Common Mistakes That Stop Your Website From Ranking on Google

Search Engine Optimization(SEO) is one of the easiest and most powerful marketing techniques that a business can deploy to increase their visibility and engagement. But what Businesses fail to recognise while doing SEO is that SEO is not just a marketing strategy or procedure that can bring new clients into your business but rather its a commitment to make sure that google tells people who search about your business that you are the best brand that provides the particular service or product. This creates not just visibility but also a brand value for your business. Imagine you own a digital marketing academy and you do SEO and tell google to show your business when your audience is searching “ Best Digital Marketing Institute in Thrissur”. This not only helps to increase your business’s visibility.

Keyword research is the backbone of SEO. If you don’t pick the right keywords, Google won't understand what you want to rank for. Many businesses either choose keywords that are too competitive or too vague. Imagine trying to rank for just “digital marketing” instead of “best digital marketing academy in Thrissur” . The first one is way harder and less targeted. Always do proper research and pick keywords that match what your customers are actually searching for.

Content with Poor Quality or Nothing to Discuss(Thin content)

Content is what tells Google who you are and what you offer. If your content is very short, repetitive, or low in value, Google sees no reason to show it to users. Your website must answer the questions your potential customers might have. A simple 100-word paragraph won’t beat a detailed, helpful article in Google’s eyes. When writing content for our website the prime focus should be on quality and not quantity.

Not Indexing Your Website

You can have the world’s best website but it won’t rank in Google if it is blocked from indexing. This usually happens if there’s a wrong setting in your robots.txt file or if you accidentally added a “noindex” tag. How can Google rank a web page it cannot see or even know? It’s like opening a shop but there is a black curtain that blocks people’s view. What use will your shop be if people cannot see it and visit it? Always make sure your site is crawlable and indexable.

Website that Operates like a Snail

Nobody likes waiting for a coffee even if it is the best and this applies to our website. Nobody wants to wait till the website loads, not even Google. A slow-loading website creates a bad user experience and pushes people away. Google rewards websites that are fast and smooth to browse. Even a 2-second delay can cause people to leave your site. Make sure you optimize images, reduce unnecessary code, and use good hosting to improve speed. Use websites like squoosh to convert JPEG images with good quality into Webp. Webp format images are comparatively good in quality and less data consuming on the server. This will help in increasing the website's speed.

Mobile Unfriendly Website

In this technologically advanced world, People using computers to surf the internet is comparatively less than that of people using mobile phones to surf the internet. If your website doesn’t work properly on a phone, you are losing a massive amount of traffic. Google likes mobile responsive websites which work in any device model . Zooming a website with your fingers and reading long paragraphs may not be a good user experience for users or Google. Always design your website in a way that it looks perfect on any screen size.

Broken link and 404 Error

Imagine clicking on a link and landing on a "Page not found" error — frustrating, right? Broken links and 404 errors tell Google that your site is poorly maintained. It creates a bad impression both for users and search engines.Check your website on a regular basis to see if there are broken links and fix them. A healthy site keeps both your visitors and Google happy.

Lack of Backlinks or Poor Quality Backlink

Backlinking is part of Off page SEO. Off-Page SEO is also important just like technical and On- Page SEO.Backlinks are sort of like “votes of trust” that you receive from other websites to yours.Google may think that your site isn't trusted or important, If you don’t have backlinks. On the other hand, spammy backlinks from bad websites can hurt your reputation. While doing Off- Page SEO, The main Focus should be on getting backlinks naturally from high-quality, relevant sites. It’s better to have a few good backlinks than hundreds of bad ones because just like the saying goes quality beats quantity.

Duplicate Content Problems

Posting the same or very similar content across different pages can confuse Google. It may not know which page to rank and sometimes may not rank either one. Duplicate content or plagiarised content also lowers the authority of your website. Always create content from your own creativity for each page. This will give those content Uniqueness and Originality. Even if you are talking about similar topics, try to approach them with fresh ideas. To check if your content has plagiarism use plagiarism checker tools which are available in Google itself.

Poor On-Page SEO (Missing Titles, Meta Descriptions, Headers)

Google’s algorithm must travel through your website to understand it and that is why On-page SEO is like a map that you are providing to Google. Without proper titles, meta descriptions, and header tags, your pages look incomplete to Google. These small things make a big difference in telling Google what your page is about. If you skip them, you are missing an easy opportunity to rank better. Always optimize every page with clear and keyword-rich SEO elements. Also avoid using keywords too much in your website. Google’s algorithm can detect if you have unnaturally used the keyword just to rank it in a position. This particular Black Hat SEO is called Keyword Stuffing.

Ignoring Technical SEO (Like sitemap.xml, Structured Data)

Technical SEO may sound boring but it’s super important. A sitemap helps Google find all your pages easily. Structured data can make your listings stand out in search results with rich snippets like reviews, stars, and prices. Without proper technical setup, even great content might stay hidden. Take some time to set up your site technically the right way.

Bad Website Structure and Navigation

Imagine you went inside a shopping mall and the shop you are looking for is maybe a cake shop inside the mall. If you can’t find your way to this particular shop, you will feel frustrated and leave immediately. This scenario applies to our website too. If visitors can’t easily find what they are looking for, they’ll leave your site quickly. A confusing or messy structure makes it harder for Google to crawl and understand your pages. A simple, clean navigation system can make a huge difference in SEO. Always plan your website with the user’s journey in mind.

Missing alt text for images

Alt text is what describes an image to Google since Google can’t "see" images like we do. your images will be invisible to the search engine’s algorithm Without alt text. Alt text also helps people using screen readers, so it improves accessibility too. Adding descriptive, keyword-friendly alt text is a simple but powerful SEO trick. So make sure that every image on your site has a meaningful alt description.

Using Black-Hat SEO Techniques (Can Cause Penalties)

Techniques like buying backlinks, cloaking, or hidden text might give short-term results but are very risky. Google’s algorithms are very good at spotting these black-hat tricks. Getting caught by Google’s algorithm for Black hat SEO will result in a penalty with even your website being completely removed from Google’s search engine results. It’s never worth the risk. Never in a million years try Black hat SEO and make sure you always follow ethical, white-hat SEO practices for long-term success.

Hosting Issues or Frequent Site Downtime

If your website goes offline often, it gives a bad impression to both users and Google. Poor hosting services can lead to slow speed, security risks, and downtime. Google wants to show reliable websites to users, not ones that are often unavailable. Investing in good hosting is investing in your SEO success. Make sure your site is always live and loads smoothly.

Not using HTTPS (Secure Connection)

Security is a major priority for Google, and it expects websites to use HTTPS. Google shows a “Not Secure” warning to the users, If your website is still using HTTP. This scares visitors away and lowers trust in your brand. Google also gives ranking preference to secure websites. Installing an SSL certificate is simple and shows Google that your site is safe for visitors. Imagine you visit amazon or any other shopping site. To make a purchase you will have to provide your card details. If the website does not have a secure connection, those details can easily be tracked by a hacker. To make sure such kinds of issues don’t affect your users, always use HTTPS.

Poor User Experience (High Bounce Rate, Bad Design)

If people leave your site quickly without interacting, it tells Google that your website isn’t satisfying them. Bad design, too many ads, or confusing layouts create a terrible user experience. Google notices these signals and ranks your website lower. Making sure that your site is easy to navigate, visually pleasing, and fast, helps Google to understand that your website is worth ranking when people spend enough time on your website. Always put yourself in the user's shoes when designing your website.

Ignoring Local SEO (For Businesses Targeting Local Areas)

If you are a local business like a restaurant or salon, local SEO is critical. If you don’t optimize your website for local search, you might miss out on the local customers who are searching for your business in the same vicinity. Simple steps like creating a Google My Business profile, getting local reviews, and adding your address properly can boost your visibility. Many businesses skip this and lose easy traffic. Local SEO helps you dominate your area without fighting global competition.

Not Updating Your Content Regularly

People visit websites to get knowledge and would you visit a website that serves information that was last edited a decade ago. You wouldn't, right? It's the same for websites. Old, outdated content can slowly lose its rankings over time. Who wants to know outdated data, even Google wants to learn fresh and relevant information for its users. If your blog posts or service pages are not updated, you miss the chance to stay ahead. Regularly reviewing and refreshing your content keeps it alive in Google's eyes. Updating your content regularly must be an integral part of your SEO strategy.

Conclusion

Ranking a website on Google isn’t just about doing a few things right. It's about avoiding the common mistakes that many businesses unknowingly make. From keyword research to technical SEO, every small detail plays a big role in how Google sees and ranks your site. The good news is, once you start fixing these mistakes, you set a strong foundation for long-term.