Content audit: 7 steps to boost visibility and traffic

Content closes sales. Great design is important, but words ultimately position your B2B company’s brand to your audience and communicate the value of your offerings. However, if you’re the sole person on your team responsible for content creation — or if you’re a marketing team of one — your website content can quickly become out of date. Enter the content audit.

According to Semrush survey findings published in 2023, companies that conduct content audits see an average 53% increase in website engagement and a 49% boost in search rankings and traffic. 

Regardless of whether your website content is currently sparse or a sprawling hot mess, you can turn things around with a few simple steps. In this guide to improving your content, we’ll cover:

• The difference between a content inventory and audit

• Why conduct a content audit?

• When is the right time?

• 7 steps for your content audit

• What to do when your audit is complete

Content inventory vs. audit

Early in my career, I was part of an in-house marketing team at a large public research university. I joined the team when they were in the midst of transitioning to a new website. For an institution with more than 200 degree programs, this was a massive project with a staggering volume of content to inventory, audit and update.

Conducting the inventory was a critical first step. This involves cataloging and organizing the entirety of a website’s content assets. At this stage, you’re not yet analyzing the quality and effectiveness of your content — you’re simply taking stock of the scope.

Cataloging every single piece of content on a website can be a monumental task, depending on the size of the website. You’ll want to arm yourself with spreadsheets, sticky notes and copious amounts of coffee as you log each item, page by page and link by link. Be sure to organize the information into sections and subcategories — for example, landing pages, product pages and blog posts — for easier navigation and analysis.

Once the content inventory is complete, it’s time to dive into the audit. This involves analyzing each piece of content you’ve catalogued for quality, relevance, accuracy, consistency, and alignment with your organizational goals and audience needs. This will give you insight into your existing content landscape, help you identify areas for improvement, and inform strategic decisions about content planning, optimization and development.

Why conduct a content audit?

Simply having content on your B2B company’s website is not enough to make the floodgates of traffic and conversions bust open. You’ve also got to regularly audit and optimize your content to ensure it stays relevant and effective.

Data from Semrush’s 2023 survey shows that 44% of respondents say improving their content’s quality and value has resulted in greater marketing success. Despite this, only 54% conduct a content audit twice a year or more, and 16% have never undertaken this exercise.

Consider this: does it ever seem like despite your best efforts, your analytics show that your site is about as popular as a rerun of a 3 a.m. infomercial? If key metrics like your visitor count or the average time spent on a page are starting to decline, it could be a sign that your once-mighty content has become a graveyard of outdated information and broken links. This is not the way to hit your marketing targets.

By making content audits a regular part of your workflow, you’ll find that with each broken link you mend and each outdated piece of content you refresh, your website will slowly but surely start attracting more visitors and generating more conversions like email list sign-ups, demo requests and booked discovery calls. 

The takeaway? Creating new content isn’t always the answer to your marketing issues. Never underestimate the importance of regularly auditing and optimizing your existing content.

When is the right time for a content audit?

When you have a mountain of competing priorities on your desk, it may seem like there’s no ideal time to drop everything and audit your website content. However, scheduling this activity on a regular basis could solve some other potential problems — for example, a decline in traffic.

The right time for a content audit can vary depending on factors like changes in company goals, shifts in target audience preferences, updates to search engine algorithms or significant website redesigns. In the former case, if your company undergoes changes in direction, such as entering new markets, launching new products or services, or rebranding, it's crucial to assess whether your existing content still aligns with these objectives.

Or, if you notice a decline in organic search traffic or rankings, a content audit can help identify SEO issues such as keyword optimization, duplicate content or thin content that may be impacting your site’s performance.

Don’t wait until you’re in the midst of a website redesign to conduct your first content audit. However, if you are redoing your site, this is an essential part of the process to ensure a smooth transition and maintain content integrity.

In an ideal world, you’d audit your content every quarter to help keep your website relevant, accurate and aligned with your overall marketing strategy. Be sure to pay attention to user feedback, comments and inquiries regarding your content as well. If users consistently express confusion or dissatisfaction with certain content elements, it may be a sign that it’s time for an audit to address these concerns.

7 steps to audit your website content

1. Set goals for your content

Start by determining the results you want your website content to drive. Perhaps your site has solid content for buyers at the “awareness” stage of their journey, but you need more content that educates people on the finer details of your products and services. 

Establishing objectives for your content requires a solid understanding of your audience and what actions you want them to take once they arrive on your site. When you know your customers and their needs well, you can create content that is educational, helpful and that leaves a positive impression of your brand on your readers.  

2. Outline the project scope

Assuming you’ve completed the content inventory referred to earlier, now decide which pieces of website content you’ll audit. For example, you may choose to audit the entire site, or just your blog post inventory. If you opt for the former approach, you’ll likely need more than one set of hands.

Create or download a template or checklist to document the results of your content audit. It should include fields for key information like URL, page title, content type, status and any necessary action steps (update, delete, redirect). Use this template to manage your regular audits going forward. Many content management platforms offer built-in features for managing inventory, tracking changes and scheduling updates.

3. Identify team members and stakeholders

The people involved in your project will depend on which web pages you’re auditing. Product pages on the list? Bring your product marketing manager into the loop. Case studies in scope? Consult your colleagues in customer success and sales. They can often tell you which questions they hear most about your products and services that would make for interesting customer stories. 

A content writer is also an integral member of the team. They have a sharp eye for creating website copy and content that engages, educates and gets visitors ready to buy. As a B2B company, you need a writer who understands the nuance between “professional” and “devoid of personality” so that your copy will not only help your audience trust you, but actually get them to like you, too.

Beyond being compelling, your content must also be clean to do its job well. A seasoned web writer will ensure your tone of voice and all of the nitty gritty details like spelling, grammar and formatting are impeccably presented. This will help avoid errors that detract from your company’s credibility.

In addition, a content writer is trained to gain a deep understanding of your audience during the research phase of their work. I’m talking about some serious digging — bottom-of-the-ice-cream-container-after-a-breakup level digging. This means they’ll be able to audit your content while keeping in mind what will resonate most with buyers.

4. Audit content quality

Your goals, scope and team are in place. Now, closely review each piece of content to determine whether it still meets the needs of your audience and aligns with your brand messaging. Consider factors like readability, engagement, and how well the content addresses common pain points or questions readers may have.

Next, evaluate the accuracy of the information presented in your content. Ensure that all facts, statistics and references are up to date and supported by reliable sources. Outdated or inaccurate content can erode trust with your audience and harm your credibility as a thought leader in your industry (plus your search rankings). Also look for duplicate content or overlapping topics that could be consolidated or refreshed to provide more value.

5. Analyze search engine performance and analytics

Tools like Google Analytics and Google Search Console can help you track your site’s organic search performance. Pay attention to metrics like organic traffic, keyword rankings and click-through rates will provide you with opportunities for improvement.

Review your content to ensure it includes relevant keywords and phrases that your audience is likely to search for. Update meta descriptions, headings, and alt text for improved search visibility. Also check for broken links and crawl errors, as these can negatively impact your SEO performance and user experience (UX). If you spot any of these links or errors, fix them promptly. You may need to update URLs, redirect broken links or resolve technical issues that are causing crawl errors. Going forward, consider using website auditing tools to automate checking for broken links.

Dive into your analytics to gain insights into user behaviour and engagement, too. Review metrics like bounce rate, time on page, and pages per session to understand how users are interacting with your website. Identify pages with high bounce rates or low engagement that may need some attention.

6. Assess user experience

Evaluate the overall navigation and usability of your website from the perspective of the user. Is the website structure intuitive and easy to navigate? Are important pages and information easily accessible? Consider conducting usability testing or heuristic evaluations to identify any pain points or areas of confusion.

You can also examine your site searches to see what information users are looking for most frequently, which may be because they’re having trouble navigating to it on your website. Consider creating an FAQ page to address these queries. 

Don’t make this process a guessing game. Engage with your website visitors so you can gather feedback on their experience. Use tools like surveys, feedback forms or on-site chatbots to collect insights about users’ preferences, needs and pain points. This will allow you to identify areas where you can make improvements to enhance the overall UX.

7. Pinpoint content gaps and opportunities

You’re ready to dig into the creative part of the audit. Start by identifying any content topics or themes that are absent from your website. These may be areas of your industry or business that haven't been adequately covered in your existing content. Conducting market research, monitoring industry trends and analyzing competitors’ websites can help you identify potential gaps in your content strategy.

You may need to conduct new keyword research as part of this step. Use a tool like Semrush (paid) or Answer the Public (free) to identify relevant keywords and search terms related to your industry or niche. Look for keyword opportunities with high search volume and low competition that you can target with new content. 

A word to the wise: never let your enthusiasm for keywords get in the way of good writing. Your content needs to sound like it was written by a human, for a human. If a keyword doesn’t sound natural, don’t use it.

What to do when your content audit is complete

Determine the fate of each piece of content in your audit, then take action based on your findings. This may involve:

• Updating or refreshing outdated or low-performing content to improve relevance and engagement.

• Deleting or archiving redundant or obsolete content to streamline your website and improve UX.

• Redirecting broken or outdated URLs to relevant pages to maintain SEO integrity and prevent 404 errors.

• Creating new content to fill identified gaps and capitalize on emerging trends or opportunities in your industry.

Maintaining your content inventory and auditing schedule is an ongoing process that requires regular attention. Here are a few steps to implement in your workflow:

• Schedule regular reviews and updates to ensure your content inventory remains accurate and reflects the latest changes to your website.

• Use automated tools and alerts to monitor for broken links, crawl errors and other issues that may impact the integrity of your content inventory.

• Assign responsibility for content maintenance and updates to specific team members or departments to ensure accountability and consistency.

• Continuously monitor performance metrics and user feedback to identify areas for further optimization and improvement.

Rejuvenate your website content

Think of a content audit like a day at the spa for your website. It’s a vital step in refreshing your online presence. But it’s much more than a vanity exercise; it’s critical to the health and performance of your site, and to reaching your marketing goals.

Let's kick those outdated pages to the curb, spruce up the ones that need a little love, and get ready to craft an experience that will turn first-time visitors into intrigued prospects. If you need expert guidance along the way, schedule a discovery call to learn about Scribe National’s content audit and writing services. Work with our B2B digital marketing agency today!