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Today we are going to discuss the 7-Step SEO Audit Checklist for 2023. We hope you find it helpful and if you would like to start a project with Matchbox Design Group, contact us today.
Doing an SEO audit on a regular basis can help enhance your standing in Google search results.
The process of optimizing your website begins with a single audit. It is a necessary step for every digital marketer, SEO professional, or website owner to do in order to enhance their positions on search engine results pages and generate more organic visitors.
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We can assist you with increasing your visibility and exposure in the digital economy. We’ve highlighted the steps you should take when performing a full SEO audit on your website.
What Exactly Is An SEO Audit?
Before we go into the best SEO audit checklist, let’s start with the basics and define an audit.
An SEO audit is a procedure that examines how well your website follows proper SEO strategies. It is the first stage in developing a quantifiable implementation strategy. The audit seeks to identify as many fundamental flaws affecting organic search performance as possible. The following are some of the flaws that an SEO audit tool might reveal:
An audit is a standard activity that should be performed on a regular basis. It’s a website wellness check.
- Technical SEO Issues
- User-experience Issues
- On-page SEO issues
- Website Structure Issues
- Potential Off-site Problems
How Important Are SEO Audits?
While it’s easy to pass off an inspection of your site, you have to understand that algorithms in search engines are very strict in ranking links for search results. When you’re throwing your link out there, you have to comply with SEO conditions to ensure you’re reaching the top search results spots.
With SEO audits, you can figure out which aspect of your site limits your performance in search rankings. That way, you can apply the necessary changes and increase your chances of landing on the top links. And if you’re really thorough, you can also make sure that your changes improve your SEO rankings in the long run.
Here Are Some Of The Benefits Of SEO Audits:
1. Adapting To Search Engine Algorithms
Among search engines, Google is the most widely used one. And if you’re not aware, Google constantly changes its algorithms in ranking links for search results. If you don’t constantly perform SEO audits, you might miss out on algorithm updates that could potentially kick your link off search results.
By carrying out SEO audits at regular intervals, you can constantly match Google’s (and other search engines’) algorithm and make the necessary tweaks to your site.
2. Optimizing Content For SEO
Content is king in the digital realm. With SEO audits, you can determine which elements you should use for your site’s content. Adding the right meta tags, using the most popular keywords, and properly linking to and from other sites are only some of the advantages you can get from SEO audits.
3. Scanning Your Competitors
While SEO audits typically target your site and its weak points, they can also be used to audit your competitors. By keeping tabs on your industry rivals, you can figure out how to tweak your platform and come out on top. With SEO audits, you can gain a competitive edge and garner a larger market share.
Full SEO Audit Form
Now that you understand what a technical SEO audit is and why it’s important for your website, it’s time to learn how to conduct one. We’ve created a checklist of all the procedures to act as your SEO audit template.
As sourced from an expert team specializing in Denver SEO, (friends of our St. Louis SEO) this is our comprehensive SEO audit checklist:
1. Examine Your Website To See If It Is Mobile-Friendly
The importance of mobile SEO has never been greater. For starters, mobile devices account for 60% of all searches. Second, Google began to employ its Mobile-First Algorithm. It implies that Google is now using your mobile site for both desktop and mobile searches.
So, how can you know whether or not your website is mobile-friendly? Make use of Google’s Mobile-Friendly Testing Tool. Put your website into the tool to discover if Google has taken it into account.
2. Check To See Whether Google Has Indexed A Version Of Your Website
It is feasible for Google to index several versions. Yep, you read that correctly. Here are four distinct versions of the same website:
These URLs may appear identical to you and me. But, according to Google, they are not the same. If you do not properly redirect these URLs, Google will regard them as independent websites.
It is simple to repair. On your browser, enter the four versions you desire. These should all go to the same website. Don’t be concerned if the web version isn’t redirecting properly. Use a 301 redirect to route it to the preferred version.
3. Increase The Speed With Which Pages Load
Google has stated for years that your site’s loading speed is a ranking factor. They recently introduced a new version that emphasizes the need of speed even more. Here are some pointers to help your website load quickly:
Clear up the HTML code on your website. PageSpeed Insights can assist you in identifying any problems with your code. You should examine more than just your homepage. Check popular pages as well, such as blog articles, service pages, or category pages.
Do a speed test. This test runs your complete website and finds any bottlenecks that cause your web pages to load slowly. You may utilize excellent programs such as WebPageTest or GTMetrix.
Your website’s photos should be crunched. Big graphics might slow down the pace of your website. This is why using a program like Kraken to compress them is suggested.
4. Identify And Remove Unnecessary Pages
site: as well as a Google connection to your website (for example, site:abc.com). The number of pages indexed by Google will be displayed in the results. If the result is higher than you expected, you are not alone.
Some website owners have 50% to 75% more indexed pages than they anticipated. It turns out that removing these unnecessary sites might result in increased organic traffic.
5. Identify And Correct Indexing Issues
This item on our SEO audit checklist requires you to find websites that Google does not index. Go to the Google Search Console. You’ll see a list of pages that it can’t index.
6. Examine Your Organic Traffic
Determine how much organic traffic your site receives. To find out, go to Google Analytics. This tool will allow you to see how many individuals visited your website from search engines in the last month.
If your organic traffic is falling or stagnant, don’t get too fired up. The purpose of this phase of our SEO audit checklist is simply to create benchmarks. Things should improve as you finish the audit.
7. Improve Your On-Page SEO
On-page SEO is unquestionably important. You most likely do not have time to optimize every page of your website. You don’t have to, thankfully. Instead, consider the following options:
Determine the five most important pages. They can be pages that target a certain keyword or are receiving less traffic than they did previously.
These pages should be optimized using the best on-page SEO methods, such as inserting keywords in the title tag or in the first 100 words.
Key Takeaways Of Our 7-Step SEO Audit Checklist
An SEO audit isn’t just another boring step in digital marketing. It’s a must-do process that will let you head in the right direction. Doing an SEO audit is critical for improving your search results rankings and maintaining your spot over the long run.
If you want to make sure that you’re getting the best SEO treatment and optimization, consider seeking the help of expert SEO companies that can help you make use of the greatest and most up-to-date SEO audit tools.
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