An SEO audit is a structured health check of your website's visibility on Google and AI search. For an Indore business, a practical DIY audit covers seven areas: indexing (is Google finding your pages?), technical health (speed, mobile, HTTPS), on-page elements (titles, headings, content), local SEO (Google Business Profile, NAP, reviews), content quality, backlinks, and AI answer readiness (schema, FAQs, entity consistency). Using free tools like Search Console, PageSpeed Insights and a site: search, most owners can complete the checks below in two to three hours.
Why Run An SEO Audit?
Most Indore business websites were built once, launched, and then left alone. Over time, things quietly break: pages drop out of Google's index, a plugin slows the site, the phone number changes but the website doesn't, competitors publish better content, and AI search changes how people discover businesses. An audit catches these problems before they cost you customers.
This checklist mirrors the core of our own 40-point audit. You don't need expensive software — most checks use free tools from Google. Work through each section, mark each item as Pass, Needs work, or Fail, and you'll end up with a prioritised to-do list.
Free tools you'll need:
- Google Search Console — see our Search Console guide
- PageSpeed Insights
- Rich Results Test
- Your Google Business Profile dashboard
- A browser in private/incognito mode
- Optionally, the free version of a crawler such as Screaming Frog (up to 500 URLs)
Section 1: Indexing And Crawlability (Checks 1–6)
1. Site search count. Search site:yourdomain.com on Google. Is the approximate number of results close to the number of real pages on your site? Far fewer suggests indexing problems; far more suggests duplicate or junk pages.
2. Search Console page indexing. Open Indexing → Pages. Are your important service and product pages indexed? Note any "Crawled – currently not indexed" pages that matter.
3. Robots.txt. Visit yourdomain.com/robots.txt. Make sure it doesn't contain Disallow: /, which blocks your whole site — a common leftover from development.
4. Noindex tags. In WordPress, check Settings → Reading to ensure "Discourage search engines from indexing this site" is unticked. Use URL Inspection in Search Console on key pages to confirm they're indexable.
5. XML sitemap. Does yourdomain.com/sitemap.xml (or sitemap_index.xml) exist, list only live pages, and appear as submitted and successful in Search Console?
6. Broken pages. Are there 404 errors for pages that used to exist and still receive links? Redirect them to the most relevant live page with a 301 redirect.
Section 2: Technical Health (Checks 7–13)
7. HTTPS everywhere. Does your site load securely with a padlock? Does http:// redirect to https://?
8. One canonical version. www and non-www versions should redirect to one preferred version, not both load separately.
9. Mobile usability. Open every key page on your phone. Is text readable without zooming? Are buttons easy to tap? Does anything overflow the screen horizontally?
10. Core Web Vitals. Run your homepage and main service page through PageSpeed Insights (mobile). Note LCP, INP and CLS. Our Core Web Vitals guide explains the targets.
11. Image weight. Are images compressed and in modern formats like WebP? Uncompressed photos straight from a phone camera are the most common cause of slow Indore business sites.
12. Redirect chains. Do old URLs redirect in one hop, not three or four?
13. Structured data errors. Check Search Console's Enhancements reports and run key pages through the Rich Results Test.
If several technical checks fail, our technical SEO team can fix them without breaking your existing rankings.
Section 3: On-Page SEO (Checks 14–21)
For your homepage and each main service page:
14. Unique title tags. Each page has a unique title of around 50–60 characters that includes the main keyword and "Indore" where relevant — for example, "Physiotherapy Clinic in Vijay Nagar, Indore | Brand Name".
15. Meta descriptions. Unique, compelling descriptions around 140–160 characters that encourage clicks.
16. One clear H1. Each page has one H1 describing the page topic.
17. Logical heading structure. H2s and H3s break content into sections that reflect what searchers want to know.
18. Keyword alignment. Each important page targets one primary topic. Two pages targeting the same keyword compete with each other (cannibalization). Our keyword research guide explains mapping.
19. Content depth. Does the service page explain what you offer, who it's for, process, pricing guidance, areas served and FAQs? Thin 100-word service pages rarely rank.
20. Image alt text. Important images have descriptive alt text.
21. Internal links. Service pages link to related services and relevant blog posts; blog posts link to service pages. No important page is an "orphan" with no internal links.
Our on-page SEO checklist goes deeper on each of these.
Section 4: Local SEO (Checks 22–29)
22. Google Business Profile claimed and verified. Search your business name on Google Maps. Is the profile verified and managed by you?
23. Primary category. Is it the most specific accurate category?
24. Complete profile. Hours (including holiday hours), services, description, photos, attributes, website link and phone number all filled.
25. NAP consistency. Is your business name, address and phone identical on your website, Google, Justdial, Sulekha, Facebook, Instagram and industry directories? See our NAP consistency guide.
26. Reviews. How many reviews, what rating, and when was the latest? Are you replying to all of them? See our reviews strategy.
27. Local landing pages. If you have multiple branches, does each have its own page? Are neighbourhood pages genuinely useful rather than copy-paste? See our hyperlocal SEO guide.
28. LocalBusiness schema. Does your site include LocalBusiness (or a more specific type) schema with correct name, address, phone, hours and geo-coordinates?
29. Map Pack visibility. Search your main service + "Indore" and "near me" from your location. Do you appear in the top three? Where are competitors appearing that you aren't? Our Map Pack ranking guide explains the factors.
Section 5: Content Quality (Checks 30–34)
30. Helpful, original content. Is your content written for customers, based on real experience, or is it generic text that could apply to any business in any city? Google's helpful content guidance includes a useful self-assessment list.
31. Freshness. Are prices, team members, services, offers and dates up to date? A "2022 offers" banner on your homepage signals neglect.
32. Blog or resource section. Do you answer common customer questions? Does each post link to a relevant service?
33. Trust signals (E-E-A-T). Are there author names, team credentials, certifications, real photos, case studies, testimonials and a clear About page?
34. Duplicate content. Is text copied from manufacturer sites, competitors or other pages of your own site? Rewrite it.
Our content marketing strategy guide helps you build a sustainable content plan.
Section 6: Backlinks And Authority (Checks 35–37)
35. Who links to you? Check Search Console → Links → Top linking sites. Are there links from local directories, associations, suppliers, media or partners?
36. Link quality. Do you see obviously spammy links from irrelevant foreign sites? Google usually ignores these, but if you previously bought links, review them with an expert.
37. Competitor comparison. Do competitors ranking above you have links from local news sites, industry associations or chambers of commerce that you could earn too? Our backlink building strategy covers safe local link sources.
Section 7: AI Search Readiness (Checks 38–40)
38. Answer-first content. Do your key pages answer the main question clearly in the first two or three sentences? AI Overviews and ChatGPT favour content that's easy to extract.
39. FAQ and schema coverage. Do service pages include genuine FAQs with FAQPage schema? Is Organization schema present with your logo, social profiles and contact details?
40. AI brand check. Ask ChatGPT, Gemini and Perplexity: "What are the best [your service] providers in Indore?" and "What do you know about [your business]?" Are you mentioned? Is the information accurate?
See our AEO & GEO guide and AI citation guide for how to improve these.
Prioritising What To Fix First
You'll likely end up with a long list. Prioritise by impact and effort:
| Priority | Examples | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Critical — fix immediately | Site blocked by robots.txt or noindex, site not on HTTPS, hacked content, wrong phone number everywhere | These stop customers and Google from reaching you |
| High impact, low effort | Google Business Profile completion, title tags, NAP fixes, review replies, internal links | Quick wins that often move results within weeks |
| High impact, higher effort | Service page rewrites, speed optimization, schema implementation, neighbourhood pages | Core long-term improvements |
| Ongoing | Content publishing, link earning, review generation, AI visibility | Compound growth over months |
How Often Should You Audit?
- Full audit: once or twice a year, and before and after any website redesign or migration.
- Quick monthly check: Search Console performance and indexing, Google Business Profile insights, new reviews.
- After major changes: new website, new CMS, domain change, new branches or services.
Website migrations are the single biggest risk to existing rankings. If you're planning a redesign, audit first and map every old URL to a new one. Our website development team includes SEO migration planning on every rebuild.
Turning Your Audit Into An Action Plan
Convert findings into a simple spreadsheet with columns: Issue, Page(s) affected, Priority, Owner, Deadline, Status. Assign each item to someone — you, your developer or your agency — and review progress weekly for the first month. Most businesses see meaningful improvement just by fixing critical issues and completing their Google Business Profile.
What A DIY Audit Can Miss
A DIY checklist catches most common issues, but some problems need deeper analysis:
- JavaScript rendering issues where Google can't see content.
- Crawl budget and faceted navigation problems on large e-commerce sites.
- Complex hreflang or multi-location setups.
- Algorithm-related traffic drops that need historical analysis.
- Toxic link profiles from past bad SEO.
- Competitive gap analysis at scale.
If your traffic has dropped suddenly or your site is large or complex, a professional audit is worth it. Our SEO services start with exactly this.
Common Audit Findings On Indore Websites
From auditing Indore business websites, these issues appear again and again:
- Homepage title is just the business name, with no service or city.
- Service pages are 80–150 words with no FAQs.
- Different phone numbers on the website, Google profile and Justdial.
- Uncompressed images making mobile pages load in 6–10 seconds.
- No Google Business Profile posts or replies for months.
- Neighbourhood pages with identical copy.
- No schema markup at all.
- Search Console never set up — or owned by a former developer.
- A contact form that doesn't actually send emails. (Test yours!)
Our website losing customers guide covers conversion-related issues that often appear alongside SEO problems.
Worked Example: Auditing A Hypothetical Indore Salon Website
To show how the checklist works in practice, imagine a salon in Scheme 54 with a six-page WordPress website. After running through the 40 checks, the owner's findings might look like this:
| Check | Finding | Priority |
|---|---|---|
| 4. Noindex | Pass — site is indexable | — |
| 10. Core Web Vitals | Mobile LCP 6.2 seconds due to a heavy homepage slider | High |
| 14. Title tags | Homepage title is just "Home" | High, quick fix |
| 19. Content depth | Services page lists 30 services with no descriptions or prices | High |
| 22–24. Google profile | Verified, but no services listed, last photo 14 months old | High, quick fix |
| 25. NAP | Old phone number still on Justdial and Facebook | High, quick fix |
| 26. Reviews | 4.3 rating from 48 reviews, last review 5 weeks ago, 20 unanswered | Medium |
| 28. Schema | None | Medium |
| 38–40. AI readiness | Not mentioned when ChatGPT is asked about salons in Vijay Nagar | Medium, ongoing |
The action plan writes itself: fix the title tags, NAP and Google profile in the first week; replace the slider with a single compressed hero image; split services into category pages (hair, skin, bridal, nails) with descriptions and price ranges; start a review routine; add schema; and then build content that answers common questions. Our salon SEO guide shows what those service pages should include.
Auditing Conversion, Not Just Rankings
Ranking is only half the job. While auditing, also check whether visitors can easily become customers:
- Is a phone number or WhatsApp button visible without scrolling on mobile?
- Does every service page have a clear call-to-action?
- Do forms work, and does someone receive and respond to submissions?
- Are prices or price ranges available where customers expect them?
- Are there trust signals near CTAs — reviews, certifications, years in business?
- Is the path from Google to enquiry three taps or fewer?
Our conversion rate optimization guide explains how to improve each of these, and our landing page design guide covers page layouts that convert.
Competitor Benchmarking In Your Audit
An audit is more useful when you know what "good" looks like in your category. Pick the three businesses that consistently appear above you for your main searches in Indore and compare:
- Number and recency of Google reviews.
- Google Business Profile completeness — photos, posts, services, Q&A.
- Depth of their main service page (word count is a rough proxy; usefulness is what matters).
- Whether they have blog content, FAQs, videos or neighbourhood pages.
- Page speed on mobile.
- Obvious backlinks — local news mentions, association memberships, directory listings.
The goal isn't to copy them, but to identify the gaps that explain why they rank above you — then close those gaps with something better.
Auditing Before And After A Website Redesign
Website redesigns are the most common cause of sudden ranking losses we see in Indore. The new site looks better, but URLs change, content gets shortened, redirects are forgotten and years of accumulated SEO value vanish. If you're planning a new website:
- Crawl the old site and export every URL, title, meta description and H1.
- Export top pages from Search Console for the last 12 months so you know which pages bring traffic.
- Map every old URL to a new URL and set up 301 redirects for any that change.
- Keep or improve content on high-traffic pages — don't cut a 1,500-word service page down to 200 words for design reasons.
- Test the staging site for noindex tags, broken links and missing schema before launch.
- Launch, then re-audit within 48 hours: indexing, redirects, sitemap, Search Console errors.
- Monitor for eight weeks and compare traffic to the pre-launch baseline.
Our WordPress vs custom website guide and website development company guide explain what to ask your developer about SEO during a rebuild.
Keeping An Audit Log
Save each audit with its date and findings. Over time, this record becomes valuable: you can connect ranking and traffic changes to specific fixes, prove the value of work done, and make sure old problems don't quietly return after a plugin update or a developer change. A simple shared Google Sheet with one tab per audit is enough.
Key Takeaways
- Check indexing first — if Google can't index your pages, nothing else matters.
- Free tools (Search Console, PageSpeed Insights, Rich Results Test) cover most small-business audit needs.
- Quick wins usually include title tags, Google Business Profile completion, NAP fixes and review replies.
- Thin service pages and slow mobile speed are the most common problems on Indore websites.
- Audit conversion paths as well as rankings: visible CTAs, working forms and fast responses.
- Re-audit before and after any redesign to protect existing rankings.
- Keep a dated audit log so you can connect fixes to results.
The Bottom Line
An SEO audit turns vague worry about "not ranking" into a concrete list of fixable problems. Work through these 40 checks, fix the critical issues first, then tackle high-impact items one by one. Most Indore businesses are only a handful of fixes away from noticeably better visibility on Google, Maps and AI search. If you'd rather have experts do it, our free 40-point audit covers everything here and more — with a prioritised action plan across SEO, Local SEO, AEO and technical SEO.