If you think it only takes a few days to get well referenced on search engines, we’re sorry but you’re on the wrong track! When embarking on a natural reference strategy, you need to know how to be patient.
In fact, it takes time for Google (and other search engines) to index and place a page or site. We’re talking about a few weeks, even several months here!
Why is the frequency of your SEO audit so important?
If there are areas where it’s all about statics, that’s certainly not the case with SEO. SEO of your site is not something you can just do in one go and then give up for years. Several reasons can explain this:
Google’s Algorithm (and That of Other Search Engines) Is Constantly Changing
Whether more or less important, search engine algorithms are constantly being updated. This allows them to always be more relevant and efficient in their results. So your SEO strategy will necessarily evolve according to the improvements made in various algorithms.
To keep you informed about what’s happening on Google, it is recommended to subscribe to the Google webmaster site
Marketing trends are also changing
We know: For SEO, there is On-Page SEO and Off-Page SEO.
Off-page SEO refers to things you do with the aim of driving traffic outside of your webpage, such as your social media posts, for example.
Pop culture trends, which can be found on all social media, also apply to SEO. Creating fresh and original content helps with SEO, but it is not enough. You need to be able to provide what your visitors want, and for that you need to stay up to date with the latest trends.
Web development is often experiencing new things
On-page SEO is directly affected by the development in web development.
That’s why it is important for companies to optimize their on-page SEO strategy for the latest developments in web development. What is considered best practice today may become obsolete in a matter of months.
You get it, to be on the first page, you have to be on the page! Apart from following trends, SEO requires constant work. So, here are 9 repeat checks that you should do with a certain frequency to ensure good reference for your website.
1. Weekly: Track Search Console Status
This is the most frequent checkup you must have.
The Search Console interface has been redesigned by Google to provide more accurate information.
Thanks to this tool, you can track the performance of your site as well as the following metrics needed for SEO:
- indexing errors : In the “Coverage” menu, you will see pages that are not indexed by Google and you will get advice on how to resolve this issue;
- The ergonomics of your site on mobile : In the “Mobile ergonomics” menu, you can identify any ergonomic problems with your site on mobile;
- manual punishment : If you do not follow Google’s best practices, you may face penalties. You will be notified of this in the “Manual actions” menu;
- netlinking : In the “Links” menu, you can follow your links and thus improve your backlinks and your internal network.
By monitoring these key metrics each week, you can be accountable to the various problems you face. These metrics can also help you track the improvement of your data.
2. Monthly: Analyze traffic from Google Analytics
Google Analytics is full of data, but if there’s one thing you need to monitor on a regular basis, it’s your site’s traffic!
In “Behavior” then “Overview”, you can see the growth of traffic across your site.
To fine-tune your controls go to “Site Content”, then to “Details by URL”. Try to find a connection between your marketing activity and the peaks or troughs you can see.
By going to “Acquisitions”, then “All Traffic”, then “Channels”, you can analyze your traffic sources.
Ideally, organic search data should grow as it matches the traffic coming from organic results. They give a good indication of the status of your SEO.
Discover all of our tutorials to learn how to master Google Analytics.
3. Monthly: Track Keyword Rankings
This control is obvious because any natural reference strategy should be based on keywords. Each month, it’s important to check the status of the keywords you’re located on.
For example, on SEMRush, you can:
- Identify keywords that drive traffic
- Know their level of competition
- Analyze your position by keyword
- Compare Yourself to Your Competitors
There are other free tools (to download) for you to follow your position on Google by keyword. This is especially the case for Free Monitor, SEO Soft or even SEOscope for Google.
Your business grows and your keywords grow too. Thus, it is recommended to review your keyword strategy every quarter.
4. Every 4 Months: Check Technical Problems
Some so-called “technical” issues can have an impact on your SEO, but also on the user experience of your website.
One of the first things to check is for 404 errors. They are synonymous with broken links. Read our guide to learn how to locate and fix them.
Also remember to check your canonical tags: if they’re implemented poorly, they can be a source of duplicate content.
If you have a WordPress site, make sure your plugins are working properly.
5. Every 4 months: Check the status of the robots.txt file
This should be checked if you have a staging site. To secure the latter and prevent anyone from accessing it, you must have modified the robots.txt file to block access to the indexing robots.
Every 4 months, it’s a good idea to check that this file from your staging site hasn’t been inadvertently copied to your online site.
6. Every 4 months: Check the status of the XML sitemap
Many plugins on the CMS allow automatic updating of your XML sitemap by adding new pages that are created. However, check that this is indeed the case.
Also submit your sitemap to Search Console.
7. Every 4 Months: Refresh Your Content
While it is important to bring new, original content to your site frequently, it is equally important to update and refresh your existing content. When one of your articles is no longer attracting enough visitors, it may be time to refresh it.
For this you can:
- If your article is a bit short add content and add relevant keywords;
- Update information that has become obsolete;
- Optimize the article by checking that it respects the basic rules of SEO;
- Share it again on your social media.
8. Every 6 months: Check the quality of your internal linking
We saw this before: You can follow the evolution of the number of internal links from Google Search Console.
But the quality of your internal linking is not limited by the number of links:
- Control Anchor Text: Forget the link on “Click Here” or “It’s This Way”, etc. Quite the contrary: put your links on relevant keywords!
- Make sure your most important pages have links to other pages on your site.
9. Every Year: Perform SEO Audits
Once a year, hire a natural reference specialist to conduct an SEO audit of your site.
This very broad control will cover in particular:
- the structure of your site;
- the structure of your URL;
- meta description and title tags;
- Alt tags of your images;
- loading speed of your pages;
- your sitemap and your robots.txt file;
- Duplicate content, etc.
After this audit, you will have a much clearer view of the “state of health” of your site and will be able to take the necessary actions to improve and promote your SEO.
conclusion
As you have already understood, context is a function that occurs over time and requires regularity. Now you know the main steps to always be up to date on your SEO strategy and do the necessary investigations.
Need an audit of your SEO? Find Freelance SEO Consultant Quickly on Codeur.com.