Best Tools For SEO Analysis
There are simply too many numbers to crunch, statistics to
analyze, and metrics to follow for you to try to handle it all manually.
Fortunately, there’s no shortage of software out there to help move your site
to the top of the Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs).
Here’s a comprehensive list of the finest tools that only the
best consultants use.
- Google
Analytics
Google is the most popular search engine on the planet, so why
not start by using a tool that was created by the tech giant? Not only is Google Analytics an indispensable tool in providing you with insights about a
particular website’s traffic, it’s also free.
Using Google Analytics, you can glean insight about
your audience demographics, how visitors arrived at your site, and the pages on
the site that are the most popular. The tool will also provide you with bounce
rate statistics and ideas for speed improvements.
- Google
Webmasters
Google Webmasters is an excellent source to show
you how often, and in what position, pages on your site appear in the SERPs
based on keyword queries. It will also give you the click-through-rate (CTR) of
links that appear in the search results, so you can see if people are just
glossing over your links or clicking on them. The tool will also show you the
top countries of people who access your site as well as the devices used to
click on your links.
Finally, Google Webmasters will also provide you with a profile
of your backlinks, so you can see which sites are providing links back to your
site.
- Bing
Webmaster Tools
Don’t forget Google’s little brother, Bing. At the same
time this Microsoft search engine is not
nearly as popular as Google, there are some people who use it.
Bing Webmaster Tools provides a wealth of analytics that are
significant to SEO professionals. The application will show
you how people arrived at your site and offer pointers about how to increase
your traffic. It will also offer advice about how to improve your website.
- Google
Pagespeed Insights
Remember, at least part of your page rank is determined by your
site speed. That’s why it’s important to have a lighting fast website.
Once again, Google is your best friend. The search
engine company has given a tool, Page Speed Insights, that may not
check your site for speed results, it will additionally offer recommendations
regarding how you can improve your site speed.
- GTMetrix
In a multitude of counsellors there is safety. Even though
Google provides some insights about your page speed, you might want to get a
second opinion. To that end, consider using GTMetrix.
GTMetrix is a tool very similar to the aforementioned Google
Page Speed Insights. You simply plug in your URL to a text field and click a
button. After a few moments, the application will give your site a grade on
page speed and provide you with actionable insights.
- Google’s
Structured Data Testing Tool
One problem that could adversely affect your ranking is a web
page with malformed markup. If you have a tag that isn’t closed somewhere, even
a sophisticated bot like Google’s spider might have trouble deciphering the
contents of your site.
Fortunately, Google provides a Structured Data Testing Tool that
will allow you to be certain that your site is in line with prevailing
standards.
- Web
Sniffer
If you’re a power user, then you already know that you can
right-click on a web page and view its source code. However, even with that
trick you won’t be able to view the response header of the web page. That’s why
Web Sniffer is so valuable.
Just plug your URL into a text field on the Web Sniffer web
page, fill out the Captcha box, and click “Submit.” The tool will fetch your
page and present you with both request and response headers.
Web Sniffer is valuable because it shows you if your page is
being cached by the browser. If it isn’t, then the page could take longer to
display as frequently used resources are loaded over the network instead of
being loaded from the browser’s cache.
- Google
Trends
Never be afraid to stand on the shoulders of giants. If there’s
a trending topic on Google, you might be able to use it for content marketing
purposes to drive some traffic to your own site.
Google Trends will show you what’s trending on Google right now.
If you see a subject that you think might be a good fit for your niche, why not
write an article about it and add some exposure for your own business?
Wrapping it Up
It’s important to work smarter, not harder. Select the right
tools for your SEO efforts and you’ll make your life a lot
easier while still ranking those keywords.
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