If you want your website to shine and stand above the competition you need an effective SEO strategy. Search engine optimization is the process of improving your web content so that search engines like Google can index your pages and rank them.
When people search for terms relating to your business, you then have a much higher chance of appearing in their search results. It’s not only enough to have an SEO strategy though – you need to monitor it and regularly check its performance and this is done using SEO auditing tools.
If you prefer to leave this to the professionals you can use SEO audit services which offer in-depth analysis and advice. However to get started, there is a handful of fantastic free SEO audit tools anyone can use and we have chosen five of the best examples for your below.
1. Google Analytics
Google Analytics is typically the “go-to” SEO audit tool and it’s just a fantastic tool overall for digital marketing and refining your SEO strategies.
The best thing about it is that it’s free to use – aren’t Google kind! (It is free provided you have less than 5 million impressions per month) Using this tool you have a wealth of useful SEO data and metrics that you can use to improve your strategies.
This includes things like conversion data, customer demographics, and acquisition data i.e. where you are getting your views and traffic from. It gives you invaluable insight into your visitors and their habits so that you can tailor your content to tap into local markets and make targeted SEO strategies.
2. Ahrefs Keyword Research Tool
Ahrefs Site Audit tool is perhaps the most extensive free tool available and all it requires is that you create a free account. You can use your Google or Facebook account for convenience too.
Once you have created a free account you can use the site audit tool simply by entering your website URL.
The tool then scans your site and all the content and provides a comprehensive SEO report. This includes important info like loading speeds, issues with JavaScript, duplicate content, broken links, and poor-quality written content.
The insight you gain is invaluable and you can make immediate improvements with this information to boost your SEO.
3. Google PageSpeed Insights
Website loading times are a factor that Google considers when ranking pages but they are also important for user experience. No one wants to hang around waiting for a site to load – in most cases, they will close your site and go elsewhere instead!
As we know, Google is incredibly helpful though so they have created their PageSpeed Insights tool. This is free to use and all you have to do is enter your website URL and click “Analyze” and you are given an overall report for the speed performance of your site.
This includes scores out of 100 for performance, accessibility, best practices, and SEO. It shows how your website looks on mobile devices and gives solutions to areas your site is underperforming.
4. W3C Validator
The W3C (Worldwide Web Consortium) is a global body that sets standards for website quality and HTML code and they have a validator that allows you to check if your website is W3C compliant.
This is a fantastic tool that allows you to make sure the underlying code of your website is sound and accessible by search engines.
It essentially shows you how Google sees your website and if you are using a third-party web development platform, it shows you potential errors with underlying code on things like site templates and plugins.
5. SEOptimer
If you just want a quick overview of your SEO as a starting point, SEOptimer is a great option. There is a 14-day free trial period but after this, a subscription is required. Nonetheless, during the free trial, you can get a full SEO audit for your website.
We like the visual indicators and results from the report as you get grades relating to different SEO aspects like usability, performance, social, and security. This allows you to easily see specific areas in your website that need improving.
Audit Your SEO Today to Make a Positive ROI
There is no point investing in SEO unless you are willing to persevere with it, monitor progress, and make regular amendments. SEO is an ongoing process that takes time and effort and these free SEO auditing tools can help.
Simple tools like W3C Validator and Google PageSpeed Insights give you immediate data and info that you can utilize to improve your website. You can then turn to more advanced tools like Google Analytics and Ahrefs Site Audit to see specific areas of your web content and SEO strategies that need improving.
