Hubspot SEO Audit Guide: Step-by-Step Process

A structured SEO audit inspired by Hubspot best practices helps you uncover technical issues, missed keyword opportunities, and on-page gaps that may be holding back your organic growth.

This guide walks through each phase of a modern SEO audit, closely aligned with the process described in the official Hubspot SEO audit article, so you can review and improve your site in a systematic, data-driven way.

Why a Hubspot-Style SEO Audit Matters

Search engines rely on hundreds of signals to determine which pages deserve top positions. A Hubspot-style SEO audit brings those signals together in a single workflow so you can:

• Find and fix crawl and indexation problems.
• Improve on-page relevance and search intent alignment.
• Strengthen internal links and site architecture.
• Boost user experience and engagement metrics.
• Identify content to update, merge, or retire.

Instead of guessing what to fix, you follow a repeatable framework you can revisit every quarter.

Prepare for Your Hubspot SEO Audit

Before you start, gather the tools and access you need. The Hubspot article recommends using a combination of analytics, search console data, and crawlers.

Core Tools for an Effective Audit

• Web analytics platform (such as Google Analytics).
• Search console for queries, indexing, and coverage issues.
• Site crawler to scan URLs, tags, and internal links.
• Keyword research tools to validate search demand.
• Page speed and mobile-friendliness testing tools.

Collect login details and make sure tracking and verification tags are working correctly before moving on.

Step 1: Benchmark Your Current SEO Performance

The Hubspot approach begins with measuring your baseline so you can track improvements after the audit.

Key Metrics to Review

• Organic sessions and users over the last 3–12 months.
• Top landing pages by organic traffic and conversions.
• Primary keywords and average positions.
• Click-through rates (CTR) from the search results.
• Bounce rate, time on page, and conversion rate.

Export these reports so you can compare them with post-audit performance later.

Step 2: Run a Technical Hubspot SEO Audit

Technical health is the foundation of organic visibility. Following a Hubspot-style checklist, you should scan your site for errors that prevent search engines from understanding and indexing your pages.

Check Crawlability and Indexation

• Review robots.txt for blocked directories or files that should be crawlable.
• Submit or validate your XML sitemap in search console.
• Confirm that important pages are not tagged with noindex accidentally.
• Look for long redirect chains and fix them with direct redirects.

Fix Status Codes and Canonicals

• Identify and resolve 4xx errors by redirecting or restoring removed content.
• Replace 302 redirects with 301 where appropriate.
• Set canonical tags for duplicate or very similar pages.
• Verify that only one canonical version of each URL is indexable.

Improve Site Speed and Mobile Experience

• Test your site using popular page speed tools.
• Compress images and enable caching.
• Minify CSS and JavaScript where possible.
• Ensure your design is responsive and touch-friendly on mobile.

A Hubspot-type technical audit treats speed and mobile usability as ranking and user experience priorities.

Step 3: Analyze On-Page SEO and Content Quality

Once technical issues are under control, the next Hubspot-inspired step is reviewing how each key page aligns with its target keyword and search intent.

Optimize Titles, Meta Descriptions, and Headings

• Ensure every important page has a unique, descriptive title.
• Write meta descriptions that encourage clicks and include the main topic naturally.
• Use a clear heading hierarchy (H1, H2, H3) with descriptive subtopics.
• Avoid duplicate titles or thin descriptions across your site.

Evaluate Content Depth and Relevance

• Confirm each page answers the primary question behind the query.
• Add sections that address related questions, comparisons, and objections.
• Update outdated data, examples, and screenshots.
• Remove fluff and keep explanations concise and actionable.

The Hubspot article emphasizes matching content to search intent, whether informational, transactional, or navigational.

Step 4: Map Keywords Using a Hubspot Topic Cluster Model

One of the best-known Hubspot strategies is the topic cluster model, which organizes content around pillar pages and related subtopics.

Build Pillar Pages

• Identify broad, high-value topics central to your business.
• Create a comprehensive pillar page for each, covering the subject at a high level.
• Ensure the page links out to deeper, related articles.

Create Cluster Content

• Brainstorm specific questions and long-tail keywords under each pillar.
• Write supporting articles that explore each subtopic in detail.
• Link from each cluster article back to the pillar and between related posts.

This structure, popularized by Hubspot, helps search engines understand how your pages connect and improves topical authority.

Step 5: Strengthen Internal Links and Navigation

A consistent internal linking strategy supports the topic cluster model and is a key piece of a Hubspot-style SEO audit.

Internal Linking Best Practices

• Use descriptive anchor text, not generic phrases like “click here”.
• Link from high-authority pages to newer or strategic content.
• Ensure every important page is reachable in a few clicks from the homepage.
• Fix orphan pages that receive no internal links.

Logical navigation and a clean URL structure make it easier for both users and search engines to understand your site.

Step 6: Review Backlinks and Authority

The Hubspot methodology also highlights the importance of off-page signals, especially backlinks from relevant, trusted domains.

Audit Existing Backlinks

• Export your backlink profile from your preferred SEO tool.
• Identify toxic or spammy links and consider disavowing them.
• Note which pages attract the most links and why.

Plan Link-Building and Promotion

• Update high-value assets, such as reports, templates, or tools.
• Promote top resources through outreach and partnerships.
• Consider guest contributions on reputable industry sites.

An authority-building plan complements the on-page and technical work you completed earlier.

Step 7: Prioritize and Implement Your SEO Fixes

At the end of a full Hubspot-inspired SEO audit, you will have a long list of tasks. Turning that list into a roadmap is essential.

Score and Schedule Action Items

1. Rate each issue by impact on traffic, conversions, and user experience.
2. Estimate effort and required resources.
3. Prioritize quick wins that deliver visible results fast.
4. Group related tasks into projects, such as “fix technical errors” or “revise top landing pages”.

Create a simple dashboard or spreadsheet to track progress and assign responsibilities across your team.

Step 8: Monitor, Report, and Iterate

The Hubspot article stresses that an SEO audit is not a one-time project. Continuous monitoring ensures your site keeps pace with algorithm updates and user behavior shifts.

Set Up Ongoing Monitoring

• Track core metrics weekly or monthly, including organic traffic, rankings, and CTR.
• Watch for sudden drops or spikes in coverage or impressions.
• Review top pages regularly to keep content fresh and accurate.
• Re-run smaller audits quarterly to catch new issues early.

By revisiting this process regularly, you build a sustainable, compounding SEO program.

Getting Expert Help With Your SEO Audit

If you want hands-on support applying a Hubspot-style framework to your own site, consider working with experienced consultants who specialize in technical and content optimization. For example, Consultevo provides strategic SEO and analytics services that can complement your in-house efforts.

Combine the structured process outlined here with consistent execution, and you will have a powerful, repeatable SEO audit workflow modeled on proven Hubspot practices.