Internet today is driven by so much web content and performing an internal audit of your content is one of the most “important” activities you can do to ensure “optimum” visibility of your site.
What are Content Audits?
Content audits, often known as “content assessments” or “content inventories,” are performed to make sure that text, images, and links are all organized and in working order.
Plus, an internal content audit can also help reveal HIDDEN problems of a site that is affecting user behavior negatively so that improvements and corrections can be made in order to make it more “useful” and “engaging” for your readers/ visitors.
2 Distinct Steps in Internal Audit of your Website Content
Two vital activities make up for a good internal content audit of your site.
1. Making a list of existing web content, and then
2. Making improvement and tweaking things up to BOOST the performance of the overall website.
It’s BEST to handle internal audit of your content in 2 separate steps to ensure it is done thoroughly and WITHOUT any bias at all.
The content audit of your site is performed usually by a team of site content managers and web designers whose job is to “evaluate” every page of a site.
Internal content audit is a TEDIOUS process because it ENTAILS reviewing each and every page of your site. Generally, at first, you’ll have to start with the “most critical” areas of your site, like the home page.
The audit has to identify any “glaring” issues related with the “presentation” of the content as well as the site’s overall “design.”
Once the issues are identified, the internal content audit team proceeds to the inspection of the text, all the links, images, and videos inserted on each page, while web designers will work towards correcting formatting issues.
Quick Ways to Perform Internal Audit of Your Content
If your website content hasn’t been UPDATED for years, and if you’re looking for enhancement, here are few content audit tactics I recommend.
Have these content audit goals in mind:
1. Remove any low quality or unnecessary pages
2. Find pages or sections that can be updated or improved
1. “Interlink” your content to improve your site’s rankings
Besides internal content audit of your site, you might as well want to limit your word count (500 to 800). You may think web content writing is EASY, but a NEW trend is coming – “less is more.”
Content Writing – Why Less is More?
Most companies often make a MISTAKE while redesigning their websites: they try to say TOO MUCH on their pages.
It’s totally understandable why it happens as company insiders often spend MOST of their time TALKING about product features – what they offer, how their competitors fit in the BIG picture, what they need to be doing when next BIG customer comes along, and so on.
From this viewpoint, it’s NOT uncommon to assume that people coming from outside also want this type of detail information.
The problem with this type of thinking is that …
It’s mostly NOT true!
While some visitors/ readers may want to “dig deeper” for detailed information, but “most” prospects simply want the “big picture.”
In other words, they quickly want to learn what you “offer” and if you have something to help solve their woes!
Try to cram a LOT of information, and it could be counter-productive.
Our experience tells that, “light html” pages are better served than pages with wall of content. Smart use of sub-headers to break up content blocks (using shorter paragraphs in a conversational style) usually works best.
With that said, here are few ways to manage your content better so that your web pages can easily be read, while still giving MORE details for those who are interested.
· One method is to break up longer product pages into different tabbed buckets. Your readers can quickly find MAJOR points at the introductory paragraphs, and if they want MORE drilling, they can always click on tabs. They keep your pages easier to read and clean.
· Another method is to use sub-headers, thumbnails, and bullet points in order to make it more interesting and readable.
· Another technique is to offer MORE detailed information by placing a link to PDF downloads, like brochures, catalogs, datasheets, and white papers, etc.
Here’s another benefit of breaking content down – if they require additional information, they MUST fill the online request form. Leads, anyone?
What are Content Audits?
Content audits, often known as “content assessments” or “content inventories,” are performed to make sure that text, images, and links are all organized and in working order.
Plus, an internal content audit can also help reveal HIDDEN problems of a site that is affecting user behavior negatively so that improvements and corrections can be made in order to make it more “useful” and “engaging” for your readers/ visitors.
2 Distinct Steps in Internal Audit of your Website Content
Two vital activities make up for a good internal content audit of your site.
1. Making a list of existing web content, and then
2. Making improvement and tweaking things up to BOOST the performance of the overall website.
It’s BEST to handle internal audit of your content in 2 separate steps to ensure it is done thoroughly and WITHOUT any bias at all.
The content audit of your site is performed usually by a team of site content managers and web designers whose job is to “evaluate” every page of a site.
Internal content audit is a TEDIOUS process because it ENTAILS reviewing each and every page of your site. Generally, at first, you’ll have to start with the “most critical” areas of your site, like the home page.
The audit has to identify any “glaring” issues related with the “presentation” of the content as well as the site’s overall “design.”
Once the issues are identified, the internal content audit team proceeds to the inspection of the text, all the links, images, and videos inserted on each page, while web designers will work towards correcting formatting issues.
Quick Ways to Perform Internal Audit of Your Content
If your website content hasn’t been UPDATED for years, and if you’re looking for enhancement, here are few content audit tactics I recommend.
Have these content audit goals in mind:
1. Remove any low quality or unnecessary pages
2. Find pages or sections that can be updated or improved
1. “Interlink” your content to improve your site’s rankings
Besides internal content audit of your site, you might as well want to limit your word count (500 to 800). You may think web content writing is EASY, but a NEW trend is coming – “less is more.”
Content Writing – Why Less is More?
Most companies often make a MISTAKE while redesigning their websites: they try to say TOO MUCH on their pages.
It’s totally understandable why it happens as company insiders often spend MOST of their time TALKING about product features – what they offer, how their competitors fit in the BIG picture, what they need to be doing when next BIG customer comes along, and so on.
From this viewpoint, it’s NOT uncommon to assume that people coming from outside also want this type of detail information.
The problem with this type of thinking is that …
It’s mostly NOT true!
While some visitors/ readers may want to “dig deeper” for detailed information, but “most” prospects simply want the “big picture.”
In other words, they quickly want to learn what you “offer” and if you have something to help solve their woes!
Try to cram a LOT of information, and it could be counter-productive.
Our experience tells that, “light html” pages are better served than pages with wall of content. Smart use of sub-headers to break up content blocks (using shorter paragraphs in a conversational style) usually works best.
With that said, here are few ways to manage your content better so that your web pages can easily be read, while still giving MORE details for those who are interested.
· One method is to break up longer product pages into different tabbed buckets. Your readers can quickly find MAJOR points at the introductory paragraphs, and if they want MORE drilling, they can always click on tabs. They keep your pages easier to read and clean.
· Another method is to use sub-headers, thumbnails, and bullet points in order to make it more interesting and readable.
· Another technique is to offer MORE detailed information by placing a link to PDF downloads, like brochures, catalogs, datasheets, and white papers, etc.
Here’s another benefit of breaking content down – if they require additional information, they MUST fill the online request form. Leads, anyone?
RSS Feed