Auditing a business website can uncover a host of issues that could make a huge difference in the amount of organic search traffic the company would see if they were fixed. When agencies dig into a new client’s site to analyze its performance, they often identify problems the client isn’t even aware of and can’t address in-house.
Doing a website audit is a key way for agencies to show clients where gaps exist in their SEO strategies and how poor practices negatively impact results. Here, 16 members of Forbes Agency Council share the most common SEO errors their agencies encounter when conducting site audits for new clients and how they can be fixed.
Forbes Agency Council members share common SEO errors and how to fix them.
Photos courtesy of the individual members.1. Jamming In Too Many Keywords
While none of our clients want to engage in unsavory practices, there’s a tendency to sometimes prioritize the number of keywords above the overall quality and substance of an article. I truly believe there’s a way to check both boxes! Ultimately, it comes down to two important things: the mindset of the target market and what stage of the funnel we’re at with them. - Mike Leon, Brand Heroes Inc.
2. Relying Too Much On Brand Search
The most common SEO error is relying too much on brand search. Most companies spend big bucks to make their brand known, but one of the best ways to get people familiar with your brand is to help them find you when they are searching for a solution. Building some content around genuinely helping the customer is what wins in the end. - PJ Haarsma, Redbear Films
3. Lacking Clarity About The Topic
SEO errors come from many places, but the most damaging is when the content isn’t clear about the topic or the expertise of the business. How can your website be the answer to a question when you don’t talk about the topic? - Chris Siebeneck, SEO Werkz
4. Ignoring Google’s Core Web Vitals
Optimizing for user experience has always been important, but now website owners who care about their organic visibility on Google must also be mindful of its Core Web Vitals. These metrics quantify UX and identify opportunities to improve page speed, conversion rates and search rankings. Search Console can measure your site’s search traffic and performance, including Core Web Vitals. - Dennis Kirwan, Dymic Digital
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5. Not Optimizing Pages For Mobile
Many websites look great on a desktop, but when you view them on a mobile phone, the orientation, text and content are not formatted properly. For a high organic ranking on Google, bounce rate and time spent on site are crucial. If the site is not optimized for mobile, users will leave right away, which increases bounce rate and lowers time spent. - Geoff Crain, Kingstar Media
6. Having Broken Site Links On External Sites
Broken links back to the company’s website can be found on external pages, such as social pages that were once connected and articles that have been removed. These broken links will negatively affect SEO and can be fixed by either updating or removing them entirely. - Spencer Hadelman, Advantage Marketing
7. Not Consistently Adding New Website Content
Many clients have a “one and done” view of creating content for their websites, whereas if they were to create a blog where fresh, keyword-heavy content can be placed, they would enjoy a little boost from the search engines. This is a key component of a successful SEO effort. - Christopher Tompkins, The Go! Agency
8. Not Understanding How To Incorporate Keywords
Many clients lack an understanding of basic keywords and how to incorporate them into site content, including a blog. The best fix is to partner with an SEO pro, who will audit the site and suggest optimization strategies. - Laurie Buckle, CookIt Media
9. Not Considering All Search Terms Prospects Use
Consider the terms prospective clients are using to search for you. “Full-service influencer marketing agency” and “top mom influencer roster” are two objectively different phrases that could describe the same agency. The company blog can be a great way to incorporate SEO-rich terms in a way that feels natural, particularly when those terms don’t necessarily align with your agency’s positioning. - Cooper Munroe, The Motherhood Inc.
10. Neglecting How The Mobile Site Looks
We often find a complete lack of understanding and neglect of how the mobile website looks. Prospective clients always look at their website through the lens of a laptop, without understanding that 50% or more of their visitors are coming from mobile phones. Having an effective mobile site is critical to any successful marketing strategy. - T. Maxwell, eMaximize
11. Having Duplicate Content
A specific SEO error that we find is having duplicate content published. All clients focused on SEO over the past few years have been writing a lot of content. Now, that content is competing against itself, as Google will typically only rank one page on your site for a specific search. So we work with clients to combine pages of information, internal links and external references. - Peter Boyd, PaperStreet Web Design
12. Slow Page Load Speed
The most common error we come across when performing site audits for clients is a slow page load speed. Having a fast-loading page is incredibly important. The best way to fix this is to use caching and enabling compression for HTML, JavaScript and CSS files. Images should also be optimized correctly, using small file sizes and a modern image format, such as WebP. - Gareth O’Sullivan, The Creation Agency
13. Improper Positioning Of Conversion-Based Elements
The largest issue we encounter is improper positioning of conversion-based elements, or the lack thereof. Even with a slow website, broken links and so on, when you ask for or present a conversion opportunity can make or break the opportunity for a lead to come your way. Clients often ask for these at the wrong time, in the wrong place or when they have not fully fleshed out what they are trying to convince the audience of. - David Kley, Web Design and Company
14. Having A Bad Header-To-Text Ratio
The most common SEO error found is the use of headers—many websites have either too many or too few headers in proportion to the bodies of text on the page. Clients can fix this by adding additional headers with target keywords implemented, or by adding more bodies of text to complement the number of headers if they have too many. The header-to-text ratio is imperative for ranking and ease of use for Web users. - Evan Nison, NisonCo
15. Not Employing Technical SEO Or Using Schema Tags
Most brands invest heavily in keyword research and white hat SEO parameters and installations, which is not bad. But, after doing tons of SEO audits for my clients, I have found that most of these brand websites are not employing schema tags and other technical SEO approaches for better visibility and scientific appearance of their pages on SERPs. - Candice Georgiadis, Digital Day
16. Lacking A Proper XML Sitemap
The most common (and easily fixed) SEO error we find on client websites is the lack of a proper XML sitemap. You can easily create a sitemap with a WordPress plugin (we use Yoast). Sitemaps tell Google what pages are on your site. This helps Google to index the pages and the content found on those pages so that you can rank in Google’s search results. - Amy Catley, Uptime Legal JurisPage
