This question is not bound to a particular web technology. If I load a page that is basically a blank shell and on page load I start getting all the content from the server with ajax requests, won't the page appear as a contentless page to crawlers like Google's?
I've seen that an increasing number of pages do this, basically they just load up super fast with only a "Loading" indicator and then they gradually assemble the content. How does this work with SEO?
Thanks.
If your page starts with just a "loading" screen, then you may be in trouble. I don't think all search engines support javascript. Google states they do but Its best not to depend on it.
Also, your method requires users to make a minimum of two requests to the server just to receive some useful content. This will be a problem if your pages are visited very frequently because some users might feel like they may be stuck on the loading screen forever while the server is trying hard to fulfill the second request to other users.
To see what I mean visually, go to http://www.webpagetest.org/ and run your page through it and see how other web browsers load it.
If you really have to have some sort of loading indicator, try to do it without requiring another request, otherwise search engines will think your site is slow.
For example, make text on the screen that shows the word "loading" and use javascript to detect when time-consuming components like large images have been loaded. and make the word "loading" disappear after. At least that method will appear faster and people can still see content while other content is loading, and there will be one less server trip required.
Also, run your page with google's page-speed insights to see what they think as well.
No, Google is capable of executing Javascript and it will see your content.
