Before diving into a full technical SEO audit, it’s essential to establish a strong foundation with a comprehensive pre-audit checklist. This phase ensures that you have all the necessary tools, access, and baseline data to conduct a thorough review of your website’s technical health. In this chapter, we outline the key steps and tools for preparing a successful audit, enabling you to identify and prioritize issues efficiently.
1. Setting Clear Objectives
Define Your Audit Goals
- Performance Improvement:
Identify specific performance metrics you want to enhance, such as page load times, Core Web Vitals (LCP, FID/INP, CLS), and server response times. - Crawl Efficiency:
Aim to optimize the crawl budget by identifying and fixing crawl errors, broken links, and inefficient internal linking. - Indexation and Security:
Focus on ensuring that all high-value pages are indexed properly and that your site is secure (HTTPS, SSL, etc.). - Content and Structured Data:
Ensure that your content is well-optimized, with proper meta tags, structured data, and localized information if applicable.
- Screaming Frog SEO Spider:
A powerful desktop crawler that simulates search engine bot behavior, identifying broken links, redirect chains, duplicate content, and more. - Sitebulb:
Offers visual site maps and comprehensive reports to help you understand your site’s architecture and pinpoint crawl inefficiencies. - SEMrush Site Audit:
Provides an in-depth analysis of your site’s technical health, including error reports and actionable recommendations.
- Google PageSpeed Insights and Lighthouse:
These tools measure core performance metrics and offer insights into how your pages perform on mobile and desktop. - SSL Labs’ SSL Test:
Evaluate your SSL/TLS configuration to ensure your website meets modern security standards. - WebPageTest:
Provides detailed performance analyses under various network conditions and geographic locations.
- Google Analytics:
Gather data on user behavior, engagement metrics, and traffic sources to correlate technical performance with user experience. - Google Search Console:
Monitor crawl errors, indexing status, and mobile usability. The International Targeting report and URL Inspection tool are also critical. - Log File Analyzers (e.g., Splunk, Loggly):
Analyze raw server logs to understand how search engine bots are interacting with your site and identify potential bottlenecks.
3. Pre-Audit Preparation
Access and Permissions
- Secure Access to Tools:
Ensure that you have full access to Google Analytics, Search Console, and any third-party tools you plan to use. - Team Coordination:
Align with your development, IT, and content teams. Make sure everyone understands the objectives and knows how to use the relevant tools.
Baseline Data Collection
- Current Performance Metrics:
Gather baseline data on key performance indicators such as page speed, Core Web Vitals, crawl frequency, and error rates. - Historical Data Analysis:
Review historical trends in Google Analytics and Search Console to identify recurring issues and seasonal fluctuations. - Site Inventory:
Compile a list of all critical pages, resources, and URLs that need to be included in the audit.
Documentation and Planning
- Pre-Audit Checklist Creation:
Develop a detailed checklist that includes all tasks and areas to be audited, from technical performance and crawl behavior to content quality and security. - Set Priorities:
Prioritize issues based on their impact on user experience and SEO performance. Use the data gathered to rank problems by severity and potential impact. - Define Reporting Structure:
Plan how you will document your findings, including the use of visual reports, charts, and dashboards to communicate insights to stakeholders.
4. Establishing a Testing Environment
Staging and Testing
- Use a Staging Site:
Conduct initial tests on a staging version of your website to avoid disruptions on the live site. This allows you to implement and evaluate changes safely. - Simulate Real-World Conditions:
Use tools that mimic different network speeds, device types, and geographic locations to get an accurate picture of performance and usability. - Iterative Testing:
Plan for multiple rounds of testing and optimization. Each iteration should build on the insights gained from previous tests.
5. Creating a Pre-Audit Checklist: Key Items
- Site Inventory:
List all pages, resources, and critical URLs. - Performance Metrics:
Document current page speed, TTFB, LCP, FID/INP, and CLS scores. - Crawl Data:
Compile data on crawl frequency, error rates, and internal linking patterns. - Security Status:
Record SSL certificate status, HTTPS implementation, and any known security issues. - Structured Data and Meta Tags:
Verify that all pages include relevant structured data and properly optimized meta tags. - Mobile Usability:
Check responsiveness, mobile design, and load times on various devices. - User Engagement Metrics:
Gather data on bounce rate, session duration, and conversion rates from analytics platforms.
In Summary
A thorough pre-audit checklist is the foundation of a successful technical SEO audit. By clearly defining objectives, gathering the right tools, and preparing a comprehensive plan, you set the stage for identifying and resolving technical issues that can affect your site’s performance. This preparation not only enhances your understanding of your current technical landscape but also enables you to implement targeted optimizations that drive improved crawl efficiency, better user engagement, and higher search rankings.
