SEO
How to Do a Content Audit in 2022
Most of us are so focused on publishing new content that we neglect the content we already have.
This is a mistake because not everything you publish will be a home run out of the park. Sometimes, it’ll fail to rank on Google, or convert, or contribute to your business goals in any meaningful way.
When this happens, you shouldn’t just leave the page to die a slow, painful death. You should revisit it, figure out what went wrong, and take action to improve its performance.
However, before you can do that, you need to find your underperforming pages—which is where a content audit comes in.
In this guide, you’ll learn the following:
A content audit is where you analyze the performance of your content to find opportunities for improvement. Many content audits focus on SEO performance, but a full audit also takes into account the content’s business performance and utility.
A content audit is important for understanding what you need to do to improve your site’s performance. It helps you to identify pages that aren’t performing well, why they aren’t, and how to fix that.
If you’re purely looking to improve your site’s organic search performance, follow this simple SEO content audit process:
IMPORTANT
Here are two things to keep in mind when following this process:
- You should only use it for pages intended to rank in organic search – In other words, don’t use this for “About” pages and the like. It doesn’t matter whether those pages rank on Google because that’s not their purpose.
- You should take the recommendations with a pinch of salt – Don’t blindly follow the recommendations without manually double-checking that they make sense. Things aren’t always so black and white, and you may need to check a couple of other things manually before confidently executing the action. I’ll discuss a few common “it depends” scenarios below.
This process is based closely on the way our free SEO WordPress plugin works, which pretty much automates the entire content audit process and kicks back recommendations.
Example of post-audit recommendations in our free SEO WordPress plugin.
For that reason, if your site runs on WordPress and you don’t want to know every last detail of how the process works, it’s probably quicker to use the plugin. (We have resources to help you learn how to install and use it.)
But if you’re doing this manually, keep reading as we go through how to answer the questions in the content audit process and what actions to take in each scenario.
Let’s start at the top.
1. Is the page more than 6 months old?
If the answer to this question is no, then the page shouldn’t be audited. This is because it takes time to rank on Google, so it’s not a great idea to make changes to recently published content until it has had time to rank.
For example, we won’t bother auditing this blog post today. This is because it was only published in January:
That said, the six-month period isn’t set in stone. If you think three months is enough time for a page to rank or simply prefer to leave pages for 12 months before auditing them, feel free to adjust this number.
2. Does it rank in the top three?
If the page is more than 6 months old, the next question is whether it currently ranks in the top three for its primary target keyword. You can find this information in Ahrefs’ Site Explorer (get access for free with an Ahrefs Webmaster Tools account).
Here’s how:
- Paste your webpage URL into Site Explorer
- Go to the Organic keywords report
- Check your primary target’s ranking position
For example, if we do this for our SEO checklist, you can see that it ranks in position #3:
If your page ranks in the top three and you’re happy with that position, there’s no need to take any action. However, if you want to pursue the top spot, you’ll want to investigate the SERP further to see whether that’s even likely to be possible. And if so, what you’ll need to do to get there.
Learn how to do that in our guide to ranking higher on Google.
3. Does it rank in the top 20?
If your page doesn’t currently rank in the top three, use the Organic keywords report to see if it’s at least in the top 20.
If it is, check to see whether the page is targeting a unique keyword.
The easiest way is to run a site: search for your website and target keyword, then eyeball the results for other pages seemingly targeting the same keyword.
For example, if we run a site: search for moz.com + keyword cannibalization, Moz appears to have multiple pages targeting this keyword:
In this case, it probably makes the most sense to merge these posts into one—then use 301 redirects to consolidate the link equity.
However, if the page is targeting a unique keyword, the best course of action is probably to update it. After all, the page is ranking in the top 20, so it’s showing some signs of life. You may be able to crack the top 10 by adding updates to ensure that:
- It’s a good match for search intent.
- Its basic on-page SEO is on point (title tag, H1, etc.).
- It covers the topic fully.
IMPORTANT
Low rankings aren’t always a content problem. You may simply not have enough backlinks to compete in the SERP. You can get a rough sense of how your link profile stacks up against the competition by plugging your keyword into Ahrefs’ Keywords Explorer and checking the Domains column for the competition.
You can then see how those numbers compare to your page by plugging it into Ahrefs’ Site Explorer.
In our case, it doesn’t look like we’re lacking backlinks, as the number of referring domains pointing to our page is roughly on par with our competitors’.
If you’re an Ahrefs user, you can use Site Explorer to find important subtopics you may have missed. Just plug your page in it, go to the Content Gap report, paste in the URLs of a few top-ranking posts for your keyword, then hit “Show keywords.” You’ll see all the keywords these pages rank for that your page doesn’t.
For example, if we do this for our guest blogging guide, you’ll see that some of the top-ranking pages are ranking for “what is guest blogging”:
We don’t rank for this keyword because we didn’t include a definition on our page, so we’ll probably want to add this during the update to make our page more comprehensive.
4. Is ranking for this keyword important to you?
If your page isn’t ranking in the top 20 for its target keyword, it’s probably going to take a lot of time and effort to crack the first page. After all, it’s usually harder to boost a page by 20+ positions than it is by just one or two.
For that reason, you need to decide whether the effort is really worth the reward—and that means asking yourself how important ranking for this keyword is for your business.
If the keyword is not particularly important…
Plug the page into Google Search Console to see if it’s attracting any organic traffic.
If it is attracting organic traffic and you want to keep it, leave the page as is and exclude it from future content audits.
If it isn’t attracting organic traffic, follow this process:
Note that if you’re redirecting the page, you should redirect it to a similar page (e.g., /link-building-tactics/ → /link-building/).
TIP
It’s also best practice to update internal links after you delete a page. Here’s how to find these links using Ahrefs’ Site Audit (you can use this for free with an Ahrefs Webmaster Tools account):
- Crawl your site
- Go to the Link Explorer tool
- Enter the URL of the page you just deleted in the search box
- Set the dropdown to “Target URL”
You’ll then see the locations of all internal links to that page:
If the keyword is important…
You need to figure out why the page is not ranking and take action. Often, this will come down to grossly mismatched search intent—at least in part. If that’s the case, you’ll probably have to go back to the drawing board and rewrite the content from scratch.
However, there could be other reasons the page isn’t ranking, such as a lack of backlinks, a SERP dominated by well-known competitors, or something else entirely. For that reason, if you’re not sure why it isn’t ranking, check out our step-by-step guide to ranking higher on Google.
If you’re looking for a more robust, SEO-first content audit that also takes things like conversions into account, Patrick Stox has you covered:
You can see this is a more intensive process that’s pretty much impossible to fully automate, so it’s certainly more of a workflow for hardcore marketers.
Here are a few tools and resources to help with answering the questions:
Final thoughts
Content audits should be done regularly. They reveal how to improve your website’s performance (SEO and otherwise) and help you achieve your business objectives.
Just remember that although automation can help with the content audit process, common sense and manual checks are still important. Never delete or redirect content unless you’re confident that it’s the best course of action. And if you’re unsure, hire an SEO or marketing professional to do the content audit for you.
Got questions? Ping me on Twitter.
SEO
Google Further Postpones Third-Party Cookie Deprecation In Chrome
Google has again delayed its plan to phase out third-party cookies in the Chrome web browser. The latest postponement comes after ongoing challenges in reconciling feedback from industry stakeholders and regulators.
The announcement was made in Google and the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) joint quarterly report on the Privacy Sandbox initiative, scheduled for release on April 26.
Chrome’s Third-Party Cookie Phaseout Pushed To 2025
Google states it “will not complete third-party cookie deprecation during the second half of Q4” this year as planned.
Instead, the tech giant aims to begin deprecating third-party cookies in Chrome “starting early next year,” assuming an agreement can be reached with the CMA and the UK’s Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).
The statement reads:
“We recognize that there are ongoing challenges related to reconciling divergent feedback from the industry, regulators and developers, and will continue to engage closely with the entire ecosystem. It’s also critical that the CMA has sufficient time to review all evidence, including results from industry tests, which the CMA has asked market participants to provide by the end of June.”
Continued Engagement With Regulators
Google reiterated its commitment to “engaging closely with the CMA and ICO” throughout the process and hopes to conclude discussions this year.
This marks the third delay to Google’s plan to deprecate third-party cookies, initially aiming for a Q3 2023 phaseout before pushing it back to late 2024.
The postponements reflect the challenges in transitioning away from cross-site user tracking while balancing privacy and advertiser interests.
Transition Period & Impact
In January, Chrome began restricting third-party cookie access for 1% of users globally. This percentage was expected to gradually increase until 100% of users were covered by Q3 2024.
However, the latest delay gives websites and services more time to migrate away from third-party cookie dependencies through Google’s limited “deprecation trials” program.
The trials offer temporary cookie access extensions until December 27, 2024, for non-advertising use cases that can demonstrate direct user impact and functional breakage.
While easing the transition, the trials have strict eligibility rules. Advertising-related services are ineligible, and origins matching known ad-related domains are rejected.
Google states the program aims to address functional issues rather than relieve general data collection inconveniences.
Publisher & Advertiser Implications
The repeated delays highlight the potential disruption for digital publishers and advertisers relying on third-party cookie tracking.
Industry groups have raised concerns that restricting cross-site tracking could push websites toward more opaque privacy-invasive practices.
However, privacy advocates view the phaseout as crucial in preventing covert user profiling across the web.
With the latest postponement, all parties have more time to prepare for the eventual loss of third-party cookies and adopt Google’s proposed Privacy Sandbox APIs as replacements.
Featured Image: Novikov Aleksey/Shutterstock
SEO
How To Write ChatGPT Prompts To Get The Best Results
ChatGPT is a game changer in the field of SEO. This powerful language model can generate human-like content, making it an invaluable tool for SEO professionals.
However, the prompts you provide largely determine the quality of the output.
To unlock the full potential of ChatGPT and create content that resonates with your audience and search engines, writing effective prompts is crucial.
In this comprehensive guide, we’ll explore the art of writing prompts for ChatGPT, covering everything from basic techniques to advanced strategies for layering prompts and generating high-quality, SEO-friendly content.
Writing Prompts For ChatGPT
What Is A ChatGPT Prompt?
A ChatGPT prompt is an instruction or discussion topic a user provides for the ChatGPT AI model to respond to.
The prompt can be a question, statement, or any other stimulus to spark creativity, reflection, or engagement.
Users can use the prompt to generate ideas, share their thoughts, or start a conversation.
ChatGPT prompts are designed to be open-ended and can be customized based on the user’s preferences and interests.
How To Write Prompts For ChatGPT
Start by giving ChatGPT a writing prompt, such as, “Write a short story about a person who discovers they have a superpower.”
ChatGPT will then generate a response based on your prompt. Depending on the prompt’s complexity and the level of detail you requested, the answer may be a few sentences or several paragraphs long.
Use the ChatGPT-generated response as a starting point for your writing. You can take the ideas and concepts presented in the answer and expand upon them, adding your own unique spin to the story.
If you want to generate additional ideas, try asking ChatGPT follow-up questions related to your original prompt.
For example, you could ask, “What challenges might the person face in exploring their newfound superpower?” Or, “How might the person’s relationships with others be affected by their superpower?”
Remember that ChatGPT’s answers are generated by artificial intelligence and may not always be perfect or exactly what you want.
However, they can still be a great source of inspiration and help you start writing.
Must-Have GPTs Assistant
I recommend installing the WebBrowser Assistant created by the OpenAI Team. This tool allows you to add relevant Bing results to your ChatGPT prompts.
This assistant adds the first web results to your ChatGPT prompts for more accurate and up-to-date conversations.
It is very easy to install in only two clicks. (Click on Start Chat.)
For example, if I ask, “Who is Vincent Terrasi?,” ChatGPT has no answer.
With WebBrower Assistant, the assistant creates a new prompt with the first Bing results, and now ChatGPT knows who Vincent Terrasi is.
Screenshot from ChatGPT, March 2023You can test other GPT assistants available in the GPTs search engine if you want to use Google results.
Master Reverse Prompt Engineering
ChatGPT can be an excellent tool for reverse engineering prompts because it generates natural and engaging responses to any given input.
By analyzing the prompts generated by ChatGPT, it is possible to gain insight into the model’s underlying thought processes and decision-making strategies.
One key benefit of using ChatGPT to reverse engineer prompts is that the model is highly transparent in its decision-making.
This means that the reasoning and logic behind each response can be traced, making it easier to understand how the model arrives at its conclusions.
Once you’ve done this a few times for different types of content, you’ll gain insight into crafting more effective prompts.
Prepare Your ChatGPT For Generating Prompts
First, activate the reverse prompt engineering.
- Type the following prompt: “Enable Reverse Prompt Engineering? By Reverse Prompt Engineering I mean creating a prompt from a given text.”
Screenshot from ChatGPT, March 2023ChatGPT is now ready to generate your prompt. You can test the product description in a new chatbot session and evaluate the generated prompt.
- Type: “Create a very technical reverse prompt engineering template for a product description about iPhone 11.”
Screenshot from ChatGPT, March 2023The result is amazing. You can test with a full text that you want to reproduce. Here is an example of a prompt for selling a Kindle on Amazon.
- Type: “Reverse Prompt engineer the following {product), capture the writing style and the length of the text :
product =”
Screenshot from ChatGPT, March 2023I tested it on an SEJ blog post. Enjoy the analysis – it is excellent.
- Type: “Reverse Prompt engineer the following {text}, capture the tone and writing style of the {text} to include in the prompt :
text = all text coming from https://www.searchenginejournal.com/google-bard-training-data/478941/”
Screenshot from ChatGPT, March 2023But be careful not to use ChatGPT to generate your texts. It is just a personal assistant.
Go Deeper
Prompts and examples for SEO:
- Keyword research and content ideas prompt: “Provide a list of 20 long-tail keyword ideas related to ‘local SEO strategies’ along with brief content topic descriptions for each keyword.”
- Optimizing content for featured snippets prompt: “Write a 40-50 word paragraph optimized for the query ‘what is the featured snippet in Google search’ that could potentially earn the featured snippet.”
- Creating meta descriptions prompt: “Draft a compelling meta description for the following blog post title: ’10 Technical SEO Factors You Can’t Ignore in 2024′.”
Important Considerations:
- Always Fact-Check: While ChatGPT can be a helpful tool, it’s crucial to remember that it may generate inaccurate or fabricated information. Always verify any facts, statistics, or quotes generated by ChatGPT before incorporating them into your content.
- Maintain Control and Creativity: Use ChatGPT as a tool to assist your writing, not replace it. Don’t rely on it to do your thinking or create content from scratch. Your unique perspective and creativity are essential for producing high-quality, engaging content.
- Iteration is Key: Refine and revise the outputs generated by ChatGPT to ensure they align with your voice, style, and intended message.
Additional Prompts for Rewording and SEO:
– Rewrite this sentence to be more concise and impactful.
– Suggest alternative phrasing for this section to improve clarity.
– Identify opportunities to incorporate relevant internal and external links.
– Analyze the keyword density and suggest improvements for better SEO.
Remember, while ChatGPT can be a valuable tool, it’s essential to use it responsibly and maintain control over your content creation process.
Experiment And Refine Your Prompting Techniques
Writing effective prompts for ChatGPT is an essential skill for any SEO professional who wants to harness the power of AI-generated content.
Hopefully, the insights and examples shared in this article can inspire you and help guide you to crafting stronger prompts that yield high-quality content.
Remember to experiment with layering prompts, iterating on the output, and continually refining your prompting techniques.
This will help you stay ahead of the curve in the ever-changing world of SEO.
More resources:
Featured Image: Tapati Rinchumrus/Shutterstock
SEO
Measuring Content Impact Across The Customer Journey
Understanding the impact of your content at every touchpoint of the customer journey is essential – but that’s easier said than done. From attracting potential leads to nurturing them into loyal customers, there are many touchpoints to look into.
So how do you identify and take advantage of these opportunities for growth?
Watch this on-demand webinar and learn a comprehensive approach for measuring the value of your content initiatives, so you can optimize resource allocation for maximum impact.
You’ll learn:
- Fresh methods for measuring your content’s impact.
- Fascinating insights using first-touch attribution, and how it differs from the usual last-touch perspective.
- Ways to persuade decision-makers to invest in more content by showcasing its value convincingly.
With Bill Franklin and Oliver Tani of DAC Group, we unravel the nuances of attribution modeling, emphasizing the significance of layering first-touch and last-touch attribution within your measurement strategy.
Check out these insights to help you craft compelling content tailored to each stage, using an approach rooted in first-hand experience to ensure your content resonates.
Whether you’re a seasoned marketer or new to content measurement, this webinar promises valuable insights and actionable tactics to elevate your SEO game and optimize your content initiatives for success.
View the slides below or check out the full webinar for all the details.
19 Best SEO Tools in 2024 (For Every Use Case)
Ecommerce evolution: Blurring the lines between B2B and B2C
Daily Search Forum Recap: April 19, 2024
Daily Search Forum Recap: April 18, 2024
How to Make $5000 of Passive Income Every Month in WordPress
2024 WordPress Vulnerability Report Shows Errors Sites Keep Making
10 Amazing WordPress Design Resouces – WordPress.com News
[GET] The7 Website And Ecommerce Builder For WordPress
25 WordPress Alternatives Best For SEO
7 Best WooCommerce Points and Rewards Plugins (Free & Paid)
-
PPC6 days ago19 Best SEO Tools in 2024 (For Every Use Case)
-
MARKETING7 days agoEcommerce evolution: Blurring the lines between B2B and B2C
-
SEARCHENGINES5 days ago
Daily Search Forum Recap: April 19, 2024
-
SEARCHENGINES6 days ago
Daily Search Forum Recap: April 18, 2024
-
WORDPRESS6 days agoHow to Make $5000 of Passive Income Every Month in WordPress
-
SEO6 days ago2024 WordPress Vulnerability Report Shows Errors Sites Keep Making
-
WORDPRESS6 days ago10 Amazing WordPress Design Resouces – WordPress.com News
-
WORDPRESS7 days ago
[GET] The7 Website And Ecommerce Builder For WordPress
You must be logged in to post a comment Login