How do you do an SEO audit?
Step 1: Crawlability and indexation
Before anything else, confirm that search engines can actually access and index your pages correctly. Use Google Search Console to check the Coverage report for errors — pages returning 404s, pages being blocked by robots.txt, pages marked noindex when they shouldn't be. If a page can't be crawled or indexed, everything else you do to optimise it is irrelevant. Fix crawlability issues first, before any content or structural work.
Step 2: On-page and content review
Once you've confirmed search engines can access your pages, review what those pages actually say and how they say it. Every important page should have a unique title tag (typically 50-60 characters) and a unique meta description (around 150-160 characters) that accurately describe the page's content. Check that headings follow a logical hierarchy (one H1, H2s for main sections, H3s for subsections). Review whether your content genuinely answers the questions users are asking when they find your pages.
Step 3: Technical performance and links
Page speed directly affects both search rankings and how long visitors stay once they arrive — a page that takes more than 3 seconds to load on a phone loses a significant proportion of visitors before they've even read a word. Check Core Web Vitals scores in Search Console. Audit your internal links to confirm your most important pages receive links from other pages on your site. Check for broken links both internally and to external sites, and confirm that any redirects are working correctly and not chained unnecessarily.
Key Takeaways
- Fix crawlability first — no other optimisation matters if pages can't be indexed.
- Every important page needs a unique, accurate title and meta description.
- Page speed and internal linking are both direct ranking factors.