Search Engine Crawling Basics
Learning Objectives
- Understand how search engines discover and read your website
- Learn why clear site structure matters for getting found online
- Recognise common crawling problems that hurt your visibility
- Apply simple fixes to help search engines navigate your site better
Introduction
Search engines need to find and read your website before they can show it to people searching online. This process is called crawling, and it's the first step in getting your site to appear in search results.
Think of search engine bots as visitors who can't see your site the same way humans do. They follow links, read text, and try to understand what each page is about. If they can't navigate your site easily or find important content, your pages might never appear when people search for what you offer.
This chapter shows you exactly how crawling works and what you can do to make sure search engines can find and understand your content properly.
Lessons
What Search Engine Crawling Actually Does
Search engines use automated programs called bots or crawlers to visit websites. Here's what happens:
Step 1: Bots start with websites they already know about
Step 2: They follow every link they find on those pages
Step 3: When they discover your site, they read your content and note what each page covers
Step 4: They store this information to use when someone searches for related topics
The crawler reads your page titles, headings, text, and image descriptions. It also checks how your pages link to each other and whether your site loads quickly.
If a bot can't reach a page or struggles to understand what it's about, that page probably won't show up in search results.
Why Site Structure Makes or Breaks Crawling
Your site's structure directly affects whether search engines can find all your important content. A well-organised site helps bots discover every page you want people to find.
Good structure looks like this:
- Important pages are linked from your main navigation
- Related content connects to each other through internal links
- Page URLs follow a logical pattern (like yoursite.com/services/web-design)
- You can get from your homepage to any other page in 3 clicks or less
Poor structure creates problems:
- Orphaned pages that aren't linked from anywhere else
- Confusing navigation that dead-ends
- Important content buried too deep in your site hierarchy
This is the bit most people miss: search engines discover pages by following links. If there's no link path to a page, bots might never find it.
Common Crawling Problems and Quick Fixes
Problem 1: Broken internal links
Check your site regularly for links that lead nowhere. Broken links frustrate both users and search engine bots.
Problem 2: Slow loading pages
Bots have limited time to spend on your site. If pages take too long to load, they might move on before reading everything.
Problem 3: Duplicate content
Having the same content on multiple pages confuses search engines about which version to show in results.
Problem 4: Missing or poor page titles
Every page needs a unique, descriptive title that tells both users and bots what the page covers.
Quick fixes you can implement:
- Run through your main navigation to check all links work
- Compress large images that slow down page loading
- Write unique titles and descriptions for each page
- Link related pages to each other within your content
Setting Up Your Site Architecture for Better Crawling
Start with your homepage as the foundation. This page should link to your most important sections, and those sections should link to more specific pages.
Step 1: Map out your main content categories
Step 2: Create clear navigation menus that reflect these categories
Step 3: Add internal links within your content to connect related topics
Step 4: Build a footer menu for important pages that don't fit in your main navigation
For Squarespace sites specifically, use the built-in SEO panel for each page. Add your page title, description, and URL slug here. The platform automatically generates a sitemap that helps search engines understand your site structure.
Remember to keep your navigation simple. If you're confused about where something belongs, search engines probably will be too.
Practice
Take 15 minutes to review your current website:
- Start from your homepage and try to reach every important page using only your navigation menus
- Note any pages that seem hard to find or require too many clicks
- Check that your main services or content areas are clearly represented in your navigation
- Look for any broken links or pages that load slowly
Write down three specific improvements you could make to help both visitors and search engines navigate your site more easily.
FAQs
How often do search engines crawl my website?
This depends on how often you update content and how established your site is. New sites might be crawled every few weeks, while frequently updated sites could be crawled daily. Adding fresh content regularly encourages more frequent crawling.
Can I see if search engines are finding all my pages?
Yes, Google Search Console shows you which pages Google has found and indexed. It also alerts you to any crawling problems. This free tool is essential for monitoring your site's search engine visibility.
Do search engines crawl every page on my website?
Not necessarily. Bots focus on pages they can easily find and that seem valuable to users. Pages with no internal links, thin content, or technical problems might be skipped.
Will search engines automatically find new pages I create?
Eventually, yes, but you can speed this up by linking to new pages from existing content and submitting your updated sitemap through Google Search Console.
Jargon Buster
Bot/Crawler: Automated programs that visit websites to read and catalogue content for search engines
Indexing: The process of storing and organising information about web pages so they can appear in search results
Internal linking: Links from one page on your site to another page on the same site
Sitemap: A file that lists all the pages on your website, helping search engines find and understand your content
URL slug: The part of a web address that comes after your domain name, like /about-us or /services/web-design
Wrap-up
Search engine crawling is the foundation of getting found online. When bots can easily navigate your site and understand your content, your pages have a much better chance of appearing in search results.
Focus on creating clear navigation, linking your pages together logically, and making sure every important page can be reached from your homepage. These simple changes make a big difference to how search engines see and rank your site.
The next chapter covers how to choose and use keywords effectively, building on the solid foundation you've created with good site structure.
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