How to Fix Common Indexing and Crawling Errors

Imagine pouring time and energy into creating a fantastic website, only to find out your best pages aren’t visible in search results. Hidden behind crawling errors and indexing issues, your hard work might go unnoticed. Crawling and indexing are the backbone of search engine optimization (SEO). When these processes fail, your visibility plummets.

This post dives into common indexing and crawling errors that you might encounter, especially in Google Search Console, and shows you how to fix them. With practical examples and tools, you’ll learn to troubleshoot and resolve issues like crawl anomalies, soft 404s, and 404 errors to improve SEO performance and ensure your site shines in search engines.

What Are Crawling and Indexing?

Before tackling errors, let’s clarify the basics. Crawling is how search engine bots (like Googlebot) scan your website to find new or updated content. Indexing, on the other hand, occurs when this content is stored and made searchable in the engine’s database.

If search engines can’t crawl or index your pages properly, those pages won’t appear in search results. This directly impacts your visibility, traffic, and success online.

Common Crawling and Indexing Errors

1. Crawl Anomalies

A crawl anomaly occurs when Googlebot encounters an error but can’t determine its exact nature. It might be a server timeout, access restriction, or a temporary glitch.

Symptoms:

• These appear as “Crawl Anomaly” in Google Search Console.
• Significant pages aren’t indexed even though you’ve submitted them.

How to Fix Crawl Anomalies:

• Monitor Server Logs: Use server log files to check for patterns. Tools like Screaming Frog can help identify crawler-specific errors.
• Check Server Response: Ensure your server responds properly for every request (status code 200).
• Fix Temporary Issues: If you had downtime, resubmit affected URLs in Google Search Console.

2. 404 Errors

A 404 error, also known as “Page Not Found,” occurs when a user (or crawler) tries to access a page that doesn’t exist.

Symptoms:

• Users landing on a 404 page.
• Search Console highlights the error under the coverage report.

How to Fix 404 Errors:

• Redirect Broken Links: Use 301 redirects to guide crawlers and users to an updated or relevant page.
• Fix Internal Links: Use tools like Ahrefs Broken Link Checker to identify and fix broken internal links.
• Create a Custom 404 Page: Offer a user-friendly 404 page that guides visitors to other parts of your site. For example, include a search bar or links to your most popular pages.

3. Soft 404 Errors

These occur when a page displays a “not found” message but sends a 200 HTTP status code instead of the necessary 404 or 410.

Symptoms:

• Users land on pages that look blank or unhelpful.
• Search Console flags these as soft 404 errors.

How to Fix Soft 404 Errors:

• Return Correct Status Codes: Ensure pages that no longer exist return a 404 or 410 status code.
• Improve Page Content: If pages are mistakenly labeled as soft 404s but are legitimate, add valuable content and ensure they are useful to users.
• Redirect Where Necessary: Use 301 redirects to guide users to the next best resource.

4. Blocked by Robots.txt

Robots.txt files tell search engine crawlers which pages or sections of your site they can or cannot access. Sometimes, misconfigured rules block critical pages.

Symptoms:

• Search Console reports “Blocked by robots.txt.”
• Pages aren’t indexed despite seeming fully functional.

How to Fix Robots.txt Errors:

• Review Your Robots.txt File: Ensure critical pages are not disallowed. Tool Examples:
  • Google’s Robots.txt Tester can verify your file.
• Resubmit URLs: Once errors are fixed, resubmit your updated robots.txt file through Search Console.
• Audit CMS Plugins: On platforms like WordPress, plugins may automatically generate robots.txt rules. Double-check these configurations.

5. Redirect Chain Errors

Redirect chains occur when URL A redirects to URL B and then to URL C. Chains can confuse crawlers and slow page indexing.

Symptoms:

• Excessive redirects reduce crawl efficiency.
• Slower page load speeds.

How to Fix Redirect Chains:

• Minimize Chain Length: Replace chains with single-step redirects (e.g., URL A → URL C).
• Use Crawling Tools: Tools like Screaming Frog or Deepcrawl can help pinpoint redirect chains on your site.

Tools to Diagnose Errors

Fixing crawling and indexing errors requires the right tools. Here are some options for easy troubleshooting:

• Google Search Console: Pinpoints crawl and indexing issues through its “Coverage” and “URL Inspection” tools.
• Screaming Frog: A desktop-based tool to crawl websites and uncover issues like broken links, missing meta tags, and redirection problems.
• Ahrefs Site Audit: Offers advanced features to locate crawl errors, learn about internal linking gaps, and more.
• Google Analytics: Detects unusual traffic patterns, signaling broken pages that need fixing.
• Log Analysis Tools: Tools like Loggly help analyze server logs to identify crawl patterns.

Best Practices to Prevent Future Issues

Following basic SEO hygiene helps reduce errors and ensures a smoother user experience:

• Submit Sitemaps Regularly: Use XML sitemaps to help search engines index all important pages.
• Regular Audits: Schedule routine site audits to identify errors before they snowball into bigger problems.
• Update Internal Links: Make sure all internal links point to live, relevant pages.
• Mobile-Friendly Design: Many errors occur due to poor mobile optimization. Use Google’s Mobile Usability Test to stay mobile-ready.
• Optimize Crawl Budget: Restrict crawling of unnecessary pages (e.g., tag archive pages) using robots.txt.

Final Thoughts

Crawling and indexing issues may seem daunting, but they’re entirely manageable with the right approach and tools. Fixing errors like crawl anomalies, 404s, and soft 404s isn’t just about making life easier for search engine bots; it’s about delivering a smoother experience to your site visitors.

Take control of your site’s crawlability with these actionable tips. If managing technical SEO feels like too much, don’t hesitate to partner with professionals. SEO Dreamers can help you identify and resolve crawling and indexing issues effectively, keeping your website running smoothly and ranking high. Reach out today to enhance your site’s visibility!