The 404 error. What is it and how can you solve it within your website?

The Internet consists of a great jumble of web pages and links, and in addition to being a lot of fun, this can sometimes cause problems. With many different types of error messages, the 404 error is perhaps the most common. Should this error message occur within your WordPress website, of course you would like to know why it happens, how to detect it and how to resolve it. I’ll help you out!

What is “404 Not Found?

The term actually says it all: the server indicates that it cannot find the requested page. Besides the fact that this can cause a negative user experience, as a website owner you obviously want to prevent this from happening and it can also impact your SEO. Of course, before you can fix the problem, you need to be able to find out on which pages the 404 error occurs.

How do you track the 404 pages/links?

Fortunately, there are plenty of tools these days that can help you figure out which pages or links are going wrong. Here I have some examples for you:

1. Google Search Console – The most widely used tool is Google Search Console. Once you have your website installed in the tool, the dashboard gives you a handy overview of pages that have been registered by Google as not found.
2. SEO plugins for WordPress – Many of the major SEO tools for WordPress have an integrated dashboard with 404 notifications. For example, the popular Rank Math SEO plugin has a handy listing of 404 pages that people have encountered on your website.
3. Broken Link Checker Plugin – You can install this plugin right into your WordPress environment and it checks your website for broken links. Useful for prevention, rather than cure.
4. Redirection Plugin – This plugin not only keeps track of 404-errors, but also allows you to set up redirects from within the WordPress admin.

Different causes of 404s within your WordPress website?

I regularly see 404 error messages passing by customers. However, there is no single cause for this, but can be due to several reasons. Here are some of the most common causes of 404 errors:

1. Pages have been moved or deleted – If you delete a page and do not set a redirect, you will get a 404 when people try to visit it. So make sure you set your redirect in an appropriate place.
2. Typos in the URL – The difference between /over-ons/ and /overons/ is small, but big enough for a 404 error. This can happen when you set a link yourself, as well as when a visitor tries to enter the URL themselves.
3. Links are outdated – Have you created new pages in your website, or completely overhauled a blog and changed the slug? Then you may just be referring to old links somewhere that give a 404.
4. Problems in your installation – The problem with 404-errors can also be deeper. For example, if there is a problem with your WordPress installation in the permalinks, or even at the server level.

How do you solve it?

Discovering and analyzing your 404-errors is obviously a first step, but after that, you’ll want to fix them. I often approach it as follows:

• Re-save Permalinks – When technical changes have been made, it may help to re-save your website’s permalink structure. This structure determines how WordPress itself builds its links. You do this by going to your WordPress settings, opening the Permalinks menu and clicking ‘Save Changes’ there – without modifying anything.
• WPML re-save – Even a fresh installation of translation plugin WPML can sometimes cause problems in the link structure, causing 404 error messages. In that case, go to WPML -> Languages -> Language URL format and press ‘Save’ there.
• Setting 301 redirects – Use the aforementioned Redirection Plugin for this purpose. You can find and install this plugin at ‘Plugins’. After that, you can find the plugin at ‘Tools’.
• Use correct URLs – Regularly check your internal links and make sure they go to the correct page.
• Check external links – Should other websites still use incorrect or old links towards your website, contact the administrators of these websites and ask them to adjust it. It is good to send the correct link along.

Building your own 404 page with WordPress?

To make sure that your visitors don’t immediately walk away from a 404 error, you can show them a homemade 404 page. This is important for a nice user experience. As with almost everything else, there is a plugin for this within WordPress. Personally, I like to use SeedProd, which allows you to set up useful 404 pages even in the free version.

When setting up this page, I always recommend including a few things on this page. Consider a clear button to return to the home page, but a search bar and latest articles can also be useful. And do you want to tackle errors quickly? Then make sure to include contact information, so the visitor can contact you immediately to report the error.

Of course, it also helps to top it off with sharp text and a cute picture – a wink to make the customer experience a little better anyway. But be sure to stay close to your own brand.

How do you set up your own 404 page?

• Go to your WordPress environment;
• Find a 404 page plugin under “Plugins,” such as SeedProd;
• Install and activate the plugin;
• Create a new 404 page via the plugin;
• Add the content you want on the page;
• Once your page is satisfactory, publish it;
• In the plugin’s settings, check if the page is set as a 404 page;
• Save the changes and test if the page displays correctly;

Need help? Let us know!

Are you struggling and want to know more about troubleshooting errors within your website? Or do you need advice on setting up your own 404 page? Then get in touch – I’m happy to help!