What is it and how to do a SEM audit?

by Moises Hamui July 24, 2024

In the digital world, the visibility and performance of marketing campaigns are essential to the success of any business. This is where the SEM (Search Engine Marketing) audit comes into play.

Performing an SEM audit not only optimizes your pay-per-click (PPC) campaigns, but it also gives you a clear view of how your search engine marketing strategies are performing.

What is an SEM audit and why is it important?

An SEM audit is a comprehensive analysis of your search engine advertising campaigns. Its objective is to identify areas of improvement and optimization to maximize return on investment (ROI).

This process includes reviewing ads, keywords, account settings, landing pages, and more.

Importance of an SEM audit

Budget optimization : Detect areas where you can reduce costs without sacrificing performance.
Performance Improvement : Identify opportunities to improve CTR (Click-Through Rate) and conversions.
Competitive analysis : Compare your campaigns with those of the competition to find competitive advantages.
Efficiency : Ensure that all configurations are aligned with your business objectives.

How to carry out an effective SEM audit?

Conducting an SEM audit may seem like a complex process, but with a structured approach, it can be manageable and highly beneficial. Here's a step-by-step guide:

Review account settings

Check the account structure: campaigns, ad groups, and ads.
Make sure your geographic settings, daily budget, and start and end dates are correct.
Review tags and conversion tracking.

Keyword analysis

Evaluate the relevance and performance of keywords.
Identify negative keywords to avoid unwanted clicks.
Review your use of keyword matches: broad, phrase, exact, and negative.

Ad evaluation

Analyze the performance of each ad: CTR, conversion rate and cost per conversion.
Make sure your ads are relevant and engaging.
Test ad variations to find the most effective ones.

Landing page review

Verify that landing pages are optimized for conversion.
Make sure the content is relevant and aligned with the ads.
Review the loading speed and user experience on landing pages.

Performance analysis

Use analytics tools to review overall account performance.
Identify trends and patterns in campaign performance.
Make temporal comparisons to understand the evolution of the campaigns.

What tools are used in an SEM audit?

There are various tools that can facilitate carrying out an SEM audit. Here we present some of the most effective:

Google Ads : The main platform to manage and audit your SEM campaigns.
Google Analytics : To analyze user behavior and conversion performance.
SEMrush : To perform competitive and keyword analysis.
Ahrefs : Ideal for backlink and competitor analysis.
Google Search Console : To review the performance and health of your website in organic search.

How to interpret the results of an SEM audit?

Once the SEM audit is completed, it is crucial to interpret the results effectively to make informed decisions. Here are some steps to do it:

Identify areas for improvement : Based on the analysis, identify areas that require adjustments or improvements.
Prioritize actions : Sort necessary actions by priority and potential impact on performance.
Implement changes : Make the necessary changes to the account, ads, keywords and landing pages.
Monitor and Adjust : Continuously monitor performance after implementing changes and adjust as necessary.

Written by Moises Hamui Abadi : I am an entrepreneur, founding partner of Viceversa and SoyMacho. After leading several digital businesses and advising several other businesses; I decided to form MHA Consulting, a digital marketing consultancy dedicated to growing and enhancing digital businesses in more than 7 countries and generating more than 1,500 million pesos.