How to do an SEO audit: what we actually check
What a real audit actually checks
Every URL in the sitemap gets crawled for its status code, then checked for a unique, appropriately-sized title tag and meta description, a correct canonical tag, valid robots directives, and no accidental duplication with another page. Structured data gets parsed and validated, not just visually spot-checked. Core Web Vitals get measured with a real tool (we use Lighthouse), not estimated.
Why most 'free SEO audit' tools are misleading
Many automated tools flag hundreds of low-value 'issues' — minor image compression suggestions, generic 'improve your score' prompts — without any sense of which ones actually move the needle. A wall of 200 warnings is not an audit; it's noise that makes it hard to see the five fixes that would genuinely help.
What we do with the findings
Issues get fixed in priority order: broken canonicals and missing metadata first, then duplicate or over-length titles, then structural issues like heading order and internal linking, then performance. After fixes, we re-crawl and re-run Lighthouse to confirm the fix actually worked, rather than assuming it did.
Frequently asked questions
How often should a site be audited?
After any major change (redesign, migration, new section), and otherwise roughly every 6-12 months to catch drift like broken links or outdated metadata.
Does a high 'SEO score' from a tool mean the site is fine?
Not necessarily. Scores from generic tools often weight low-impact issues heavily. A prioritized, human-reviewed list is more useful than a single number.
Can an audit find why a specific page isn't ranking?
It can rule out technical causes (noindex, canonical pointing elsewhere, thin content) but ranking also depends on competition and backlinks, which an on-site audit alone can't fully explain.
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