A well-functioning website is fundamental to getting that number one spot on a search engine results page. A technical SEO audit is a full analysis of your website through the eyes of Google. Here is a comprehensive guide with the markings and answers to carry out a Technical SEO audit by 2024.
- Checkout Crawlability & Indexability
Checklist:
- Make sure all your crucial pages are searchable by the search engines.
- Check for a proper robots.txt file.
- Do not block crawl to any important pages of the site.
- Check if there is a sitemap.
- Submission of XML content to search engines.
Solution:
Crawl your website using tools like Google Search Console, Screaming Frog, or Ahrefs Site Audit. Examine the robots.txt file and make sure it’s not disallowing important pages. Create a sitemap.xml if it is not available and send it to Google Search Console. Keep the sitemap updated regularly.
- Site Speed and Performance
Checklist:
- Page Load Speed Test.
- Optimize Your Images and Media Files.
- Compress CSS/JS & HTML.
- Implement browser caching.
- Utilize a content delivery network (CDN).
Solution:
Google PageSpeed Insights, GTmetrix, or Pingdom are very useful tools to help reduce the page load time. Optimize images with tools like TinyPNG. The Minification tools minify CSS, JavaScript, and HTML files for you. Additionally, use tools for browser caching and a CDN like Cloudflare to increase site performance.
- Mobile Friendly
Checklist:
- Make Responsive Across Every Device.
- 1This Includes Checking All Pages in Google Mobile-Friendly Test.
- Optimized For Touch Navigation.
Solution:
Use Google Mobile-Friendly Test to see your site responsiveness and adjust the design. Make buttons and links big enough, so they can be clicked without zooming in on them.
- Security Checklist
Checklist:
- HTTPS: Verify that the site uses HTTPS.
- Mixed Content Detection: Ensure there are no mixed content issues.
- SSL Certificate: Validate your SSL certificate and renew it.
Solution:
Always check your SSL certificate using tools like SSL Checker. Redirect HTTP pages to HTTPS. Avoid mixed content warnings by ensuring all your page resources (images, scripts, etc.) are served over HTTPS.
- URL Structure
Checklist
- Descriptive URLs: Use clean, descriptive URLs.
- Keyword-rich URLs: Ensure URLs are short and keyword-rich.
- Dynamic URLs: Avoid URLs with multiple parameters, especially those that are dynamically generated.
Solution
Audit your URL structure to ensure cleanliness and semantic meaning. Identify and fix dynamic URLs with tools like Screaming Frog. If necessary, use URL rewriting for user and search engine-friendly URLs.
Also Read About Best Free Keyword Research Tools
- Canonicalization
Checklist
- Canonical Tags: Use canonical tags properly to avoid duplicate content issues.
- Homepage Versions: Ensure there is only one version of the homepage (e.g., www or non-www).
Solution
Use canonical tags to specify the preferred version of a page. Implement 301 redirects to address multiple homepage versions. Use tools like Moz or SEMrush to identify and fix common content problems.
- Structured Data + Schema Markup
Checklist
- Schema Markup: Use appropriate schema markup.
- Structured Data: Add structured data to improve search listings.
- Validation: Validate schema markup using Google’s Rich Results Test.
Solution:
Implement schema markup to provide better context for your content. Use Google’s Structured Data Markup Helper and validate the implementation with the Rich Results Test.
Also Read About How to Optimize WordPress website for SEO?
- XML Sitemaps
Checklist
- Sitemap Maintenance: Keep the sitemap live and up to date.
- Search Engine Submission: Submit the sitemap to search engines.
- Relevant Pages: Include all important pages and exclude non-essential ones.
Solution:
Create an XML sitemap with Yoast SEO (for WordPress) or Screaming Frog. Keep the sitemap updated as you create, delete, or change pages within your website. Submit the sitemap URLs to Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools.
- On-Page SEO Elements
Checklist
- Title Tags and Meta Descriptions: Optimize for uniqueness, descriptiveness, and keyword richness.
- Header Tags: Use proper header tags (H1, H2, etc.).
- Alt Text for Images: Ensure alt text for better accessibility and SEO.
Solution:
Review and optimize your site’s title tags and meta descriptions. Use tools like Yoast SEO to check and optimize on-page elements. Provide descriptive alt text for images.
- Internal Linking
Checklist:
- Ensure that your internal linking makes sense and is also making you the most money.
- Use good anchor texts with rich keywords.
- Avoid orphaned pages.
Solution:
Use tools like Screaming Frog or Ahrefs to perform an internal link audit. Make your linked-to pages accessible from within the site and use keyword-rich internal linking. Apply the orphaned page to be part of your internal linking structure.
Also Read About Link Building Strategy 2024
- Creating High-Quality, Original Content
Checklist:
- Rather than looking for keywords, Google will rank high what should be more important is writing good content that people want to read.
- Do not duplicate content throughout the site.
- Use canonicals to show preferred content versions.
Solution:
Regularly check and update the quality of your content. Leverage Copyscape to find and remove duplicate content. Address duplicate content with canonical tags.
- 404 Errors and Broken Links
Checklist:
- Identify and fix broken links.
- Have friendly and useful 404 pages.
- Monitor and fix 404 errors on a regular basis.
Solution:
Oh no – Broken links are ones that must be located (using something like Screaming Frog or Ahrefs) and corrected. Put up a 404 page with relevant links to guide visitors on what they are seeking. You should audit your site for broken links and 404 errors frequently.
- Checklist for Log File Analysis
Checklist:
- Perform a log analysis of the server and search errors or crawl problems.
- Discover non-crawling pages.
- Identify server errors and slow pages.
Solution:
Log file analysis is essential to identify and fix issues such as server errors or slow-loading pages that could hinder search engine crawlers. Search for and fix server errors, or any page which takes a long time to load and may impede search engine access.
- International SEO (if applicable)
Checklist:
- Add hreflang tags for language-specific results.
- Target the right language and region.
- Duplicate content used across various language versions is a no.
Solution:
Define the content using hreflang tags for both language and location on your site. Set up language or local targeting properly in Google Search Console. Make sure other-language content is unique or has proper canonicalization so that it cannot cause duplicate issues.
Also Read About Optimize Website for International Search
- Core Web Vitals
Checklist:
- LCP (Largest Contentful Paint) Score: Optimize First Input Delay (FID).
- CLS (Cumulative Layout Shift): Ensure it is minimal.
Solution:
Monitor Core Web Vitals using Google PageSpeed Insights and Search Console. Optimize LCP through image and server response improvements. Enhance FID by minimizing JavaScript execution time. Reduce CLS by reserving space for images and ads.
- Technical SEO for JavaScript:
Checklist
- Ensure JavaScript content is crawlable.
- Implement Server-Side Rendering (SSR) or dynamic rendering.
- Check for lazy-loaded content issues.
Solution:
Ensure Google’s regular crawler and the Googlebot fetch and render feature can access your content using the URL Inspection tool in Google Search Console. Implement SSR or dynamic rendering. To prevent indexing issues with lazy-loaded content, preload critical assets.
- Analytics and Monitoring:
Checklist
- Create an account with Google Analytics to monitor traffic data.
- Watch for malfunctioning content or site weaknesses.
- Monitor important SEO metrics and KPIs.
Solution:
Properly set up Google Analytics and Search Console. Regularly update site performance, user behavior, and SEO metrics. Use Google Data Studio to create personalized reports and dashboards for effective monitoring.
Conclusion
Follow this end-to-end checklist to ensure a stronger, optimized website for search engines and a seamless user experience. Regularly conduct these audits to maintain your site’s health and improve its chances of ranking better on SERPs.
Also Read About How much to pay for SEO Optimization