Audit methodology
How does a marketing scan work? Audit methodology
Marketing Scan examines publicly accessible website signals and turns findings into actions. Its score helps prioritise checks. It is not a Google ranking, a revenue forecast or proof that every part of your website works for every visitor.
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What does the website audit check?
The marketing analysis groups checks around website quality, search visibility, social channels, reputation, measurement, email configuration and security. Inputs include fetched HTML, public links and metadata, DNS records and secure connection information. The technical page audit and marketing analysis are separate measurements and may finish at different times.
Public signals have limits. Finding a measurement tag does not prove that every conversion is tracked correctly. A review link is not a complete reputation assessment. The audit does not complete a purchase or replace a penetration test.
What does a score out of 100 mean?
The marketing analysis combines weighted checks and categories. Informational or inapplicable findings are not treated in the same way as assessed checks. Read the score alongside the evidence and actions; the number alone cannot explain rankings or lost customers.
Compare the same domain, business profile and scan version wherever possible. A methodology change can alter the score even when the website has not changed. A high score means the examined signals performed well; relevant content, search demand and a useful experience still matter.
Not detected does not mean absent
A website may load content with JavaScript, block a crawler or respond too slowly. The audit may therefore see less than someone using a normal browser. Verify an uncertain finding on the referenced page before making changes.
A timeout or blocked request is not evidence of a poor website. A failed marketing analysis does not produce a complete new marketing score. Keep unavailable data separate from measured zeroes. Report incorrect findings through the help button with the domain, check and what you can see yourself.
Which insights need Google Search Console access?
The public audit cannot inspect your private analytics. Connect a Search Console property you can access to see available queries, clicks, impressions and average positions. Availability depends on ownership, permissions, the date range and what Google returns.
Average position is not a fixed ranking for every searcher. Country, device and query affect results. Compare equivalent periods and account for limited or delayed data. Without a connection, the audit cannot establish how many visitors or sales your website gets from Google.
Why does the business type matter?
A local shop, an ecommerce business and an online software service have different goals. Complete your business profile carefully. Advice about a physical location or local business listing is not automatically relevant to a service operating entirely online.
Choose an important page and its intended action: a reservation, enquiry, purchase or account. Test that journey yourself on a phone. A technical improvement is more useful when it supports a meaningful visitor journey.
What about SEO and visibility in AI answers?
An audit helps investigate access problems and content opportunities. Helpful content, clear pages and accessible technology remain important for SEO. Google says the same SEO fundamentals apply to its AI features and that no special AI file or special schema is required for eligibility.
GEO commonly describes work on visibility in generative search and answer systems. An llms.txt file, FAQ or high audit score does not guarantee a citation. Verify sources, publish concrete explanations and distinguish measured search traffic from individual samples of AI answers.
Measure AI visibility with a free tracking templateWhat should you do after the first audit?
Fix a verified problem on an important page first. Record the evidence, owner and how you will check the change. Export available actions as PDF or CSV to work through yourself or share with your web developer.
Use weekly follow-up to notice changes. Review available search queries and Google clicks and choose one content improvement. Keep a baseline: running another audit does not itself demonstrate growth.
Sources for the Google guidance
Unsure about a finding? Use the help button with the domain and check. Never share passwords or access tokens.