Fix-it guides · 19 guides
Fix-it guides.
Every issue our audit catches, with the exact steps to resolve it. Plain-English, code included, written so the owner can read it and the developer can ship it.
Metadata & tags
Add a <title> tag to your page
Critical impact~5 minutesThe <title> tag is a single line of HTML that becomes the blue clickable headline of your listing in Google search results.
Add a canonical URL
High impact~5 minutesA canonical URL is a single line of HTML in the <head> that tells Google "this is the official version of this page.
Add a meta description
High impact~5 minutesThe meta description is a short HTML tag that controls the two-line snippet of text Google shows underneath your blue link in search results.
Add a viewport meta tag for mobile
High impact~5 minutesThe viewport meta tag is a one-liner in the <head> that tells phones "render this page at phone width, not zoomed-out desktop width.
Remove the noindex tag, your page is blocked from Google
Critical impact~5 minutesA "noindex" directive is a hidden instruction that tells search engines "do not include this page in search results.
Headings
Add an H1 heading to your page
High impact~5 minutesThe H1 is the big headline that sits at the top of your page, the visible title customers see right after the page loads.
Reduce multiple H1 tags to a single H1
Medium impact~5 minutesMultiple <h1> tags on the same page tell search engines "this page is about several things equally important.
Content
Add descriptive alt text to your images
Medium impact~1 hourAlt text is a short text description attached to an image via the `alt` attribute.
Expand thin content with depth and detail
High impactHalf a dayA "thin content" page is one with very little real text, usually under 300 words of actual body copy (menus and footers don't count).
Structured data & social
Add BreadcrumbList JSON-LD structured data
Low impact~1 hourBreadcrumbList schema is a small JSON-LD block that tells Google your site's navigation path for the current page, for example, "Home > Services > Drain Cleaning.
Add Open Graph tags for social shares
Medium impact~5 minutesOpen Graph (OG) tags are <meta> tags in your <head> that control how your page looks when someone shares the link on Facebook, LinkedIn, iMessage, Slack, or Discord.
Add Organization or LocalBusiness JSON-LD schema
High impact~1 hourJSON-LD is a small block of structured code in your page <head> that hands Google a machine-readable fact sheet about your business.
Performance (Core Web Vitals)
Improve Interaction to Next Paint (INP)
Medium impactDeveloper requiredINP measures how long your page takes to visually respond after a user interacts, a tap, click, or key press.
Optimize Largest Contentful Paint (LCP)
High impactHalf a dayLargest Contentful Paint measures how long it takes for the biggest visible element on your page, usually the hero image or main headline, to finish rendering.
Reduce Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS)
Medium impactHalf a dayCumulative Layout Shift measures how much your page visually jumps around while it loads.
Technical health
Fix a non-200 HTTP status code
Critical impact~1 hourEvery web page returns a three-digit HTTP status code on every request.
Serve your site over HTTPS
Critical impact~1 hourHTTPS is the padlock icon in the browser address bar, it means the connection between visitors and your server is encrypted with a TLS certificate.