How to prioritize technical SEO fixes by business impact

Technical SEO’s Dirty Little Secret: Not All Fixes Are Created Equal

The SEO industry is plagued by a myth that all technical issues carry equal weight. However, this couldn’t be further from the truth. In reality, some fixes look critical but do absolutely nothing, while others may seem minor but can suppress millions in revenue. The problem isn’t technical SEO itself, but rather the persistent myth that all fixes deserve equal attention.

This mirrors what happened to Blackberry in 2010, when the company focused on fixing every minor issue, only to lose sight of the bigger picture. Similarly, in SEO, it’s easy to get caught up in fixing every technical issue, only to neglect the ones that truly matter.

Technical SEO tools are incredibly useful, but they’re also incredibly good at creating anxiety. Crawl reports, site health dashboards, and “critical” red flags often create the illusion that every flagged issue deserves immediate attention. However, a tool may label something as a “critical issue” because it violates a best practice, not necessarily because it’s hurting organic performance.

Understanding the Decision-Making Logic of Technical SEO

So, how do we prioritize technical SEO fixes? One approach is to understand which layer of performance the issue affects. Is it indexing, rendering, or user experience? Or a combination of all of the above? These affect whether pages can appear in search at all.

For example, issues that affect indexing, such as crawl errors or duplicate content, tend to be the highest priority. These can prevent search engines from accessing or indexing pages, making rankings impossible.

On the other hand, issues that affect user experience, such as page speed or mobile responsiveness, may not directly impact a site’s ability to rank well, but can affect engagement and conversions, which, in turn, can impact organic visibility.

The Winners and Losers of Technical SEO

So, who benefits from prioritizing technical SEO fixes by business impact? Publishers, ecommerce sites, and lead generation sites all stand to gain from a more nuanced approach to technical SEO.

For publishers, technical SEO issues affect speed, scale, and freshness. These sites live and die by how quickly content gets discovered and indexed. That means technical priorities tend to center around indexing issues, rendering issues, and site speed.

Ecommerce sites, on the other hand, tend to focus on technical issues that affect visibility and revenue at scale. High-impact areas typically include canonicalization, parameter handling, and indexing rules.

Lead generation sites, while smaller, still have high stakes. Here, the focus shifts to technical issues that affect conversion rates, such as page speed, mobile responsiveness, and user experience.

The Skeptical Case: Why Technical SEO May Not Be the Answer

But what if technical SEO isn’t the answer? What if the real issue lies elsewhere? It’s possible that technical SEO is just a symptom of a larger problem, such as poor content quality or a lack of user engagement.

In fact, a study by Moz found that technical SEO issues only account for a small percentage of ranking factors. Other factors, such as content quality, user experience, and link equity, play a much larger role in determining rankings.

The Signal to Watch Next

So, what’s the signal to watch next? In the next 30-90 days, keep an eye on your website’s technical SEO metrics, such as crawl errors, page speed, and mobile responsiveness. Monitor how these metrics impact your website’s organic traffic and conversion rates.

Also, pay attention to Google’s upcoming algorithm updates, which may place more emphasis on technical SEO issues such as page speed and mobile responsiveness. By staying ahead of the curve, you can ensure that your website is well-positioned for success in the ever-changing world of SEO.

What’s your take on this? Drop your perspective in the comments below.

By Alex Mercer, Senior Tech Analyst at TrendFlashy