SEO can feel overwhelming because there are hundreds of possible tasks. This checklist cuts it down to the 45 items that actually move rankings, organised in the order a professional would tackle them. Work through it top to bottom and you will fix the problems with the biggest impact first.

Phase 1: Technical Health (Do This First)

  • Verify your site in Google Search Console and submit your sitemap.
  • Confirm only one version of your domain resolves (https, one of www/non-www).
  • Check for accidental noindex tags on important pages.
  • Fix all 404 errors on pages that previously earned traffic or links.
  • Redirect old URLs with 301s — never let equity die on a broken page.
  • Ensure your site passes Core Web Vitals on mobile.
  • Compress and lazy-load images; serve modern formats.
  • Create a logical URL structure no more than three levels deep.
  • Add structured data (Organization, FAQ, Product where relevant).
  • Make sure robots.txt is not blocking CSS, JS or key sections.

Phase 2: Keyword Mapping

  • List every service or product you want to be found for.
  • Find the exact phrases customers use — not internal jargon.
  • Assign one primary keyword to one page; never two pages to one keyword.
  • Identify question keywords for FAQ and blog content.
  • Check what page types Google ranks for each term and match the format.

Phase 3: On-Page Optimisation

  • Write unique title tags: primary keyword first, brand last, under 60 characters.
  • Write meta descriptions that sell the click, not just repeat keywords.
  • Use one H1 per page containing the primary keyword naturally.
  • Structure content with descriptive H2s and H3s.
  • Add internal links from related pages using descriptive anchor text.
  • Give every image meaningful alt text.
  • Set canonical tags correctly — the homepage canonical should be the root domain.

Phase 4: Content Quality

  • Cover the topic fully: a page should answer the next three questions a reader will have.
  • Show first-hand expertise — examples, data, specifics competitors cannot copy.
  • Refresh decaying content: update stats, expand thin sections, re-promote.
  • Delete or consolidate pages that earn no traffic and serve no user.
  • Add a clear next step (call to action) on every important page.

Phase 5: Authority

  • Audit your backlink profile and disavow only genuinely toxic patterns.
  • Study which pages earn your competitors their best links — build something better.
  • Pitch guest contributions to genuinely relevant publications.
  • Get listed in the industry directories your customers actually use.
  • Turn unlinked brand mentions into links with a polite outreach email.

How to Use This Checklist

Do not try to do everything in one week. Professionals work in monthly sprints: technical first, then on-page, then content and authority in parallel. If you would rather have specialists run the whole checklist for you, that is exactly what our professional SEO services are built to do.