SEO audit is an important process to ensure that the website performance remains optimal in organic search results. Through SEO audit, website owners can identify various technical issues, content, and backlinks that can affect rankings in search engines.
With the help of various tools such as Google Search Console, Ahrefs, and PageSpeed Insights, SEO audits allow you to analyze aspects such as website speed, core web vitals, page indexation, and on-page and off-page SEO strategies.
On this occasion, we will explain the steps to conduct an SEO audit along with the reasons why it is important for a website and when is the best time to do it.
What is an SEO Audit?
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| What is an SEO Audit? |
An SEO audit is a comprehensive evaluation process of various aspects of a website that affect its performance in search engines. This process aims to identify opportunities for improvement that can be made so that the website is more optimal in organic search results.
An SEO audit involves analyzing on-page elements, website speed, backlink profiles, and technical issues that affect website performance. There are several main components that are usually checked in an SEO audit, namely:
- On-page SEO: Checking page elements such as meta descriptions, titles, headings, image alt text, internal links, and text structure so that they can be understood by search engines
- Off-page SEO: Reviewing external factors that affect the website, especially backlinks that lead to the website
- Technical SEO: Covers technical aspects such as indexability, crawlability, website architecture, locality, and responsiveness to mobile devices. The focus is on fixing problems that hinder the crawling and indexing process by Google bots
- Local SEO: Focuses on improving website rankings in local search results
How Important is an SEO Audit for a Website?
An SEO audit is very important because it provides in-depth insight into the performance of a website in search engines and helps identify problems that need to be addressed immediately. This process allows website owners to find opportunities to increase online visibility and get more organic traffic.
The benefits of performing an SEO audit include:
- Ensuring that your website follows the best SEO practices recommended by search engines
- Finding opportunities to improve your online presence
- Identifying and fixing issues that may be negatively impacting your search rankings
- Adjusting your content marketing strategy and link building approach for long-term success
When Should You Perform an SEO Audit?
An SEO audit should not be considered a one-time task. Instead, they should be performed periodically, ideally every three to six months, or when certain signs of a website performance problem appear.
Some of these signs include:
- A sudden drop in organic traffic
- A higher than usual bounce rate
- A decrease in conversion rates
- A drop in Google rankings
If any of these issues are present and you haven’t performed an SEO audit in the past six months, now is a good time to do one.
How to do SEO audit?
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| How to do SEO audit? |
To perform an SEO audit, there are several steps you should take, each of which plays an important role in the SEO Audit process.
1. Website audit with tools
The first step in an SEO audit is choosing the right tool to analyze various aspects of your website. There are many website audit tools that you can use, from free to paid.
Some recommended SEO tools that can be used include:
- Google Search Console: Track search performance and monitor website issues
- Ahrefs Site Audit: Analyze over 140 technical and on-page SEO aspects
- PageSpeed Insights: Evaluate website speed on desktop and mobile devices
2. Check organic traffic
Check organic traffic to see website traffic trends from organic search results. A significant decrease in traffic can be an indication that there is a problem with the website.
You can use the Google Analytics or Organic Research Tool to monitor the number of visits, keyword positions, and changes in page performance in search results (SERP). If there is an unusual decrease in traffic, also check if there is a problem with the manual action in Google Search Console that may have an impact on the visibility of the website in search results.
3. Check for indexing issues
Indexing is the process by which Google adds a website page to their database. If a page isn’t indexed, it won’t show up in search results. Use Google Search Console or Site Audit to check for indexability issues.
Some common reasons why a page isn’t indexed include:
- Pages with redirects
- Pages with noindex tags
- Alternate URLs with canonical tags
4. Look for technical SEO issues
Technical SEO includes elements like website structure, page speed, crawlability, and indexability. Use tools like Ahrefs Site Audit or Screaming Frog to detect technical issues like:
- Broken links
- Crawl errors
- Duplicate content
5. Look for duplicate versions of your website
Make sure there’s only one version of your website that Google is indexing. Many websites have multiple versions (for example, http://www.yoursite.com, http://yoursite.com, and https://yoursite.com) which can cause duplicate content issues.
Enter all versions of your website URL into a browser to make sure they point to the desired primary version, such as https://yoursite.com. If different versions are accessible, use 301 redirects to direct all other versions to the primary version of your website.
6. Check for mobile-friendly issues
Make sure your website is mobile-friendly because Google uses mobile-first indexing. Use tools like the Google Mobile-Friendly Test or Site Audit to detect issues related to the appearance and functionality of your website on mobile devices.
If there are issues such as text that is too small or elements that are difficult to click, fix them to ensure your website provides an optimal user experience on mobile devices.
7. Analyze your website loading speed
Page loading speed is an important factor for Google rankings and user experience. Use PageSpeed Insights to measure page speed and find areas for improvement, such as:
- Optimizing images
- Modifying CSS and JavaScript
- Reducing server response time
8. Core web vitals analysis
Core web vitals are metrics that measure the user experience on a website page, you can use this feature in Google Search Console.
The three main metrics to analyze are:
- Largest Contentful Paint (LCP): Loading time for the main content on the page
- Interaction to Next Paint (INP): Page response time to user interaction
- Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS): Unexpected layout changes during page load
9. Internal link analysis
Internal links help search engines understand the structure of a website and distribute authority (PageRank) to important pages.
Use tools like Site Audit to identify issues like:
- Important pages that don't get enough internal links
- Pages with too many irrelevant links
10. Find keywords that aren't on your website
Conduct a keyword gap analysis using tools like Keyword Gap Tool, SEMrush, or Ahref to find keywords that your competitors are using but your website isn't utilizing. Identify these opportunities and create new content that targets those keywords to expand your organic reach.
11. Conduct an on-page audit
On-page SEO includes elements such as meta descriptions, titles, headers, and keyword usage on the page. Use On Page SEO Checker to analyze these elements and get recommendations for improvements such as:
- Adding relevant keywords
- Better use of headings
- Improving meta descriptions and title tags
12. Check backlink performance
Backlinks are one of the main determining factors in SEO. Use Ahrefs Site Explorer or Backlink Gap Tool to analyze your website’s backlink profile and compare it to your competitors.
Find lost backlinks and new opportunities to get links from high-quality domains. If there are backlinks from websites that are irrelevant or potentially harmful, consider removing them or using the disavow feature in Google Search Console.
Conclusion
A good SEO audit will give a good impression to both the company and the client. It can be said that this practice needs to be done optimally so that the results can attract clients or companies. That was the explanation of what an SEO audit is and how to do a complete SEO audit. An SEO audit provides in-depth insight into website performance and areas that need improvement.
By using the right tools and techniques, this audit can improve organic visibility, website speed, and user experience, which ultimately has a positive impact on website rankings in search engines.