As a local HVAC business, you already need to stay on top of your SEO game to attract new clients within a limited area. Any mistake in this space can prove costly. For example, many website owners are unaware of how their login pages may be negatively impacting their site’s performance. Google has recently highlighted this issue, urging site owners to pay closer attention to it. According to experts, websites with customer portals, subscriptions, or similar content types need to be especially careful, as these elements can gradually harm search rankings. How? If multiple URLs lead users to the same login page, search engines may consider them as duplicate content. As a result, the login page could begin to rank higher than relevant service-related pages, directing potential customers to a dead end instead of providing the information they’re searching for.
Who can help you avoid these risks? A digital marketing agency is an option. You should trust only marketing and SEO specialists for their expertise and ability to resolve these issues. If your HVAC site’s ranking has decreased and you suspect this to be the reason, it would be better to approach professionals for assistance. Before that, let’s gather a basic understanding of the login page problem and how it can be fixed. It will allow you to discuss your concerns with the agency more openly.
The side effects of generic login pages on SEO
Suppose several URLs redirect users to the same login screen. In that case, Google’s crawlers confuse them as identical pages and index the login page as such. It will have a negative impact on your HVAC business, as users will not get access to helpful information related to your services. They will only see a form asking them to enter a username/password, which in turn will have an adverse impact on the conversion rate. It’s a major error, as your potential customers will not be able to see the important content. Your blog posts, service pages, and other essential details will remain hidden from them. Some people believe they can address this concern using robots.txt. Unfortunately, blocking private URLs in this manner can create a new set of SEO challenges. The blocked URLs can still surface in searches, and that too without descriptions or snippets. To be precise, the underlying issue remains the same.
Additionally, poorly crafted login pages can also pose security risks. They may expose personal data in search results. If you offer membership-based services, you need to be especially careful about this.
Ways to fix login page SEO issues
As hinted, you can rely only on a recognized marketing professional or team for this job. This SEO issue requires a multi-pronged approach to solve problems related to indexing and user experience. For example, they can insert noindex meta tags in the relevant spots to signal Google not to show them in search results without stopping the crawler from navigating the site structure. At the same time, they can create different landing pages to send logged-out users to relevant marketing pages dedicated to services, value propositions, and contact details for new users, etc. It will ensure they don’t land on the generic login screen. Similarly, they can also leverage features like paywall-structured data.
These are just examples of the problems a site can face and how a few techniques, such as these, can solve the issues. For concrete results, you need the guidance of a proper agency.
