How to evaluate a client website for SEO

A website design should be user friendly, easy to navigate and is easy to look at right? In many cases, a website leaves the user with much to be desired with room for improvement. Here are the SEO areas to look for when doing a website evaluation for a client:

Site Purpose

1. Is there a distinct, easily recognizable purpose to the website?
   • A website should trigger a response from the user.
   • The website purpose should be extremely obvious to users: is the website selling something, do you want web users to contact you, is the website information only, is this a support website. etc.?
2. Does the website include text which prominently features the company’s unique ideas?
   • A website is an opportunity to show users what makes you stand out from other competitors.
   • Remember, we have about 2 seconds to capture our audience.

On-Page SEO, Meta Data and Keywords

1. Does the text or copy in the paragraph body of the webpage include keyword rich content specific to the purpose?
   • Making sure that page content includes the use of keywords is important.
2. Does the website use too many graphics, pictures, slideshows, plug-ins, etc.?
   • Too many visuals will dilute the web user’s experience and the website’s effectiveness.
3. Does the footer or sidebar area contain contact information or other important regional keywords?
4. Does the Page Title tag contain regional keywords (if applicable)  and an additional keyword or two about the website’s purpose.
5. Are the Meta Description & Meta Keywords tags populated.

On-Page SEO, Content and Heading Titles

1. Does the webpage content include the use of heading tags (H1, H2, H3, etc)?
   • These tags are visually appealing for users.
   • Heading also provide search engines with an order to sift through page content – helping them decide what is most to least important.

Image Summary

1. Do the images used on the website enhance the user’s experience or overwhelm?
   • The high use of web graphics has the potential to permeate the user’s experience because of slow loading time.
   • A website should be agreeable to all visitors who will return to your website, bookmark and recommend your website to others.
2. Do the web image use alternate tags?
   • Search engines cannot detect text or “see” the images.
   • Website images which have textual content within the images, cannot be seen by search engine crawlers.
3. Does the website design use browser dependent multimedia platforms?
   • JavaScript, Flash etc, may require many images to load. This type of user experience could waste the opportunity to make a good first impression for many of your website’s new users.
   • If users do not have their browser set up correctly to use JavaScript, flash or broadband – they are required to reconfigure their system and try again.

Readability Level – (basic)High School Degree, (intermediate)Community College Degree, (advanced)Bachelor’s Degree or (it’s complicated)Master’s Degree

1. At what level of education is necessary to read and understand the website content.
   • In general, the information presented on a website should be easy to read and simple to capture a wide target audience.

Domain Info.

1. How old is the domain?
   • A website which is older than 1 year is important.
   • Google weighs heavily on age of the registration date to show the commitment of the site.
2. How active us your website?
   • Are you frequently updating your website, keeping the content fresh?
     This activity will help with Google’s SERPs.

Links

1. Does the website contain internal and external links in the body content.

Platform

1. Is the website author using WordPress, Joomla! or straight HTML?
   • CMS website publishing tools like WordPress will help you automatically generate SEO friendly web content.

Social Networking

1. Is the website tied with a Twitter status or Facebook page?
   • If you give website users a chance to bookmark your website using social media tools, this will generate high-value links which the search engines like.

Site Map

1. Does the website include a site map?
   • This all important tool help users easily navigate your website.
   • The site map is also important as it help search engines easily find all the pages on your website.
   • Don’t leave your website visitors stranded with no website navigation.

Broken Pages/Links

1. Are there any pages on the website which generate some kind of error?
2. Are there outdated links on the website which go nowhere?
   • An error on a website screams unprofessionalism and will scare away website users.
   • This type of user experience could waste the opportunity to make a good first impression for many of your website’s new users.