What is SEO?
Imagine you own a bookshop on a quiet side street. SEO (search engine optimisation) is the process of putting up clear signs, keeping your shopfront tidy, and making sure your shop appears in every local directory so that when someone is looking for books, they find you instead of a competitor.
In the digital world, SEO is the practice of improving your website so that search engines like Google rank it higher in search results. The higher you appear, the more people click through to your site.
You invested valuable time and money into creating your website, so it makes sense to get the most out of it. When people search for the products or services your business provides, you want your website to appear, ideally near the top of the results. An SEO audit helps you figure out why your site might not be showing up where you want it to – and shows you what you can do about it.
How to know if you need an SEO audit
- You’re invisible or ranking low on Google and you don’t know why.
- Your web traffic has suddenly dropped, indicating something may have changed or broken.
- You just launched a new site and want to start off on the right foot.
- A competitor is outranking you and you want to understand how to close the gap.
- You’ve never checked and small issues may have quietly and unknowingly piled up over time.
- You just want peace of mind that your site is in tip-top shape, performing at its best.
Three areas we look at during an SEO audit
1. Site Performance
2. On-site SEO
Yes, content is still king. The content on your site needs to be interesting of course, but also truly useful for people as well as search engines and generative (AI) engines. We’ll check if:
- your pages actually provide the answers people are searching for (top tip: this is where including blogs and FAQs on your site can really make a difference);
- your titles, subtitles and descriptions are written in a way that makes people want to click to learn more;
- your images are size-optimised for web, are named in a way that helps Google find them, and include alt text;
- meta descriptions are present;
- the URLs of your site clean and easy to read; and
- there are any broken links.
3. Off-site SEO
- Backlinks: Search engines trust websites that other reputable websites link to. This is called backlinking. An audit checks how many of these backlinks you have, where they’re coming from, and whether any bad ones might be dragging you down.
- Social media: While social shares aren’t a direct ranking factor, a strong social media presence shows search engines that your brand is active and engaging online and is trusted and authoritative. This will help drive traffic and increases the chances other people will discover and link to your content.
- Local SEO: General SEO is about competing with everyone on the internet. Local SEO narrows the playing field dramatically – you’ll be competing only with businesses in your area. Ensure your Google Business Profile (formerly Google My Business) is set up and accurate. This is the information box that appears when someone searches for your type of business near them. It should show your address, phone number, opening hours, photos and reviews, helping search engines determine where your business is located and increasing your relevance and likelihood to show up in relevant searches.
- Online reviews: Reviews on Google, Facebook, or industry-specific platforms build trust and influence how prominently local businesses appear in search results. Reach out to your clients or customers and ask them to provide a few comments on their experience.
What you get out of it
At the end of an audit, we’ll have a clear picture of your site’s strengths and weaknesses, allowing us to provide a prioritised list of fixes. Some could be quick wins like fixing a broken link or simply rewriting a page title, and others may be slightly bigger jobs to improve your site’s loading speed. We can help you resolve any of these website issues.
Look after your site for optimal search results
An SEO audit stops you from flying blind. Without one, you’re either guessing why your site isn’t performing or you’re not even aware it’s performance has significant room for improvement.
An audit provides a roadmap. Even a basic audit done annually can make a meaningful difference in how much free, organic traffic finds its way to your site.
Get in touch if you’d like some guidance on how to show your website a little love and, in return, have it working harder and smarter for you.
