove that line
If unsure, ask your developer

"Duplicate without user-selected canonical":

What it means: Google found duplicate content and chose which version to show
Beginner fix: Review Module 2 on canonical URLs
Make sure similar pages have unique content

"Redirect error":

What it means: The page redirect is broken
Developer fix: This usually requires technical help

"Server error (5xx)":

What it means: Your hosting server had a problem
Contact your hosting provider

Check this worked: Most of your important pages show as "Indexed" in Search Console.

Why this matters: If Google can't index your pages, they won't appear in search results.

Step 5: What Are Core Web Vitals and How Do I Improve Them?

Do this:

In Google Search Console, go to: Experience > Core Web Vitals

What they are:

Google measures three things:

LCP (Largest Contentful Paint): How fast your main content loads
INP (Interaction to Next Paint): How quickly your site responds to clicks
CLS (Cumulative Layout Shift): Whether content jumps around while loading

What beginners can fix:

To improve LCP (loading speed):

Compress images (biggest impact)
Reduce number of images on page
Use a faster hosting provider if your site is consistently slow

To improve CLS (layout shift):

Set width and height on all images (your theme usually does this automatically)
Don't insert ads or pop-ups that push content down

What needs a developer:

INP issues (JavaScript optimisation)
Advanced LCP fixes (server optimisation, lazy loading)

Check this worked: After fixing images, check Core Web Vitals again in 4-6 weeks. Google collects data over 28 days, so changes won't appear immediately.

Why this matters: Core Web Vitals are official Google ranking factors. Improving them helps rankings and user experience.

Step 6: Compress Images for Speed

Do this:

Large images slow down your site. Compress them before uploading.

Free compression tools:

TinyPNG: https://tinypng.com/
Squoosh: https://squoosh.app/

Or use plugins (automatic):

WordPress: Smush, Imagify, ShortPixel
Shopify: Image Optimizer, TinyIMG

How to compress:

Before uploading: Use TinyPNG or Squoosh, download compressed version, then upload to your site
After uploading: Install a plugin that automatically compresses images

Target file sizes:

Photos/large images: Under 200KB
Icons/small images: Under 50KB

Check this worked: Run PageSpeed Insights. Image warnings should reduce or disappear.

Why this matters: Images are usually 50-80% of page weight. Smaller images = faster site = better rankings.

Step 7: Fix Broken Links

Do this:

Check for broken links (404 errors) on your site.

Free tools:

Google Search Console: Pages > "Not found (404)"
Broken Link Checker: https://www.brokenlinkcheck.com/

How to fix:

Update the link to the correct URL
Remove the broken link entirely
If the page permanently moved, set up a redirect (use a plugin like Redirection for WordPress)

Check this worked: Click through your main pages. All internal links work.

Why this matters: Broken links frustrate visitors and waste Google's crawl budget.

What's Next: Technical SEO Is Ongoing

You've now checked your site's technical health and fixed what you can control. Some issues require developer help—that's normal for small business owners.

Priority order:

Get HTTPS working (critical—do this first if you don't have it)
Compress all images
Fix broken links
Ensure mobile-friendly
Everything else can wait until you've completed Modules 6-7

Come back to this module after finishing the beginner course. You'll understand more and can tackle advanced issues or brief a developer on what needs fixing.

Module 5 Foundation Checklist

Site speed checked—images compressed
Site is mobile-friendly
HTTPS is enabled and redirecting properly
Broken links found and fixed
Core Web Vitals checked (know what needs improving)
Search Console crawl errors reviewed
Robots.txt checked (not blocking important pages)
Know which issues need developer help

FAQs

What's a good page speed score for beginners? 50+ on mobile, 70+ on desktop. Don't obsess over perfect scores—focus on fixing images first.

Do I need a developer to fix technical SEO issues? Some issues yes, some no. Beginners can handle: images, HTTPS, broken links, mobile basics. Complex speed issues need a developer.

What are Core Web Vitals? Three metrics Google uses to measure user experience: loading speed, interactivity, and visual stability. They're ranking factors.

How do I know if my site has HTTPS? Look at your URL—it should start with https:// and show a padlock icon.

Should I fix every PageSpeed Insights warning? No. Fix images first (biggest impact). Other issues often need a developer and have smaller impact.

When should I hire a developer for technical SEO? When PageSpeed shows issues you can't fix yourself, or Core Web Vitals stay "Poor" after you've compressed images and fixed basics.