How to run a basic content audit

A content audit provides an insight into all of the content on your website, how often it is accessed, and whether it’s up to date or not. You’ll be able to see what type of content is performing best, and what content needs a good refresh or redirect.

The reasons for running an audit vary. One example I always refer to is updating the help section of your website. You’ll want to see if there are any out-of-date articles, pages that aren’t being used at all, multiple pages covering the same topic, or areas that aren’t covered. A content audit can find these gaps and help you provide the best level of customer service.

Here’s how I run my content audits

Step one: collate all your URLS

There’s a wide range of URL crawling services that will collate all the URLs off your website. However, I tend to use Google Analytics. It gives you a fast look at all the URLs that have been engaged with during a certain period of time. Export all these URLs into a spreadsheet.

Step two: format your spreadsheet

There are several columns you’re going to need in your content audit spreadsheet. These will differ depending on your goal. If you’re looking at migration or a website content refresh, the basic options I use are as follows:

• URL

• Page title

• Pageviews

• Subject matter expert

• Keep/Rewrite/Merge/Delete

• Bounce rate

• Time on page

Step three: start making decisions

Now that you’ve got all this data in the spreadsheet, you can start analysing what’s going on. Your bounce rate and average time on page will show if people are arriving at a page and finding it useful or not. Pageviews will show how popular your content is. For pages with lower pageviews, consider optimising the content or analysing whether you really need that piece of content. Remember, quality is better than quantity.

Content audits can also show you which pages you may need to promote. Perhaps there are pages on your website that are up to date and useful but aren’t getting the hits. You can use this knowledge to craft a better marketing campaign, getting those pages out on social media and eDMs, or other promotional channels.

Note: if you decide to merge or delete pages, keep a record of the URLs and arrange for 301 redirects to occur so you don’t present 404 error pages to your customers.

Step four: repeat

Doing a content audit once isn’t enough. You’ll need to repeat this process at least once a year. Depending on your business and content you may need to do this more regularly. Keeping your content up to date and fresh is an essential way to build trust and loyalty with your customers.

If you’ve got a project in mind that would require a content audit, get in touch. I’m available on a one-off or ongoing bases.