An SEO audit evaluates how well your website is optimized for search engines by identifying errors that prevent it from ranking and highlighting opportunities to gain more visibility. So, what is included in an SEO audit?
In this article:
- Content
- Keyword Research
- Page Structure
- Indexing & Crawlability
- User Experience
- Backlink Profile
- Competitor Analysis
Read on to learn more about what aspects are included in an SEO audit.
Source: Canva
Content Audit
A content audit is a key task that should be carried out at the start of any SEO campaign.
As part of a content audit, the written copy on your website will be analyzed to assess its performance. Typically, the categories involved in a content audit include:
Content
Source: Canva
To have a positive impact on SEO, there needs to be a substantial amount of content on all of the key pages on your website. This allows you to include important SEO and Google ranking factors such as:
- Keywords
- Relevant and useful content for readers
Additionally, as you may already know, duplicate content is harmful to SEO for several reasons.
Most importantly, it confuses search engines, forcing them to choose which version of the content should rank higher. Using the same content as another website adds little value to SEO and user experience.
Keyword Research
Source: Freepik
The keyword section of the content audit is another very important section.
This stage will give you insight into how your keywords are currently being used and any changes that need to be made.
Our favorite tool for keyword research is Semrush. This all-in-one toolset provides a comprehensive look at your keyword rankings and site performance.
Having a great SEO toolkit is essential for every marketer looking to boost rankings. The best rank-tracking tools will allow you to keep a close eye on low-hanging fruit and make the most of your SEO efforts.
Page Structure
This stage of the content audit will inform some of the high-priority tasks you'll conduct in the initial stages of your campaign. Functions in this category include, but are not limited to:
- Optimizing title tags and meta descriptions
- Ensuring key pages have H1s that align with their offering
- Tagging subheadings appropriately (H2s or lower)
- Checking for unnecessary or excessive header tags
- Ensuring listed content is numbered or bulleted
- Adding FAQs to relevant pages
Source: Canva
Technical SEO Audit
In addition to a content audit, a technical SEO audit helps a Search Engine Optimiser, a website owner, or any other involved parties understand where a website is failing or succeeding.
Once the technical audit is complete, an SEO professional can prioritize which areas of the website to focus on first.
Gaukhar Murzagaliyeva
Indexing & Crawlability
If your pages are not indexed in Google’s database, Google won’t be able to rank them. To see whether your pages have been indexed, it's best to check for issues directly in Google Search Console.
Whilst auditing for indexing issues, an SEO professional will identify any obvious problems with how the site and web pages are indexed and presented in Google’s results. They will look for:
- Previous bad SEO practices that may be harming the site
- Issues that prevent desired pages from ranking
- Large numbers of low-value pages being indexed
A crawler (e.g., Googlebot) scours the web by ‘crawling’ from page to page via internal and external links. It’s crucial that search engines can effectively crawl key pages and all website resources to provide the clearest picture of what the site offers.
User Experience
Source: Canva
Google’s algorithm has consistently taken user experience into consideration when determining rankings. User experience improves organic search marketing performance, helping websites rank well on SERPs.
So, what factors should you consider when evaluating your site's user-friendliness?
- Manual Actions — If your site violates any of Google’s spam policies, it may receive a manual action that lowers your rankings until it is resolved.
- Mobile Friendliness — It’s vital that your site is mobile-friendly. Mobile friendliness has been a ranking factor since 2015 and is one of the main page experience signals for Google.
- Site Speed — Data shows that slower pages lead to higher bounce rates.
- Core Web Vitals — In 2020, Google introduced Core Web Vitals to measure key user experience metrics. These can be reviewed in the “Core Web Vitals” section of Google Search Console.
Backlink Profile
Source: Freepik
When it comes to SEO, backlinks can improve your rankings because search engines view the quality and quantity of the links as votes of confidence from other websites.
Essentially, your site can rank higher if you gain a good number of quality backlinks.
You can use the “Backlink Gap” tool on Semrush to find missed backlink opportunities. Enter your domain and up to four competitors' domains, and the tool will show domains linking to your competitors but not to you.
Competitor Analysis
Source: Canva
In addition to the content and technical aspects mentioned above, a good SEO audit should also help you see where you stand relative to your competitors.
A great way to do this is to use the “Domain Overview” on Semrush. This tool provides a clear comparison of key metrics across domains, helping you identify gaps and opportunities.
Focus on metrics such as:
- Authority Score — Overall domain quality (1–100)
- Organic Traffic — How much organic traffic the domain receives
- Organic Keywords — How many keywords the domain ranks for
- Referring Domains — How many different domains link to it
By conducting a competitor analysis, you can see which keywords your competitors target. Using Semrush’s Keyword Gap tool, enter your domain and up to four competitor domains. The results will reveal hidden keyword opportunities you may not have considered.
Conclusion
To wrap up, we cannot stress enough the importance of SEO audits. Regular audits will give you insights into your website’s overall performance and keyword rankings.
By following and implementing these content and technical best practices, you can ensure your website is consistently optimized for SEO.
