Fixing Crawl Errors & Schema — 3x Consultation Requests
A law firm's website was losing rankings due to crawl errors, broken links, and missing E-E-A-T signals. Fixed in 5 weeks.
Overview
Sterling Law Group is a personal injury firm in Atlanta. Their website had good content and a decent backlink profile, but it was held back by technical issues: 34 crawl errors, 18 broken internal links, no schema markup, and missing E-E-A-T signals. Google couldn't properly crawl or understand the site, so despite having quality content, rankings were stuck. I was hired to fix the technical foundation and implement the structured data needed for a legal website.
The Challenge
34 Crawl Errors in GSC
Google Search Console showed 34 crawl errors: 12 soft 404s, 8 server errors, and 14 redirect chains. Google was wasting crawl budget on broken URLs instead of indexing practice area pages.
18 Broken Internal Links
Pages linked to URLs that no longer existed. Visitors hitting broken links would bounce, and Google's crawler would waste time following dead-end links.
No Schema Markup
Zero structured data. For a law firm, LegalBusiness schema, attorney profiles with proper markup, and FAQ schema are critical for Google to understand the firm's expertise and authority.
Strategy
I ran a comprehensive technical audit: Screaming Frog crawl (found 34 errors, 18 broken links), GSC coverage report analysis, and a content/structure review. The key finding: the site's technical issues were actively preventing Google from understanding and ranking quality content. The content was good enough to rank, but the technical foundation was like a cracked foundation under a well-built house. I prioritized: crawl error fixes first (immediate impact on indexation), then broken links, then schema and E-E-A-T (longer-term authority signals).
Research & Audit
Full technical, content, and competitor analysis to identify gaps.
UX Structure & Design
Information architecture, wireframes, and visual direction.
Build & SEO
WordPress/Elementor build with SEO-ready structure from day one.
Launch & Optimize
Testing, speed validation, and conversion optimization.
What We Built
Crawl Error Resolution
Fixed all 34 crawl errors: redirected 12 soft 404s to correct URLs, resolved 8 server errors (permission issues), and fixed 14 redirect chains (simplified to single-hop redirects).
- 12 soft 404s redirected
- 8 server errors resolved
- 14 redirect chains simplified
- 0 crawl errors remaining
Broken Link Repair
Found and fixed all 18 broken internal links. Updated URLs, added proper 301 redirects where pages had moved, and removed links to deleted pages.
Schema Markup Implementation
Implemented LegalBusiness schema (with attorney info, practice areas, and location), Person schema for each attorney bio page (with credentials, bar admissions, and education), FAQPage schema for practice area FAQs, and BreadcrumbList schema. All validated via Rich Results Test.
- LegalBusiness schema
- Person schema for attorney bios
- FAQPage schema for practice areas
- BreadcrumbList schema
E-E-A-T Content Structure
Built attorney bio pages with: education, bar admissions, notable cases, publications, and professional associations. Added a verdicts/settlements page. Each practice area page now references the relevant attorney's expertise.
Internal Linking Restructure
Restructured internal linking: homepage → practice areas → attorney bios → case results → contact. Created a logical flow that distributes authority and helps Google understand the site's structure.
Before & After
0 errors
0 broken links
Full LegalBusiness + FAQ
+165% growth
Results
Crawl Health
0 crawl errors (from 34). 0 broken internal links (from 18). 100% of pages indexed. Google now crawls the site efficiently without wasting budget on broken URLs.
Search Visibility
Organic impressions increased 165% within 5 weeks. The site now appears for practice area keywords that were previously stuck on page 3-4.
Consultations
Consultation requests tripled (3x) in 45 days. The technical fixes unblocked existing content that was good enough to rank but couldn't due to crawl and indexing barriers.
Schema Validation
All schema validated via Google Rich Results Test. LegalBusiness and FAQ schema eligible for rich results in search.
Client Feedback
"The ROI on this was insane. We went from position #8 to #1 in the Map Pack in 45 days and our consultation requests tripled immediately."
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