On-Page SEO Mistakes Killing Your Rankings

You've spent hours creating content, but your pages aren't ranking. The problem might not be your content quality—it could be on-page SEO mistakes that are invisible to you but obvious to Google. Here are the most common on-page SEO mistakes we see small businesses make, and how to fix them.

Mistake #1: Missing or Poorly Written Title Tags

Your title tag is one of the strongest on-page ranking signals—and it's often the first thing searchers see. Yet many businesses either leave title tags blank (defaulting to the page URL) or write vague titles that don't include target keywords.

How to Fix It:

• Include your primary keyword near the beginning of the title
• Keep titles under 60 characters so they don't get cut off in search results
• Make each page's title unique and descriptive
• Write for humans first—make it compelling enough to click

Bad example: "Welcome to Our Website"
Good example: "Emergency Plumber in Dallas | 24/7 Same-Day Service"

Mistake #2: Weak or Missing Meta Descriptions

While meta descriptions don't directly affect rankings, they massively impact click-through rates. A compelling description can double your clicks—even if your ranking stays the same.

How to Fix It:

• Write unique descriptions for every important page
• Include your target keyword (Google bolds matching terms)
• Keep descriptions between 120-155 characters
• Include a call-to-action ("Learn more," "Get a free quote," etc.)

Learn about our Meta Tags Optimization services

Mistake #3: Thin or Duplicate Content

"Thin content" means pages with little valuable information. This includes pages with only a few sentences, pages that exist just to rank for keywords, or content copied from other sites.

How to Fix It:

• Make sure each page provides genuine value to visitors
• Aim for at least 500-1000 words on important pages (but don't pad with fluff)
• Never copy content from other websites—even with permission
• Use canonical tags when you need similar pages to exist
• Consolidate thin pages into comprehensive resources

Mistake #4: Missing or Improper Header Structure

Headers (H1, H2, H3, etc.) help Google understand your content's structure and hierarchy. Many sites either don't use headers properly or use them purely for styling.

How to Fix It:

• Use exactly one H1 tag per page (usually the page title)
• Structure H2s and H3s logically—like an outline
• Include relevant keywords in headers naturally
• Don't skip levels (don't go from H2 directly to H4)

Mistake #5: Unoptimized Images

Images can make or break your page speed—and page speed affects rankings. We often see sites with massive, uncompressed images that take forever to load.

How to Fix It:

• Compress all images before uploading (use WebP or AVIF formats)
• Add descriptive alt text to every image
• Use descriptive file names ("blue-widget-product.jpg" not "IMG_12345.jpg")
• Specify image dimensions to prevent layout shift
• Lazy load images below the fold

Mistake #6: Poor Internal Linking

Internal links help Google discover your pages and understand which pages are most important. Many sites have orphan pages (no internal links pointing to them) or miss opportunities to connect related content.

How to Fix It:

• Link to your important pages from your homepage and navigation
• Add contextual links within your content to related pages
• Use descriptive anchor text (not "click here")
• Create topic clusters that link related content together
• Regularly audit for orphan pages

Learn about our Internal Linking services

Mistake #7: Slow Page Speed

Page speed is a direct ranking factor, and it affects user experience too. If your pages take more than 3 seconds to load, you're losing visitors before they even see your content.

How to Fix It:

• Test your site with Google PageSpeed Insights
• Optimize images (often the biggest issue)
• Enable browser caching
• Minimize CSS and JavaScript
• Consider a content delivery network (CDN)
• Choose fast, quality hosting

Mistake #8: Not Mobile-Friendly

Google uses mobile-first indexing, meaning it primarily looks at your mobile site when ranking. If your site isn't mobile-friendly, you're at a serious disadvantage.

How to Fix It:

• Test with Google's Mobile-Friendly Test
• Use responsive design (not a separate mobile site)
• Make buttons and links easy to tap on mobile
• Ensure text is readable without zooming
• Don't use Flash or other mobile-unfriendly technology

Mistake #9: Keyword Stuffing

In the old days, repeating your keyword over and over helped rankings. Today, it hurts them. Google easily recognizes unnatural keyword usage and may penalize your pages.

How to Fix It:

• Write naturally for humans, not search engines
• Use your primary keyword a few times where it fits naturally
• Use synonyms and related terms (Google understands context)
• Focus on answering the searcher's question completely

Mistake #10: Not Using Schema Markup

Schema markup helps Google understand your content better and can result in rich snippets (stars, FAQs, prices) in search results. Most small business websites don't use it at all.

How to Fix It:

• Add LocalBusiness schema to your local business site
• Use Article schema for blog posts
• Add FAQ schema when you have FAQ content
• Use Product schema for eCommerce products
• Test with Google's Rich Results Test

Ready to Fix Your On-Page SEO?

On-page SEO mistakes are fixable—but first you need to find them. A thorough SEO audit can identify every issue holding your site back.

Explore our On-Page SEO Services or get a free consultation to learn how BuzFind can help optimize your website for better rankings.