To grow your business online, bringing substantial organic search traffic to your website is necessary. In stark contrast, however, driving this traffic from search engines requires the utmost care, diligence, and sometimes a dash of luck. Your first point of contact toward achieving this is conducting a thorough SEO audit.  This article will take guests across the 13 steps of conducting such an audit—an action that should not only help identify gaps but also maximize the latent power locked within your website.

 What is an SEO audit, and why does it matter?

An SEO audit is often a thorough look at your site to spot problems that could be spoiling its performance in search engines. It looks at everything from technical issues to writing quality. A website audit normally implies the checking of all these search engine guidelines from Google which means getting a constant stream of organic visitors directly to your site. Whether you’re doing a free SEO audit or employing tools like SEMrush site audit, understanding the process is vital.

Step 1: Run a crawl of your website

To carry out the initial steps in an SEO online audit, use a tool such as ScreamingFrog or SEMrush’s site audit for websites. You should see a summary of your website, including:

• Broken links
• Missing metadata
• Redirect chains
• Canonical issues

A crawl will identify any technical issues that are preventing your website from attracting organic search traffic. Your website’s ability to attract organic search traffic is hindered.

 Step 2: Identify organic traffic drops

If you notice a decrease in organic search traffic, you should investigate the reasons behind it.

By utilizing tools such as Google Analytics and Google Search Console, you can:

• • Identify the specific pages affected.
  • Track changes in rankings
  • Review updates in Google’s algorithm

Understanding traffic drops enables you to take corrective action promptly.

Step 3: Check for duplicate versions of your website

Having duplicate versions of your website divides the organic search traffic. Ensure that all user input leads to the same URL.

• http:// vs. https://
• www vs. non-www

Set up proper 301 redirects to avoid splitting traffic across versions.

Step 4: Diagnose indexability issues

Use tools such as Google Search Console to verify these factors.

• Pages blocked by robots.txt
• Orphaned pages (no internal links)
• Broken links to key pages

By resolving these problems, you’ll increase visibility and bring in more traffic through organic search.

Step 5: Ensure your site is mobile-friendly

With mobile-first indexing, a mobile-friendly site has become a must. Do a free website audit with:

• Check responsiveness
• Test page load times on mobile
• Fix usability issues

A mobile-friendly site will give users a good experience, which makes them more likely to keep reading. This is also of benefit to organic search traffic.

Step 6: Benchmark core web vitals

Core Web Vitals are crucial as far as Google is concerned. Use tools such as PageSpeed Insights for evaluation.

• Largest Contentful Paint (LCP)
• First Input Delay (FID)
• Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS)

Correct these three indicators, and you give your user a much better browsing experience. You no longer need to purchase search engine traffic from outside sources; send millions more of your qualified, deep-focused web users and turn organic search into your friend.

Step 7: Fix broken pages to reclaim authority

Broken pages annoy users and squander the power of links. Use a backlink audit tool to:

• Identify broken links
• Fix or redirect them

When you mend the broken pages, you regain the credibility of your site.

Step 8: Audit your sitemap for issues

SEO-compatible sitemaps aid search engine robots in understanding your website. You can use the quick SEO inspection below to decide whether to include or exclude a page from the sitemap:

• Remove 404 pages from your sitemap.
• Include only canonical URLs.
• Make sure to include all orphan pages.

An optimized sitemap ensures regular organic search traffic.

Step 9: Align on-page elements with SEO best practices

The names and descriptions of on-page features like title attributes, meta-descriptions, headers, and so forth must be consistent with SEO principles. Carry out an on-page SEO audit:

• Optimize titles for your target keywords.
• Write compelling meta descriptions.
• Apply H1, H2, and H3 tags properly.

These practices help your content appeal to both people and robots.

Step 10: Reclaim rankings for declining content

Over time, some content may lose rankings. Conduct a website content audit to:

• Identify outdated posts
• Refresh content with updated data and keywords.
• Add relevant internal links.

Reclaiming rankings can significantly boost your organic search traffic.

Step 11: Research competitor keywords

Find gaps in your keyword strategy by analyzing your competitors. Tools like Ahrefs can show:

• Keywords your competitors rank for.
• High-volume keywords that you’re missing

Incorporating these keywords can improve your content strategy and drive organic search traffic.

Step 12: Strengthen internal links

Often overlooked, internal linking can significantly impact SEO. During your site audit, check for:

• Orphan pages
• Overused anchor texts
• Relevant pages to interlink

A strong internal link structure enhances site navigation and boosts rankings.

Step 13: Optimize for AI overviews and featured snippets

AI-generated overviews and featured snippets are gaining prominence. To optimize it for them:

• Use structured data (schema markup).
• Write concise answers to common questions.
• Include lists, tables, and bullet points.

This strategy makes your content more likely to appear in search highlights, improving organic search traffic.

Free SEO tools to get started

Here are some free tools to assist you in your SEO audit journey:

• Google Search Console: Monitor your site’s performance.
• PageSpeed Insights: analyze page speed and Core Web Vitals.
• Ahrefs Free Tools: Conduct a backlink audit.
• SEMrush Free Trial: Perform a detailed SEMrush site audit.
• The Screaming Frog:  Free Version allows you to crawl up to 500 URLs.

These tools ensure your audits are thorough and actionable.

How to conduct a Google My Business audit

Given the popularity of local SEO these days, it’s crucial to enhance your Google My Business (GMB) profile. A Google My Business audit includes:

• Ensure that your NAP details (name, address, and phone number) are correct.
• Adding high-quality photos
• Collecting and responding to reviews

A well-optimized GMB profile attracts local organic search traffic and lifts your name.

Avoid common mistakes during an SEO audit

• Neglecting mobile optimization.
• Ignoring Core Web Vitals.
• Do not edit old posts.
• Omitting schema markup implementation

By steering clear of these mistakes, you’ll help keep your website captivating and set enough traffic to be a respectable organic search destination.

Conclusion

Mastering organic search traffic begins with a comprehensive SEO inspection. From this 13-step guide, you can label mistakes and respond to them, optimize website performance, and keep ahead of the competition.

Using tools like SEMrush Site Audit, do a quick SEO site audit and update your content regularly to keep your growth going at all costs. Safeguard that position in Google’s top search results against the continual influx of free traffic.

FAQs About Organic Search Traffic

1. What’s organic search traffic?

Organic searches are the result of Internet surfers who landed on your site by way of major search engines like Google, Yahoo, Bing, and others without having paid for ads in order to get there. The visitors you receive from this source are highly sought after for any website owner, as their presence positively impacts your site’s overall performance and search engine ranking.

2. How Does an SEO Audit Improve Organic Search Traffic?

Identifying and resolving the technical and content issues preventing your site from generating any organic search results is crucial. By addressing these issues early on, you can improve your site’s rankings and attract more visitors who can easily find their desired content by simply clicking on a link in their browser.

3. Are There Free Tools for Conducting SEO Audits?

Yes, you can use the Google Webmaster Tools, Ahrefs Free Tools, and SEO audit tools online for free to check your site out.

4. How Often Should I Perform an SEO Audit?

Evaluate your website every six to twelve months, or after major changes such as redesigns or Google algorithm updates.

5. What Is the Role of Backlink Audits in Organic Search Traffic?

A backlink audit can help to filter out harmful links—and to reclaim the authority that is yours by fixing broken ones. In this manner, you can enhance the SEO of your website, leading to improved organic search results.