# Analysis Checklists Reference

Detailed audit procedures for SEO and AEO analysis.

## Table of Contents
1. Technical SEO Audit
2. On-Page SEO Audit
3. Content Quality Audit
4. AEO Audit
5. Citation Presence Audit
6. Competitive Analysis

---

## 1. Technical SEO Audit

### Crawlability

- [ ] XML sitemap exists and submitted
- [ ] robots.txt configured correctly
- [ ] No important pages blocked
- [ ] Internal links navigable
- [ ] No orphan pages (pages with no internal links)

### Indexability

- [ ] No accidental noindex tags
- [ ] Canonical tags correct (self-referencing or pointing to correct URL)
- [ ] No duplicate content issues
- [ ] Pagination handled correctly
- [ ] hreflang for international sites

### Site Structure

- [ ] Clear URL hierarchy
- [ ] Breadcrumbs implemented
- [ ] Logical category structure
- [ ] Maximum 3-4 clicks to any page

### Performance

- [ ] Page load < 3 seconds
- [ ] Mobile-responsive design
- [ ] Core Web Vitals acceptable
- [ ] Images optimized

### Security

- [ ] HTTPS enabled
- [ ] No mixed content warnings
- [ ] Security headers configured

---

## 2. On-Page SEO Audit

### For Each Page, Check:

#### Title Tag
- [ ] Exists
- [ ] 50-60 characters
- [ ] Primary keyword included
- [ ] Unique across site
- [ ] Compelling for clicks

#### Meta Description
- [ ] Exists
- [ ] 150-160 characters
- [ ] Includes call-to-action
- [ ] Unique across site
- [ ] Matches page content

#### Headers
- [ ] Single H1 per page
- [ ] H1 matches page topic
- [ ] Logical H2-H6 hierarchy
- [ ] No skipped levels
- [ ] Keywords included naturally

#### URL
- [ ] Clean, readable URL
- [ ] Keywords included
- [ ] No unnecessary parameters
- [ ] Consistent structure

#### Images
- [ ] Alt text on all images
- [ ] Descriptive file names
- [ ] Appropriate file sizes
- [ ] Lazy loading implemented

#### Internal Links
- [ ] Links to related content
- [ ] Descriptive anchor text
- [ ] No broken internal links

---

## 3. Content Quality Audit

### E-E-A-T Assessment

#### Experience
- [ ] First-hand experience demonstrated
- [ ] Personal insights included
- [ ] Real examples from practice
- [ ] Author has used/tested subject

#### Expertise
- [ ] Author credentials shown
- [ ] Technical depth appropriate
- [ ] Accurate information
- [ ] Up-to-date content

#### Authoritativeness
- [ ] Author bio present
- [ ] External recognition mentioned
- [ ] Quality backlinks
- [ ] Industry citations

#### Trustworthiness
- [ ] Sources cited
- [ ] Contact information available
- [ ] Privacy policy present
- [ ] Transparent about limitations

### Content Depth

- [ ] Covers topic comprehensively
- [ ] Answers main question directly
- [ ] Addresses follow-up questions
- [ ] Includes specific details/data
- [ ] Provides actionable takeaways

### Content Freshness

- [ ] Publication date shown
- [ ] Last updated date shown (if applicable)
- [ ] Content reflects current state
- [ ] Statistics are recent

---

## 4. AEO Audit

### Question Coverage

- [ ] Main question answered in first 1-2 sentences
- [ ] Follow-up questions addressed
- [ ] Question variants covered
- [ ] Long-tail questions included

### Answer Structure

- [ ] Direct answer format (not buried)
- [ ] Clear, quotable statements
- [ ] Structured data present (FAQ schema, etc.)
- [ ] Lists and tables for scanability

### Citation Worthiness

- [ ] Unique data/statistics included
- [ ] Expert credentials shown
- [ ] Specific examples provided
- [ ] Authoritative sources cited

### Platform Readiness

Check how content appears in:
- [ ] ChatGPT (search and ask)
- [ ] Perplexity (search and ask)
- [ ] Google AI Overview (search)

---

## 5. Citation Presence Audit

### Your Site

- [ ] Landing pages exist for key queries
- [ ] Help center covers common questions
- [ ] FAQ pages structured correctly
- [ ] Blog covers relevant topics

### Video Presence

- [ ] YouTube search for your keywords
- [ ] Your videos appear?
- [ ] Competitor videos dominate?
- [ ] Opportunity gaps identified?

### Reddit Presence

- [ ] Search Reddit for your keywords
- [ ] Threads mentioning your brand?
- [ ] Competitor mentions?
- [ ] Opportunity threads identified?

### Quora Presence

- [ ] Questions in your space answered?
- [ ] Your brand mentioned?
- [ ] Competitor presence?

### Affiliate Presence

- [ ] G2/Capterra profiles exist?
- [ ] Reviews present?
- [ ] Industry publication mentions?
- [ ] Forbes/Dot Dash coverage?

### Audit Template

For each query, document:

| Query | ChatGPT Result | Perplexity Result | Your Brand Mentioned? | Top Citation Sources |
|-------|----------------|-------------------|----------------------|---------------------|
| "best X" | ... | ... | Y/N | [sources] |
| "X vs Y" | ... | ... | Y/N | [sources] |

---

## 6. Competitive Analysis

### Identify Competitors

1. Direct competitors (same product)
2. Content competitors (same keywords)
3. Citation competitors (same AI answers)

### SEO Analysis

For each competitor:
- [ ] Domain authority
- [ ] Top ranking pages
- [ ] Content strategy (programmatic vs editorial)
- [ ] Backlink profile
- [ ] Traffic estimates

### AEO Analysis

For key queries:
- [ ] Which competitors are cited?
- [ ] How often (share of voice)?
- [ ] What content is cited?
- [ ] Citation sources they appear in

### Gap Analysis

**Content gaps**:
- Topics they cover that you don't
- Questions they answer that you don't

**Citation gaps**:
- Platforms they're on that you're not
- Sources citing them but not you

**Opportunity gaps**:
- Topics no one covers well
- Questions poorly answered

---

## Quick Audit Checklist

For rapid assessment:

### Technical (5 min)
- [ ] Site loads fast
- [ ] Mobile-friendly
- [ ] HTTPS
- [ ] Sitemap exists

### On-Page (10 min)
- [ ] Title tags optimized
- [ ] Meta descriptions present
- [ ] H1 tags correct
- [ ] Images have alt text

### Content (10 min)
- [ ] Questions answered directly
- [ ] Author credentials shown
- [ ] Content is current
- [ ] Structured data present

### AEO (10 min)
- [ ] Search ChatGPT for main query
- [ ] Search Perplexity for main query
- [ ] Note: Are you cited?
- [ ] Note: Who is cited?

---

## Audit Report Template

```markdown
# SEO/AEO Audit: [Site Name]

**Date**: [Date]
**Auditor**: [Name]
**URL**: [URL]

## Executive Summary
[2-3 sentence overview]

## Technical SEO
**Score**: X/10
- Issue 1
- Issue 2

## On-Page SEO
**Score**: X/10
- Issue 1
- Issue 2

## Content Quality
**Score**: X/10
- Issue 1
- Issue 2

## AEO Readiness
**Score**: X/10
- Issue 1
- Issue 2

## Citation Presence
**Score**: X/10
- Current presence summary
- Gaps identified

## Prioritized Recommendations
1. [Critical] Issue and fix
2. [High] Issue and fix
3. [Medium] Issue and fix

## Next Steps
- [ ] Action item 1
- [ ] Action item 2
```
