Crawling and indexing
Crawling is the discovery and retrieval of pages. Indexing is the processing and storage that can make a page eligible to appear in search. Discovery does not guarantee inclusion or a particular position. Google’s SEO Starter Guide explains how these processes relate.
When a page is missing, begin with its status, access rules, and indexability. Rewriting the headline will not resolve an accidental block.
Search intent and page relevance
Search intent is a practical description of what a person is trying to accomplish with a query. A useful service page answers the questions that matter to that decision.
Ask which audience a proposed page serves, what the visitor needs to learn, and what action the page supports. Avoid creating several nearly identical pages for the same purpose.
Titles, descriptions, and snippets
A page title identifies the subject of a page. A meta description suggests a summary, while the snippet is the description actually shown in a result; Google can draw it from page content. Google’s guidance recommends clear, unique titles and page-specific descriptions.
Review whether the title accurately describes the page and whether the content delivers on it. A plugin score is only one input to an editorial review.
Canonical URLs, redirects, and sitemaps
A canonical identifies a preferred URL for equivalent content. A redirect sends a visitor to another URL. A sitemap lists important URLs for discovery. These tools have different jobs, as outlined in Google’s SEO guide.
Ask for examples of the URLs affected by a technical recommendation. A useful change record explains the current behavior, intended behavior, and test used to verify it.
Impressions, clicks, and customer actions
An impression and a click describe search activity. A form submission, phone call, or purchase describes a separate action after someone reaches the business.
Keep these measures separate in reporting. Ask what improved, how it was measured, and whether the change produced the type of inquiry the business wants.