Hello, I’m the software engineer and founder of https://headshotly.ai. I created this app using React.js, and we’ve gotten over 20k traffic mostly through word of mouth. Now, we want to focus more on SEO for consistent traffic.
I’ve gone through many posts in this forum and asked ChatGPT about whether client-side rendering or single-page apps can rank on Google. The answers vary. Some folks say Google can now index React.js sites well, while others think differently.
We’re a small team, and I worry that rewriting the app in Next.js would take a lot of time. Can you suggest if we should be really concerned about SEO for our landing page and other subpages? Should we think about moving to Next.js, or are there other options?
Google can indeed render client-side sites now, but poor performance can hurt your ranking. Test your site with Lighthouse to see how you score. Aim for everything to be green. It gives you tips on what to improve.
@Vin
Good point. It’s probably better to say it’s much less likely that a fully client-side rendered site will perform well enough to compete. I agree this isn’t a winning strategy.
Luca said:
Google can index either approach just fine. They won’t give you endless rendering time, and slow page speeds can hurt you.
Thanks for that info! It’s good to know Google can index both apps. But I worry about the render budget and page responsiveness. How can I help my React.js app not exceed Google’s render budget while staying SEO-friendly without completely moving to another framework?
I’ve worked on performance by optimizing lazy loading and reducing bundle sizes. Do you think that’s enough, or should I look into other tools or methods to improve indexing and responsiveness?
Thank you! Users love it so much that they leave long feedback and even make videos for us. That’s why I want to make it really SEO-friendly because it is a great product.