If your traffic has plateaued despite regularly publishing content, the problem might not be your content at all — it might be technical issues quietly holding your site back from ranking. Technical SEO doesn’t get the same attention as keywords and backlinks, but it’s often the difference between a page that ranks and one that never gets indexed properly in the first place.
Here are seven technical SEO issues we find constantly during site audits — and how to fix them.
1. Missing or Broken Schema Markup
Schema markup helps search engines understand what your content actually is — a product, an article, a review, an FAQ — and can unlock rich results like star ratings, pricing, and FAQ dropdowns directly in search results.
The fix: Audit your site with Google’s Rich Results Test. Add relevant schema types (Product, Article, LocalBusiness, FAQPage) using a plugin like Schema Pro or manually via JSON-LD if you’re comfortable with code.
2. Slow-Loading Images
Unoptimized images are one of the most common site-speed killers. A single unresized hero image can add seconds to your load time, and Google factors page speed directly into rankings via Core Web Vitals.
The fix: Compress images before upload, serve them in modern formats like WebP, and use lazy loading so images below the fold don’t load until needed.
3. Duplicate Content From URL Parameters
E-commerce sites especially suffer from this — filter and sort parameters (like ?color=blue&size=m) can generate dozens of near-identical URLs that confuse search engines and dilute ranking signals.
The fix: Set canonical tags on parameterized pages pointing back to the main product or category URL, and configure your preferred URL parameters in Google Search Console.
4. Broken Internal Links
Every broken internal link wastes crawl budget and creates a dead end for both users and search bots. Sites that have been live for years and gone through redesigns are especially prone to accumulating these.
The fix: Run a crawl with a tool like Screaming Frog to identify 404s, then either fix the link or set up a 301 redirect to a relevant live page.
5. Missing or Duplicate Meta Descriptions
While meta descriptions aren’t a direct ranking factor, they heavily influence click-through rate from the search results page — and a huge number of sites either leave them blank or duplicate the same one across pages.
The fix: Write unique, compelling meta descriptions for every important page. Keep them under 160 characters and include your target keyword naturally.
6. No XML Sitemap (or an Outdated One)
Your sitemap tells search engines exactly which pages exist and should be crawled. An outdated sitemap can leave new pages undiscovered for weeks, or worse, include pages that no longer exist.
The fix: Use a plugin like Yoast SEO or Rank Math to auto-generate and update your sitemap, then submit it directly in Google Search Console.
7. Poor Mobile Usability
With mobile-first indexing, Google predominantly uses the mobile version of your site to determine rankings — even for desktop searches. Cramped text, unclickable buttons, and horizontal scrolling all hurt you here.
The fix: Test your site with Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test, and address any layout issues flagged, particularly around tap target sizing and text readability.
The Bottom Line
None of these fixes require a full site rebuild, but each one chips away at your visibility if left unaddressed. Running a full technical audit at least twice a year — or after any major site changes — helps catch these issues before they cost you meaningful traffic.
If you’re not sure where your site stands, a technical SEO audit is the fastest way to find out exactly what’s holding your rankings back.
