Local SEO is the backbone of regional businesses, and it helps them get higher visibility and traction from targeted audiences. Whether you're into a local store, restaurant, online shop, or any other type of business, conducting an SEO audit can help you identify and correct existing problems.

This article will explore everything you need to know about conducting a local SEO audit and getting the most out of it. Whether you have an in-house team or planning to opt for local SEO services, this article will give you a better understanding of the process.

Why is local SEO audit important?

Conducting a local SEO audit is important to make sure that your website meets industry standards, adheres to best practices, and follows Google’s guidelines. It helps you identify existing technical issues and keyword ranking opportunities to drive more organic traffic, generate leads, and ultimately increase ROI.

Before you start the audit process, it’s important to compile a list of the key elements that should be included during each stage. This will help you understand the process and put together a plan to make sure that everything gets done correctly. Take help from local SEO packages or hire a reputed agency to get the best results if you don't have an in-house team.

Steps to perform local SEO audit:

Analyze your Google Business Profile:

Your Google business profile is the heart of your local presence. Make sure it’s updated and optimized with complete details like address, contact information, hours of operation, and links to your website. In addition, the NAP (name, address, phone number) should be consistent across the web.

If you're running a business on multiple locations, claim each location separately and optimize them with your website’s content. Additionally, add relevant images and videos where appropriate to attract more customers. The more optimized and complete the profile is, the better visibility of your business on search engine result pages (SERPs).

Check for Google penalties:

Google penalizes sites for various reasons like low-quality content, intrusive ads, link-building schemes, etc. To ensure that your website is not penalized, monitor the Google Search Console regularly so that you can identify any negative changes in rankings, traffic, or keyword performance.

If it's penalized for any reason, take corrective actions and ensure the issue is addressed. Resolve the error before submitting a reconsideration request to Google. Also, check for any manual or algorithmic penalties to make sure your website is compliant with Google’s guidelines. You can also take help from professional local SEO services to get this done.

Audit your keywords and optimize them:

Keywords play a crucial role in local SEO as they help you attract the attention of potential customers. Audit your existing keywords and optimize them with relevant long-tail phrases to drive more organic traffic. Make sure that you are using the most relevant words for each page, and update them regularly.

You can also check for keyword opportunities by researching your competitor’s websites. Monitor their activities and analyze the words they are using to rank higher in search engine results. Also, use online tools like Google Trends and Keyword Planner to find the most popular keywords in your niche. Once you have the list of relevant keywords, adjust them according to your website’s goals and objectives.

Identify duplicate pages and fix them:

Duplicate content can affect your rankings and visibility on SERPs. Therefore, it’s important to identify any duplicate pages within your website and get rid of them by either merging or eliminating the pages. Use online tools like CopyScape to check for any duplicated content in both desktop and mobile versions of your site.

Furthermore, you should also check for any copied content from other sources. Make sure that all content is original and relevant to your business. If possible, add multimedia elements such as videos, images, and audio files to make your content stand out from the rest.

Audit your backlinks:

Backlinks are one of the most important ranking signals for search engines. As such, it is important to audit your backlinks regularly to ensure that they are helping you rank higher.
If you find some low-quality links, then you can disavow them to avoid any potential penalties from Google.

Also, look for opportunities to build high-quality links from authoritative websites in your niche. You can use online tools such as Ahrefs and SEMrush to audit your existing backlinks and identify link-building opportunities. It's important for your website to build a natural backlink profile with diverse sources.

Test all your newly-developed landing pages:

Once you have optimized all your landing pages, it's time to test them. Make sure that all the links on the page are working properly and that the content is relevant to the topic. You can use online tools such as Google PageSpeed Insights and WebPageTest to check for any errors or issues in your pages.

Additionally, you should also test the page's loading time and mobile-friendliness. Make sure that all the pages are optimized for mobile devices to provide a better user experience. Also, make sure to use a responsive design for all the pages. Performing A/B testing can also help you identify which version of the page performs better.

Review the feedback and ratings:

The feedback and ratings that your website receives can help you improve its rankings. Therefore, review all the ratings and reviews associated with your business to gauge customer satisfaction. Reply to all the negative comments and address them as soon as possible.

Also, make sure that customers are able to leave feedback on your website by integrating a rating system or feedback form. Monitor the ratings and reviews closely, and take action to ensure that customers are satisfied with your business offerings.

Wrapping up!

Conducting a local SEO audit for your business is important to ensure that it can rank higher in search engine results. Audit your existing pages and identify any potential issues that may affect the rankings of your website. Go for personalized local SEO packages if you don't have the resources or the time to implement an audit.