10 areas every Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) report should cover

10 areas every Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) report should cover.

There are 10 areas every Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) report should cover. If you’re engaging with an agency or consultancy like Relton Associates the list below will act as a guide as to what you should expect. Everyone will have a different way of presenting information, but the list below can be used as a quick reference to ensure no crucial areas have been missed.

1. Executive Summary

For senior directors, business owners or chief digital/technical officers, or similar. They will not want to read through 20-50 pages of an SEO report, nor probably have the time. Hence the Executive Summary offering up a snapshot of what needs to be done and the main priorities.

2. Understanding

Confirming back to the client you have understood the brief is critical and stops you missing important areas, which are of particular interest to the client. The consultancy/agency should be sensor checking this from the very outset ensuring they’re on track. The client may have a particular interest in foreign search engines or Social Media.

3. A Plan/Methodology

An explanation of how the SEO report has been conducted and the methodology used. This adds credence to the report as it shows you have gone about the research in an appropriate manner and used the correct tools to draw the correct data required to make sound recommendations.

4. Content

On-page Content addresses the text and the structure of articles and will always make reference to keywords and keyphrases. Additionally, the report should highlight any areas of the website containing duplicate content and recommendations for how to eradicate this. Page titles and image size should be covered amongst many other areas.

Off-page Content addresses the structure of the on-page content and how it is supported behind the scenes. Particular reference will be paid to H tags and META data, it’s structure and how it holistically amplifies your on-page SEO.

5. Technical

Looks at how well your Google Accounts are set up and whether you are adhering to the relevant Search Engines ‘check lists’. It’s important to remember it’s not just about Google (although largely it is in the UK) but also Bing (USA), Yandex (Russia) and other search engines in other territories. Site speed, page load times and responsive design are among many other areas, which should be looked at.

6. Linking

A full SEO report will always assess how easy a website is for users and search engines to navigate. Therefore, it should include a review of the number of internal links within your site and highlight if there are any broken links. It will also look for the number and quality of backlinks coming to your site, which has always been an extremely strong external indicator to search engines of how relevant your content is to the outside World.

7. Recommendations

Each and every section should be followed with a recommendation. A way to address the issues you have and in simple terms that are easy to understand. If you are under performing in an area of SEO then the recommendation should clearly layout what you need to do to go and fix it.

8. KPI’s

If your going to work on SEO you need to measure the success you’re having. How else will you know how successful you are and whether the changes you are making are having a positive and desired effect. A set of KPI’s will support you in doing this

9. Additional Resources

This is one of the most important elements of a report as it provides the ‘tools’ to be able to assist in implementing the SEO recommendations you’ve been given. You can expect a list of priorities so you know which recommendations to tackle first. You can also expect checklists and examples where relevant

10. Appendices

And finally, often formed of reports that have been run across your site and a plethora of xlxs spreadsheets. It can also contain screenshots and reports run that were not relevant enough for the report itself.

If you would like to find out more about SEO reporting then why not Contact Us here. If you have found the above article useful or if you feel something could be added then please feel free to comment below too