How To Create a Google Sheets SEO Audit Template

If your agency is exploring the ins and outs of creating a comprehensive Google Sheets SEO audit template, you’ve come to the right place. 

As you know, SEO isn’t just a matter of adding structured data to a blog post or making a couple of website tweaks here and there. Conquering the top spots on search engines requires continuous investment, tweaks, and adjustments.  

The more time I spend on SEO activities that move the needle, the more successful my clients and my business are.

Will Mullins, Will Mullins Search Engine Optimisation Services

When your agency begins to scale, you’ll need a sustainable way to conduct website audits for multiple clients or even pitch it as an add-on service. And that’s where an SEO audit template comes in handy. 

Whether you’re looking to create your own Google Sheets template or you’re exploring an SEO tools, we've got you covered.

Let’s get into it.

5 Top Uses for an SEO Audit Template

Wondering if it’s worth the hassle? It certainly is! Even when you are using SEO tools to do much of the heavy lifting behind the scenes, a template offers a systematic approach that’s easily replicable and incredibly time-saving. 

Google Sheets is often the go-to platform simply because of the ease of collaboration, task assignment feature, and automatic backup.

Here's why SEO audits are essential, whether creating one from scratch or using a pre-built template. 

1. To Identify and Resolve SEO Issues

You can’t fix what you don’t identify. 

SEO-related issues are common, from outdated title tags to missing meta descriptions. Run an audit on a potential client's website, and you'll be hard-pressed to find one with a perfect score.

And in the ever-evolving world of SEO, nothing stays the same, so you’ll need to adjust your client’s strategy in case of any developments (such as algorithm changes). 

As a result, it’s crucial to perform website audits with an SEO audit tool and identify any pressing issues (like high organic traffic with high bounce rates).

Using an audit template, pinpoint any potential SEO problems and increase the likelihood of a higher search engine ranking faster and easier. 

2. To Create a Standardized and Professional Approach 

Let’s say you’re managing multiple clients with robust and intricately designed websites. If you have over 50 clients and each client’s website has 100 web pages, it’ll be a mammoth task to conduct regular SEO audits without some form of standardization.

And it’s no secret that agency processes are an absolute must to run your business successfully. A well-designed, standardized template is just what you need to adopt a professional and repeatable approach and let your clients know that you mean business. 

Having a template for SEO audits also means you won’t waste time reinventing the wheel each time a client's website needs an audit. 

3. To Streamline SEO Processes & Client Reporting

Use a template to add to existing SEO processes and inform client reports. Not only does it give tremendous value by standardizing the audit procedures, but it also adds another dimension to client reporting (especially if you use more than one SEO audit tool).

A template for SEO audits could also provide structure if you offer these insights as a standalone service.

4. For Task Management

If you’re looking for a methodological approach to monitoring SEO-related tasks, atemplate is the way to go. 

Create an ongoing, easily referenced SEO checklist to keep your clients’ websites in tip-top shape. At the same time, this SEO to-do list should also hold your agency accountable for any agreed-upon tasks. 

Keep tabs on your tasks, so nothing slips through the cracks. Have your teams create their task lists alongside their client metrics. Try AgencyAnalytics free for 14 days.

5. To Identify Low-Hanging SEO Fruit

A comprehensive SEO audit should evaluate all aspects of your client’s website. Some fixes will be easier to implement than others, resulting in a faster turnaround time for your agency. 

By focusing on quick wins, your agency can deliver value immediately. And this process can be repeated each month to show the constant improvements being executed.

Even if your agency doesn’t manage a particular client’s SEO, identifying these quick wins is a great opportunity to upsell your services or add value to your agency-client relationship. And because many aspects of SEO can impact other channels, such as ad quality scores, or social media bounce rates, your due diligence will be rewarded with a smooth-running website.

Some examples of low-hanging SEO fruit include:

• Fixing metadata (such as crafting better title tags or replacing duplicate meta descriptions)

• Adding sub-headers to a blog post with many views but a low conversion rate (which will make skim-reading easier)

• Updating broken internal links

• Embedding additional and relevant keywords into content to improve search engine rankings

• Improving site loading times by compressing large media

• Removing irrelevant external links

Check out the Google Sheets Export Extension: The easiest way to get your marketing data from over 80 top marketing platforms into Google Sheets for extra handling and analysis.

What Should Your Agency Include in an SEO Audit Template?

A well-designed template should both help your team execute a client's SEO campaign while gathering valuable insights that help your clients understand what’s working well and what needs improvement. 

Here’s what to include when creating a Google Sheets audit template.

On-page Optimization Checks

Your SEO audits should include on-page optimization checks. Identifying the following in your Google Sheets template:

• Any web pages with 4XX or 5XX error codes

• Missing metadata (i.e., title tags, meta descriptions, ALT text, schema markup, headings/subheadings)

• Missing files, images, or other media 

• Missing robot.txt files

• Missing or invalid sitemaps 

• Incorrect or missing page indexing 

• Duplicate content (which could adversely affect search engine rankings) 

• Server errors

• Low word counts for any website content

• Any broken or NoFollow attributes internal links

There are so many elements that are important when it comes to SEO. But I'd say that the most important elements are the meta title and meta descriptions. This is because a well-written meta title and meta descriptions can lead someone from simply seeing the page or blog in their search results to actually clicking on it and engaging with the content.

Jessica Tappana, Founder of Simplified SEO Consulting

Depending on the size of your client's website, this could take hours, days, or even weeks to complete if done page-by-page.

Two Types of On-Page SEO Optimization

On-Page optimization typically falls into two distinct buckets:

• Sitewide Technical SEO issues

• On-page optimizations to target specific keywords and phrases

Both types of on-page SEO optimization are essential to the success of any website. Sitewide technical SEO audits look for broader issues, like the ones outlined above, to ensure your client's website can be properly crawled, indexed, and ranked by search engines.

On-page keyword optimizations go deeper into keyword density, semantic keyword variations, and the other elements that help Google understand exactly what a specific page on your client's website is about.

Work to identify potential technical SEO issues first so that these issues will not interfere with on-page optimizations. Once the site’s technical SEO issues are addressed, the focus shifts to the finer elements that make up individual web pages to give your client the best chance at ranking in SERPs.

Off-page Optimization Checks

Yes, it’s essential to build and optimize an amazing website for each client. However, remember that there are also off-page factors that influence search engine rankings. 

Think of off-page SEO as a supporting boost to your client's brand presence and search visibility. This comes in the form of: 

• Backlinks from credible websites

• Brand mentions and shares on social media

• Analyzing competitor backlinks (to compare performance)

• Removing toxic backlinks (e.g., from non-credible websites)

• A Google Business Profile (if applicable)

• Listings on local directories

• Customer reviews

Quality backlinks are important to SEO to help build value for a website and grow the online footprint. It is essential to not only focus on building quality links, but also to monitor all backlinks to remove low-quality links.

Christopher Bailey, Website Design and SEO, D2 Branding

That added ‘thumbs-up’ signals to search engines that your client’s website content is credible, relevant, and authoritative. 

Keyword & Competitor Optimization

An key part of any SEO strategy is keyword and competitor optimization. If you know what your client’s target audience is searching for, you’ll understand their pain points, needs, and expectations. 

Clients are often interested to learn what search queries people are using to find their business. These keywords provide more data about the customer profile and are critical to developing an SEO strategy. - Valerie Jennings, CEO of Jennings Social Media & MarTech

On the flip side, your clients’ competitors are also doing their research and looking for keyword opportunities to capitalize on. That’s why you should also keep an eye on what's happening in the overall landscape.

Add the following to your SEO content audit template section:

• Are there any keywords that my client's website is ranking well for?

• Does the content that is ranking match the keyword search intent?

• Are there any favorably ranking keywords or phrases that aren’t being used?

• What is the difficulty of the keywords my client is using?

• Have there been any notable changes to my client’s keyword rankings?

• Are any long-tail keyword variations being used?

• Are any question keyword variations being used? 

• Which keywords do my clients’ competitors rank for?

• Are there any relevant keywords or phrases that competitors aren’t using?

• Are there any opportunities to improve keyword rankings (e.g., using a different variation)?

Read More:  Pros & Cons of the Best Keyword Rank Tracking Tools

Site Page Scores

Exceptional user experience (UX) is a non-negotiable when it comes to your client’s site health. For example, say a user comes across your client’s website on Google. After clicking on it, they’re annoyed by the slow loading times and blinding color scheme. 

What will happen next? Unless they’re incredibly intent on waiting for your client’s website to load fully, they’ll likely exit and move on.

To avoid any site page mishaps, evaluate the following: 

• What is my client’s website speed?

• Is my client’s website mobile-friendly?

• For slower website speeds, are there any fixes that could be made to amend this issue (e.g., compressing on-page videos and images)?

• Do my clients’ competitors have any notable issues that affect user experience (e.g., a slow loading time)?

• Are there any notable improvements to be made to the website interface (e.g., a visually unappealing color scheme)?

Website Performance and Analytics 

To improve your client’s SEO efforts, you’ll need to know how their website is performing and all related analytics. Tools like Google Analytics and Google Search Console provide valuable insights (which we’ll explore further in the next section). 

To ensure visibility on Google, there are a few questions to consider such as: 

• How many organic sessions does my client’s website have?

• What is the average bounce rate?

• Does my client have a conversion goal, and if so, what is it? 

• Is my client’s website crawlable by Google?

• What are the top queries related to my client’s website?

• What are my client’s top web pages?

• What are the top devices used by users viewing my client’s website?

• What is my client’s accessibility score?

• What is the overall performance score?

Types of Issues and Severity

Yourtemplate in Google Sheets should categorize issues according to severity so you’ll know which ones to prioritize.

Consider using the following groupings:

• Critical: These types of issues should be prioritized as they have the greatest chance of negatively impacting your client’s search engine rankings. This includes overused canonical tags and 4XX or 5XX page errors.

• Warning: This should be used to categorize issues that could potentially result in compromised search engine rankings, such as missing title tags or a low word count for a blog.

• Error: These issues are fixable errors that could be quickly addressed, such as duplicate meta descriptions on more than one webpage or broken internal images.

Historical Trends

As you get into the habit of running SEO audits for clients regularly, you should keep tabs on their historical data. 

SEO is long-term, and for a good reason. That also means that any ly executed strategy can have long-term ill effects that take twice as much work to overcome. - Andy Robson, Agency Director, Squidgy

That way, you’ll understand any trends over time and notable progress to justify your agency’s value proposition. For example, tracking site health scores across regular intervals is a good gauge of how your client’s SEO efforts are materializing. 

By following this checklist, you’ll analyze your clients’ SEO efforts and be better positioned to make relevant recommendations.

What Tools Should You Use to Perform a Quality SEO Audit?

Running an SEO audit doesn’t have to be a manual, tedious process. The right SEO agency software will help you to keep track of the most important SEO analytics. 

1.  Google Search Console

This free SEO tool helps you to understand exactly how Google views your client’s website. Use Google Search Console to:

• Measure site crawlability

• Evaluate how often your client’s website shows up on Google searches

• Show existing backlinks

• Check for any mobile usability issues

Looking for a streamlined, automated way to view these Google Search Console insights? Check out the AgencyAnalytics Google Search Console dashboard that consolidates all the information you need without having to run manual searches each time. 

2. Google PageSpeed Insights

Your client’s website should load fast to ensure a favorable Google search ranking (or any search engine, for that matter).

That’s where Google PageSpeed Insights comes in. It’s a free Google tool that analyzes how fast your client’s website runs by assigning a ‘speed score,’ referencing best practices, and identifying specific performance issues. 

3. Google Lighthouse

Similarly, get firsthand insights about other key website performance metrics by using a tool like Google Lighthouse. Add it as a browser extention to get insights about:

• Page Speed

• Accessibility Score

• SEO Performance Score

• Best Practices Score

Use the Google Lighthouse integration in AgencyAnalytics to stream this data into a real-time, intuitive dashboard.

4. Google Analytics

To gain an in-depth understanding of organic traffic and other related insights (such as average time spent per web page), Google Analytics is the way to go. 

It’s also an excellent tool for tracking conversions and identifying potential SEO-related issues (such as a high bounce rate on a particular web page).

Use a fully customizable, drag-and-drop Google Analytics dashboard to view important insights all in one place. Monitor organic traffic, conversions, and much more; sign up for a free 14-day trial of AgencyAnalytics today.

5. Screaming Frog SEO Spider

If you’re looking for a large-scale way to scan for errors, invest in a platform like Screaming Frog SEO Spider. 

This powerful tool can crawl multiple web pages and quickly identify broken links, which will valuable time (especially if your agency is scaling). 

6. Majestic SEO

A platform like Majestic SEO comes in handy to understand how your client’s backlinks are performing (or to identify any new opportunities). 

Use the Majestic SEO integration to quickly access a backlink analysis, referring domains, website authority metrics, and new or broken links.

7. BrightLocal 

This local SEO platform provides a good gauge of your client’s brand reputation on the ground and also points out any local SEO issues to address. Check out the BrightLocal integration in AgencyAnalytics for an automated approach.

8. Ahrefs

If you’re managing multiple clients with intricate websites, Ahrefs is a great option for large-scale operations. With a built-in SEO audit tool, Ahrefs has the ability to crawl your client’s entire website and identify any areas for improvement. Ahrefs also integrates with AgencyAnalytics for streamlined SEO reporting.

9. Semrush

Another reputable SEO audit tool is Semrush, which also includes an integrated site audit feature. This platform works well to identify your client’s site health score, technical SEO issues, and the severity of these site issues.

10. Moz

Rounding off our list of SEO tools is Moz, another well-known platform with a dedicated site audit feature. Moz works by crawling websites and analyzing them for any technical SEO issues (such as page errors and missing meta descriptions). 

But if you want to streamline your agency's processes, turn to the tool that does it all...

An Automated Alternative: The AgencyAnalytics SEO Reporting Tool

Your agency may rely on Google Sheets for various tasks. And we get it–it’s an excellent tool for compiling and sharing data. 

However, copying and pasting results into a manual spreadsheet could be painstakingly time-consuming, which may lead to errors and expending billable hours. 

Accurate data is huge in SEO. If you get the wrong data, it can send you completely down the wrong path. Having all the data in one dashboard is a lifesaver.

Will Mullins

Plus, you're likely using multiple SEO tools. That means you'll need a way to house those insights into one place. For a scalable and automated approach, use an SEO reporting tool like AgencyAnalytics.

Using an interactive, automated dashboard consolidates the work of multiple SEO tools alongside all of your client's other digital marketing efforts. In a few clicks, easily monitor:

• Overall website health

• Site health scores for individual web pages

• Types of issues found and severities

• Number of pages crawled

• An analysis of page depth (i.e., the number of pages a user has to navigate to reach a specific destination) 

• Numerical and graphical summaries of the most commonly found issues 

• Historical trends of website health scores and number of pages crawled

• Top keywords from Organic and PPC

• Organic traffic and conversions

Use AgencyAnalytics To Share SEO Audit Findings

To get the most from this tool, here are a few options when it comes to client reporting:

1. Send Your Client’s SEO Audit as a Downloadable PDF File

If your client prefers an e-mail attachment, it’s easy to convert their SEO audit findings into a downloadable and white labeled PDF document. This report combines all of the critical SEO metrics your clients need and takes a fraction of the time to create compared to the laborious task of manually updating spreadsheets.

2. Download as an Excel File (and Easily Copy Into Google Sheets If Needed)

Similarly, export your client’s SEO audit findings into an Excel file (which gives a numerical breakdown of what’s happening). 

If your client prefers, transfer this raw data into Google Sheets for a more collaborative experience.

While not as visually appealing as a marketing report template, a data file allows for more granular manipulation of the metrics.

3. Create a Realtime Client SEO Dashboard

On the AgencyAnalytics platform, create client login profiles and grant access to real-time data. Your client then easily views their interactive SEO dashboard whenever they choose to, reducing the need for manual reporting, follow-up calls, and questions by email.  

And if they do have questions, those are easy to address with integrated client messaging.

Easily configure user permissions beforehand, which will control what a client has access to. This way, you won’t have to share irrelevant information (such as vanity metrics). 

Customize it as you see fit! With our drag-and-drop feature, it’s easy to create a dashboard that includes your client’s SEO audit findings, SEO metrics, and other related marketing data (e.g., Mailchimp newsletter performance, which will highlight the performance of all the leads generated from SEO efforts). 

Build an SEO dashboard or use one of our pre-built dashboard templates. Make it your own on AgencyAnalytics, free for 14 days.

4. Generate a Shareable Link

After you’ve generated your client’s SEO audit, you’ll be able to create a shareable link. 

This option is helpful if you’re running an SEO audit for a prospective client that isn’t on your reporting roster. It also comes with an option to download the SEO audit as a PDF document.

5. Include SEO Audit Findings in an SEO Report Template

Finally, you’ll have the option to create a fully customizable SEO report template that consolidates all your client’s SEO insights in one document.

In addition to your client’s SEO audit results, an SEO report should include:

• An executive summary of the most important takeaways 

• Insights on organic traffic

• Whether SEO goals were met for the reporting period

• An overview of landing pages and their performances (if applicable)

• Changes to search rankings

• Any changes to backlinks (such as newly acquired ones)

As an SEO consultant, accurate client reporting is essential to be able to evaluate how well various SEO strategies are working. To retain my clients, I need to be able to show them that their rankings are improving over time.

Kelly Fitzgerald, Founder, Savvy Marketing Services, savvymarketingservices.com

When and How Often Should You Do an SEO Audit?

You may be wondering how often you should audit your site and the best intervals to do it. There’s no one-size-fits-all answer–consider the following. 

• The size of your client’s website: Larger websites with extensive page depth and intricacies will need more thorough, regular SEO checkups

• The frequency of site updates (e.g., new product pages, changes to website architecture)

• Your client’s current website health: A severely compromised site health score may mean a more frequent SEO audit schedule is needed (at least until things improve considerably)

• Your client’s long-term goals: If your client is prioritizing SEO-related deliverables such as blog conversions, they’ll likely need a more frequent SEO audit schedule

Our advice? Decide on a regular interval that gives enough time for SEO traction to build. For example, scheduling an SEO audit every six months may work well if your client doesn’t frequently do an overhaul of their website.

On the flip side, a client that started a new blog, significantly altered their website design, and has aggressive organic traffic or website conversion targets may prefer a monthly or weekly SEO audit cadence. 

How To Use an SEO Proposal Template to Get More Clients

There’s also a neat way to use these SEO audit tools as a lead-generating tactic for getting more clients. 

Let’s say a lukewarm potential client approaches your agency for SEO services. In this case, using a winning SEO proposal will be your best bet to showcase your agency’s product offerings and recommendations.

Use the prebuilt SEO proposal template to share all vital insights. Sign up for a free 14-day trial on AgencyAnalytics to access more pre-built report templates. 

Prove your worth by using an SEO audit tool to pinpoint which areas of your prospect’s website could improve. 

Not only does this show what your agency is capable of, but it also directly ties into their business needs and is highly relevant to their unique situation. 

Executing SEO Audits Is a Must for All Agencies  

Knowing how to execute SEO audits should be in every agency’s playbook. 

Whether you’re creating a template in Google Sheets or you’ve decided to invest in tools for added support, SEO tracking and regular website audits are essential. 

And while a Google Sheets template may do the trick now, it’ll be increasingly difficult to manage multiple SEO audits once your agency continues to grow. For example, what if you're using multiple SEO audit tools like Google Search Console and Google Analytics? You'll need a way t to easily consolidate and report on that data. That’s where a reporting tool like AgencyAnalytics comes in. 

No more digging through multiple platforms to understand the big picture. Cut down on tedious manual work, add back billable hours to your day, and help your clients meet their SEO KPIs month after month with AgencyAnalytics. If your clients want their data exported into Google Sheets, you've got that option, too.

Don't waste time doing a manual SEO reporting. Automate data retrieval across platforms like Majestic, Google Search Console, Google Analytics and more. Try AgencyAnalytics today, free for 14 days.