Technical SEO Audit: The Complete Foundation Guide
A complete reference for auditing technical SEO foundations before any content or link work.
SR
SEO Research
ConsoleBoard SEO Research
ConsoleBoard SEO Research develops the technical and analytical guides in the library, grounded in Google Search Console data and Google's public documentation.
Published articles
Google Search Console for Local SEO: The Complete Guide
The cornerstone Search Console reference: verification, performance, coverage, and URL inspection for local SEO.
Local SEO Analytics: Measuring What Actually Drives Revenue
The cornerstone analytics reference: leading and lagging indicators, attribution limits, and honest reporting.
Technical SEO Pre-Launch Checklist
Crawlability, indexation, canonicals, schema, and speed checks before launch.
Google Search Console Verification Checklist
Verify ownership, confirm data ingestion, and set up alerts for a Search Console property.
Page Speed and Core Web Vitals Checklist
LCP, INP, and CLS checks and fixes for local business pages.
Schema Markup Checklist for Local Businesses
LocalBusiness schema fields, validation, and common errors.
Internal Linking Audit Checklist
Orphan pages, anchor diversity, and contextual internal linking checks.
Mobile Usability Checklist for Local Sites
Tap targets, viewport, font sizes, and mobile-friendly layout checks.
Index Coverage Checklist
Coverage report, excluded URLs, and indexation fixes.
Conversion Tracking Setup Checklist
Calls, forms, and profile actions tracked as conversions.
Monthly Local SEO Reporting Checklist
Metrics, evidence, narrative, and next steps for a monthly local SEO report.
Google Search Console vs. Google Analytics 4 for Local SEO
What each tool measures and how to use them together for local SEO.
Google Search Console Sync SOP
An SOP for syncing Search Console performance data into your reporting system.
Internal Link Mapping SOP and Template
An SOP and template for mapping internal links across a local site.
Monthly Local SEO Report Template
A structured monthly report template with metrics, evidence, and narrative.
Canonical Tags for Local Sites: A Practical Guide
Self-referencing canonicals, parameter handling, and common mistakes.
XML Sitemaps for Local Websites: Best Practices
What to include, what to exclude, and how to keep sitemaps accurate.
Robots.txt and Crawl Budget for Local Sites
robots.txt directives and crawl budget for local sites.
Structured Data for Local Businesses: Beyond the Basics
Beyond LocalBusiness: reviews, FAQ, services, and event schema.
How to Read Search Console Performance Reports
Impressions, clicks, CTR, and position — what each metric means.
Understanding Impressions, CTR, and Position
What impressions, CTR, and position measure and their limits.
Identifying Content Decay in Local SEO
How to detect content decay and decide whether to refresh or retire.
Striking Distance Keywords: How to Find and Win Them
Find keywords ranking just off page one and prioritize improvements.
Zero-Click Pages: Diagnosis and Fixes
Diagnose zero-click pages and improve titles, intent, and CTR.
Potential Cannibalization: How to Detect and Resolve It
How to spot multiple pages competing for the same query and resolve it.
Device Performance Gaps in Local Search
Mobile vs. desktop performance gaps and what they mean for local SEO.
Country and Market Performance Shifts
How to read country and market performance changes in Search Console.
New Queries: Capturing Emerging Local Demand
How to identify and capitalize on newly appearing local queries.
Lost Traffic Analysis: Non-Causal Attribution
How to attribute traffic loss without overclaiming causation.
Monitoring Local SEO at Portfolio Scale
How to monitor local SEO performance across a portfolio of sites.