{"id":6759,"date":"2022-03-04T01:56:42","date_gmt":"2022-03-04T08:56:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.vdigitalservices.com\/?p=6759"},"modified":"2024-01-18T16:25:06","modified_gmt":"2024-01-18T23:25:06","slug":"content-clean-up-time-content-audits-explained","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vdigitalservices.com\/content-clean-up-time-content-audits-explained\/","title":{"rendered":"Step-by-Step Guide to Conducting a Content Audit"},"content":{"rendered":"
(Updated: Match 4, 2022)<\/em><\/p>\n When crafting an effective content strategy, there\u2019s no such thing as a \u201cset it and forget it\u201d option. It might <\/span>seem <\/span><\/i>like it would be easier to create, post, and be done with content, but that approach isn\u2019t going to get you anywhere near your short- or long-term goals.<\/span><\/p>\n Instead, a truly successful content marketing plan includes regular \u201ccheck-ups\u201d to ensure your strategy and body of content are both on track. A content audit (sometimes called a \u201ccontent inventory\u201d is the key to assessing content performance, measuring progress, and taking smart steps towards a better SEO content strategy.<\/span><\/p>\n A website content audit is a process used to analyze all of your website’s content systematically.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n There are a few key objectives to conducting a content audit, including:<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n This guide will break down how to conduct a website content audit to support your progress towards 2022 business goals. With this step-by-step explanation of the content audit process, you\u2019ll be ready to examine all of your content with a critical and well-informed eye.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n There are several ways to tackle a content audit, and we\u2019re going to walk you through a detailed explanation in the next section. But in general, as you sort through content, you\u2019re going to keep four primary categories in mind. Much like a closet cleanout, you\u2019re aiming to put every single item into one of a few \u201cpiles\u201d:<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n As you examine each piece, you can ask yourself direct questions to guide the sorting process:<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Keeping these basic guidelines in mind can help you evaluate and sort content with confidence. Remember, even though disposing of content can feel like you\u2019re \u201cwasting\u201d prior efforts, it\u2019s an important step in creating a stronger, more effective content collection overall.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Quality, not quantity, is the target you aim for in the content auditing process.<\/span><\/p>\n Learning how to audit website content is much simpler if you have a clear plan of action. If you\u2019re organized in your approach, you\u2019ll use your time and energy far more effectively \u2013 and the overall experience is likely to go much smoother.<\/span><\/p>\n There are five essential steps in a content audit:<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Anytime you\u2019re preparing to tackle a major task, it\u2019s wise to begin by outlining defined objectives \u2013 as they say, keep your eye on the prize.<\/span><\/p>\n First, ask yourself what your business goals are and what results you hope to achieve with a content audit. What benefits are you looking to gain? Your answers to these questions can help you <\/span>determine clear goals<\/b> for a website content audit.<\/span><\/p>\n For example, here are some examples of content audit goals and how you would go about achieving each one:<\/span><\/p>\n An SEO content audit can boost your overall SEO results.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n When your content effectively engages your target audience, it can create a domino effect of positive results.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Your conversion rate is a major marker of a successful strategy, and a content audit can help you see measurable growth.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n After choosing a goal for your content audit, you can then select the most suitable metrics to measure your progress. Typically, content marketing metrics fall into one of four primary categories:<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Each of these categories is made up of metrics helpful in analyzing and reaching specific types of goals. For instance, if your goal is to find the content topics that are most popular with your target users (so you can create more content focusing on these topics), you\u2019ll look at engagement and user behavior metrics.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n When you inventory your content, you usually aren\u2019t going to assess every piece that exists on your website \u2013 that would be a massive amount of content to wade through. Rather, it\u2019s more productive to choose certain content for review.<\/span><\/p>\n You might opt to audit internal website content, like product descriptions, landing pages, and blog posts. Or, you could conduct an inventory of externally-published content. Depending on your end goal, you might be taking a closer look at other content types, such as PDFs, videos, or even interactive pieces.<\/span><\/p>\n In this guide, we\u2019re focusing on how to perform an audit for all of your website\u2019s textual content.<\/span><\/p>\n First, collect URLs for all of your content pieces. <\/b>Using the online content tool of your choice (such as SEMrush Content Audit), collect all of the URLs for the web pages you are going to analyze. Several online content tools will dramatically speed up the process by using your sitemap data to generate a URL list that includes related metrics. <\/span> After you have a list of URLs, catalog the content.<\/b> Once you have all of your URLs, you\u2019ll be sorting them according to different criteria. You can use either a spreadsheet, a content audit template, or an online tool to complete this step, and you\u2019re free to choose which category\/categories you want to sort into:<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n We also recommend collecting metadata for your content pieces to confirm the accuracy and make any updates with ease.<\/span><\/p>\n Set up columns to <\/span>collect and organize the data for each URL<\/b> (content pieces). There\u2019s not necessarily just one \u201cright\u201d way to do this; simply choose an organizational method that makes the most sense for you. You will be adding more columns as we move forward, so take that into account.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Data collection<\/b> is the part of content auditing that takes the most time, largely because it requires you to hunt down data from several different sources. Some content audit tools will automate data collection, using your metrics and goals as a guide, so that\u2019s one way to save time if needed.<\/span> <\/p>\n As you collect all relevant metrics, you\u2019re going to add them to your spreadsheet. The best way to do this is to simply place each metric into a column, entering the data for each URL in the appropriate cell.<\/span><\/p>\n Now that you have a wide range of content metrics, it\u2019s time to <\/span>examine the data to better understand your content and its strengths\/weaknesses<\/b>. For example, a certain web page might have a fantastic traffic rate but a low session duration and high bounce rate. This information can tell you that users are interested in the content topic but that your content didn\u2019t meet their expectations. The issue could lie in something as seemingly simple as page load time or be related to the relevancy of the content to the actual title.<\/span> <\/p>\n Add a new column to the spreadsheet you use for your content audit, labeling it \u201cStatus.\u201d In this column, you\u2019ll label each content item as \u201cremove,\u201d \u201cimprove\/update,\u201d \u201cconsolidate,\u201d or \u201ckeep.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n You\u2019ve collected your data, analyzed it, and used that information to assess each piece of content. The next step is to develop an action plan for moving forward, using a balance of your audit goals and what you\u2019ve learned from your audit analysis.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n First, <\/span>you\u2019re going to prioritize your actions <\/b>based on your goals. Refer to each of the goals you set in Step 1 of the process. Then, look at the possible results (payoff) you\u2019ll get in exchange for the effort required for each action (investment) and how that aligns with your goals.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n For example, if your goal is to improve SEO results:<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Weigh the investment and payoff of each action. Then, add a column labeled \u201cPriority\u201d to label each of the action items as \u201cHigh,\u201d \u201cMedium,\u201d or \u201cLow.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Now, you can <\/span>create a plan of action<\/b> for each content URL. There are many different factors that will influence the exact action steps you\u2019ll be taking for each piece, but some go-to options include:<\/span><\/p>\nWhat is a Content Audit?<\/h2>\n
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How Does a Content Audit Work?<\/h2>\n
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How to Do a Content Audit: A Step-by-Step Guide<\/h2>\n
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Step 1: Identify goals and metrics<\/h3>\n
Goal: Improve search engine optimization (SEO)<\/h4>\n
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Goal: Support increased audience engagement.<\/h4>\n
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Goal: Boost conversion rate<\/h4>\n
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Step 2: Inventory website content<\/h3>\n
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\n<\/span>If you don\u2019t have a sitemap, creating one is a top priority. Not only is it helpful for content auditing, but it\u2019s also essential for your search visibility. You can find sitemap generators online, as well as different free WordPress plugins for sitemaps. After you\u2019ve generated your sitemap, don\u2019t forget to submit it to Google Search Console as well.<\/span><\/p>\n\n
Step 3: Collect and analyze content data<\/h3>\n
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\n<\/span>Depending on what you\u2019re hoping to achieve with the audit, some tools you can use include:<\/span><\/p>\n\n
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\n<\/span>Finally, use your goals and data analysis to <\/span>assess each content piece<\/b>. Remember those \u201cpiles\u201d we talked about earlier? This is the step where those come into play.<\/span><\/p>\n\n
Step 4: Create a plan of action<\/h3>\n
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