Checklist - what do you have to remember when performing an SEO audit?
Are you preparing for an SEO audit yourself? Are you aware that you have a long list of steps and parameters to check? We have decided to make this task a bit easier for you and have gathered in one place all the most important elements that you need to remember when performing an SEO audit. A handy checklist will not let you forget about any of them!
Checklist - valuable help in SEO audit
It is not difficult to forget about one or another element that requires checking during SEO analysis in numerous statistics and activities. A checklist that includes all the most important parameters may be helpful for you - only then will it be accurate. We have divided the activities into thematic groups, thanks to which it will be easier for you to find the issue you are interested in.
Basic website data - what should your checklist contain?
Start the audit by checking the indexation of pages belonging to your website. Enter the command site: nazwa_strony.pl in Google. Check how many pages were "bounced" by the search engine and whether the home page is in the first position in the search results. See also search using the brand phrase (using your company name). You may be subject to a penalty if the page is missing from the search results. Also, check that the site content appears in the cache and that internal linking is included.
Checklist - website content and language versions
Check if there is any text on the page. It will allow Google robots to find out about its subject. If not, create even a small paragraph of several hundred characters. Place content - text or images - on landing pages. If you are already preparing texts, make them understandable for the user and specific. Do not overdo the ads in relation to the content, when there is too much of them, Google will impose a penalty on you and the website will be less readable for the user. Include headlines and subheadings in your content - let them describe the content of the page. Are the texts on the website pictures and the layout clear? If not, customize the text more to the user.
If your site has different language versions, keep them in a separate directory or in a subdomain. Make sure your country-specific pages have separate URLs. Note the language versions of the page or the lack of them in the Google webmaster tool. Take care of details on pages targeted at other countries - prepare unique content, check if the website uses the currency of a given country (on pages with sales functions).
Keywords and external links - an important element of the checklist
Your checklist should also check the consistency of keywords with the subject of the content on the page. If it is not there, be sure to correct it as you may be considered a spammer. Check if your pages rank for different keywords. Pay attention that outbound links are properly labeled. Do not create so-called link farm.
Duplicate content - watch out for that!
Pay attention to whether each product or subpage has a different description. If the URL is dynamic, make it canonical. Check if the same descriptions appear on the internet as yours - if so, please report it to Google. Try to create unique content for each page and avoid duplication within the website. Do subdomains not duplicate the content on the main site? Mark the "print", "create PDF" buttons with rel = "nofollow".
On-site optimization and mobile version of the website
Pay attention to the tag - the title of the page should be unique, if possible it should contain at least one keyword, not longer than 60 characters.
You can also include your company name. Check that the description tag accurately describes the page and its subject. Are the keywords in the description? Optimize your website addresses for SEO. Create alternate descriptions for the graphics on your site. Put your keyword in h1 heading.
Is the website correctly displayed on mobile devices? Does it have a mobile version - if not, be sure to change it.
Checklist - page loading speed
Check your page loading speed with PageSpeed Insights. Follow the instructions there. Optimize your images - reduce their weight by compressing. Minimize the use of Javascript. Check if the hosting is sufficient for the needs of your websites. If you don't think so, change your offer as soon as possible.
Indexation, redirects, website structure
Your checklist should also include checking the robots.txt file - are there any unnecessary restrictions for robots - noindex or nofollow? Does internal linking work properly on your site? Check with the help of add-ons such as User Agent Switcher, how your website looks to Google robots - from this perspective, capture the elements that need to be changed. Are your site pages producing 4xx errors - if this is not intentional, correct it. Have you added a sitemap to Google Search Console or placed it in a robots.txt file? If not, add it. Mark landing pages with the noindex attribute.
Is the vertical (hierarchical - from the home page to subcategories or product pages) and horizontal (at the same level, e.g. category) structure of your website maintained? Eliminate links that lead to pages that no longer exist on your site.
Check if 301 redirect is working properly. Replace them with other redirections on the site, eg 302 or 307. Make sure that the redirections are not "chain" - they do not go through several addresses before the robot reaches the right page. Have the canonical addresses of the parties been properly established?
We have introduced you to the most important aspects that you need to pay attention to when conducting an SEO audit. Remember that even the most detailed checklist will sometimes not replace entrusting you with this task to a specialist. However, if your website is not very extensive, you can successfully undertake SEO analysis yourself, using the necessary tools available on the web. Good luck!
