Technical SEO For SaaS - Step By Step Guide

Being a SaaS business, having a SaaS SEO strategy is very critical for your business. And in the event that you don’t have one, don’t worry because we have compiled a technical SEO for SaaS guide for you. And the best part is it comes right from the technical SEO experts.

This guide will help you make sure that none of your SaaS technical SEO efforts go to waste, be it on-page or off-page. This guide will not only walk you through technical SEO for SaaS elements but also share tools with you to improve search rankings and drive organic traffic.

And the best part is that you don’t have to throw money at all because this will be all organic in the possible ways so that you can save your money for long-term growth!

A Technical SEO For SaaS Checklist

Across the guide, we will share expert advice with you. This way you can up your SaaS SEO game. And improved ranking can be a reality. Let’s get started!

1. The SaaS Technical SEO Audit

Before providing a solution, you must identify the issues. Similar is the case with SEO. Before you start improving your SaaS SEO and come up with a solid SaaS SEO strategy, you must get a SaaS SEO audit.

With a SaaS technical SEO audit, it’s like hiking without a map. You’re not even certain about the direction you are headed in and where you will end up. You could get blind-sided by your efforts and might not even achieve anything.

Try hiring an SEO expert for your SaaS business or outsource it to a digital agency like us for the SaaS technical SEO audit. Regardless of the path you choose, ensure that you follow our checklist to not miss a tip or trick.

a. Duplicate Content

If you share duplicate content on your website, it can harm your rankings on the search result page and, eventually, organic traffic as well. When search engine crawlers come in contact with duplicate content, they get confused and are unsure what to do.

• Which copy should they rank higher on the search result page?

• Which copy should they add to their indexed pages?

• Which copy should they direct the link metric to?

This can lead to confusion and eventually negatively impact your ranking. Additionally, duplicate content can indicate that you have a thoughtless SaaS SEO content strategy. Above all, remember that SaaS SEO is way beyond URLs, backlinks, keywords, and meta titles.

This is mostly about how valuable you are to your audience, and publishing duplicate content doesn’t add value to your audience. Additionally, if it is really necessary to add duplicate content to your website, just add a nofollow or noindex tag along.

These tags will stop the crawlers from the search engine from indexing the page. This, in turn, will save you ranking as well as time as you can regroup.

b. HTML Tags

HTML tags are only beneficial if you’re accurately putting a hierarchy to your content. The SaaS technical SEO audit also checks the usage of keywords and HTML tag types that are used for titles, headings, and subheadings.

This will assist in making sure that your content is not missing or are not relevant to your topic. Using title tags that are appropriate will ensure that both the search engine bots and the users know what’s happening.

However, if you misuse the HTML tags, it may confuse both the user and the search engines. And baffling, the search engine bots can, in return, decrease rankings on the search result page.

c. Canonical Tags

Canonical tags are used to avoid duplicates. They signal the search engine crawlers regarding the master copy for the page. Even though these tags are great for avoiding duplicate content, you can still use them inaccurately.

When performing SaaS technical SEO audit, ensure that you check these elements regarding canonical tags as well:

• Using Wrong Tags:

Using tags inaccurately can cause problems in the code. This means that you’re using the tag repeatedly instead of using it only once.

• Mixed Signals:

For instance, if you’re placing a canonical tag on Page 1 for Page 2, you don’t have to place another one on Page 2. There is already a lot that a crawler has to process, don’t add excessive tags to confuse them.

• Near-duplicates:

Canonical tags are used for duplicates or similar web pages. For instance, you can have two product pages, but only with a currency difference, like one in GBP and one in USD.

However, be very cautious while placing a canonical tag because this may result in removing both pages from indexation. Additionally, out of rankings too.

Lastly, remember to keep a constant check over canonical tags. Ensure that they support your content rather than obstruct your SaaS SEO strategy.

d. Response Codes:

Response codes are responsible for demonstrating the state of communication between the server and the browser. In simpler terms, the browser requests access to the server of a website.

In return, the server responds with a 3-digit code—this 3-digit code signals how things are working. The browser then processes the code to understand the state of the response. The state of the response indicates the health of the website.

Using SEO tools, you can audit your SaaS SEO. These tools will provide you with an in-depth analysis of your response pages. Then, with the help of that, assess the results to look for redirects, broken links, and other crucial errors.

This way, you will ensure that the search engine crawlers can seamlessly and quickly crawl across your site. Consequently, you will witness improved rankings, visibility, and above all, organic traffic.

2. Pagination

Since 2019, Google has changed the way it indexes pages. Earlier, it would index pages using a command. This command indicated the last page to the next one. The commands were rel=” next” or rel= “ prev,” which were attached to the same pages and topics.

Hence, Google would only index the first page. However, now there has been a change in things. Google doesn’t handle pagination anymore. Instead, it treats each web page as an individual page.

This change has deemed on-page SEO even more crucial than ever. As Google still won’t take a grip on the fact that the web pages are a part of an even more extensive collection of web pages.

Hence, ensure that you are no longer using obsolete links. In addition, ensure that each web page has a solid SEO, such that it can stand alone.

3. Robots.txt

Robot.txt is a command text file. This file instructs crawlers on whether or not they can crawl a web page. You must ensure that you’re using this command accurately. If you’re not, then the crawlers may fail to index other elements, such as images, videos, or even JavaScript.

Oftentimes, the robot.txt commands are not written accurately. Therefore, some significant web pages may not get indexed. So, if you’re looking to hide a specific file or web page from the crawlers, use a noindex tag instead.

Another crucial element is monitoring. Someone accidentally blocked your entire website from indexation? Don’t worry; this stuff happens very often. However, this may cause you some heavy loss in the sense of rankings and eventually traffic.

This is why we recommend monitoring your website regularly. For which you can use any of the website monitoring services or tools available online. This way, you can stay on top of the availability of your website.

4. Sitemap

Regardless of your website size, you will need a sitemap. Even if you have a small website and think you don’t need one, still having one right one would be beneficial now and also for when you grow.

Essentially, a sitemap is what directs the search engine. It communicates to them which web page you wish to rank and exhibit on the search result page. It ensures that the pages you wish to show in the search result comply with all SaaS SEO strategies, ticking all boxes on the checklist.

5. Alt-text

Alt-texts are just descriptions and functions of the images that you publish on your website. Additionally, you have to state them in the website’s HTML code. They are often referred to as alt attributes, alternative texts, or alt descriptions.

Alt-texts serves two significant purposes:

• They describe images to the visually impaired

• They add relevance to your page. This is done through optimization of the alt-text copy.

But, if you want to prioritize optimizing images due to the website size, start with the main pages first. Optimizing and paying attention to the alt-texts also aid in getting your content ranked on the Google image search.

6. Meta Elements

The meta elements are the self-awareness of your website. Meta tags are placed within the codes of your website. You signal what this page is about to the search engine crawlers and the website as you place these codes. Meta elements include:

• Titles

• Descriptions

• Keywords

• Other tags

Meta elements may be different from a standard on-page SaaS SEO. This is because they go more profound and are even more meaningful to crawlers.

If you are looking to optimize your on-page technical SEO for SaaS, then you must include meta elements. This is as crucial as accurately formatted HTML headings, including H1, H2, H3, H4, etc.

This way, crawlers can easily understand the content of your website and what it is supposed to tell. Additionally, this is also vital information for improved rankings. If the crawlers can’t assess what your website is about, there’s no way that they will even begin the ranking process.

7. Loading Time

We’re hoping that losing a prospect is the last thing on your list. And if that is true, then you must get rid of slow-loading websites and web pages.

In this fast paced yet competitive era, everyone is looking for a quick fix, so no one is going to wait for your site or page to load. Instead, they’ll switch to a competitor.

On the other hand, search engines like Google and Bing consider loading time as another key factor in ranking websites for the search result page.

Today, in this mobile world, speed is in more demand. People love being served quickly and on the go. As per Google, as many as 53 percent of mobile users will exit pages if they don’t load within 3 seconds.

Additionally, since 2015, the primary Google users have been mobile users. This is an indication of how crucial mobile SEO has become. In addition, it is an essential requirement now to optimize websites for different devices, especially phones.

To ensure a seamless and quick loading time, you must ensure that elements such as videos, images, and other on-page factors are optimized. It’s worthless to have a website that looks very impressive but takes forever to load. The aesthetics will keep no one waiting.

8. Call-to-Actions

Call-to-actions are incredibly crucial. If a user logs on to your page but isn’t told what to do, then they may exit. Consequently, this will increase the bounce rate, in addition to impacting your rankings on the search result page.

CTAs are way beyond the ‘sign up’ or ‘free trial’ buttons, or even the ones that users would click on for conversion. They are also the guidelines through which you can drive users down the funnel. And finally, nurture and prepare them to actually ‘SIGN UP.’

Not just this, but also they fire up on-site time. This is a sign of helpful content for search engines like Google. And in turn, this will aid in improving site rankings and drive more organic traffic.

However, you must ensure appropriate CTAs. Appropriate CTAs must align with the purpose of your website, and must be accurately tagged, linked, and placed.

9. Schema Markup

As the name suggests, technical SEO for SaaS may sound very technical. However, in reality, it is actually about providing your users with an accurate value. And one strategy to improve your technical SEO for SaaS is by rich snippets or improving the search result descriptions.

We all googled our favorite actors, movies, or events. And as we did so, we must have clicked upon the one with a rating, a short description, a review, a relevant title, or any other information that appeals.

Additionally, being a SaaS website owner, you must have wondered about ranking for a rich snippet like these. Therefore, it is possible to do so with the help of schema markups.

Scheme markups will help you structure information for search result pages so that you can display the information and grasp the attention of a more significant number of users. Who will then have no choice but to click upon your website link.

For instance, have a look at the following snippets. Which one would you click on?

Most likely the last one, right? And why? This is because not only does it have an attractive title, but also 5-star ratings and a description in addition to that mouth-watering image of how your dinner is going to look like.

Conversely, snippet number 1 just gives you the name of the website as a title and a short and incomplete description while missing out on the image and ratings. Meanwhile, snippet number 2 may be a bit richer in detail as compared to the first one, yet it is still incomplete as compared to the third one.

Now that you’ve seen it for yourself try making subtle changes to your schema markup. Consequently, by doing so, you will witness an improved ranking and organic traffic flow.

Five Tools For SaaS Technical SEO.

Technical SEO for SaaS without site-saving tools can be pretty challenging. SEO tools will aid you in identifying and fixing issues that are hurdling your technical SEO for SaaS. These tools will enable you to sort out issues, in addition to helping you rank at the top of a search result page.

1. Screaming Frog – to perform SaaS technical SEO audit

2. Sitebulb – for SaaS technical SEO audit, but with better representation of results.

3. Copyscape – to solve plagiarism and duplicate content issues.

4. Google Tag Manager – to analyze the ROI, in addition to managing and analyzing tags.

5. Google Search Console – the all-in-one SEO tool. It has a large variety of functions and tools.

Wrapping Technical SEO For SaaS Up

Technical SEO for SaaS is not the same as mainstream SEO. Technical SEO aims for increased organic traffic, leading to increased conversions. All of this while following the sales lifecycle. Meanwhile, technical SEO for SaaS aims to nurture and generate leads.

A SaaS SEO strategy aims to provide users with a thorough yet long-lasting value. How is this possible? Through educational content that is long while building user trust. It’s about getting familiar with your users so that they can distinguish between how you do it and how the user does it differently.

Above all, this guide walked you through how you can even perform technical SEO for SaaS on your own. But if it seems a bit of a task for you, you can always reach out to us for guidance and assistance.