The aim of a web audit is to analyse an existing web presence to facilitate performance improvements creating better online technical, structural and business delivery.
Understanding and identifying audiences and stakeholders is the first step to creating a highly usable website. This is achieved through:
1) Audience analysis
2) Perception audits
3) Stakeholder requirements gathering
Then, identifying key areas:
1) Current web statistics analysis
2) Copy and language usage audits
3) Navigational structures and methodologies
4) Modelling the user experience
5) User assistance techniques
6) Web response times
7) Broken links
This involves looking at the current standard of web page coding and mark-up:
1) Appropriate use of international coding standards
2) Current compliance to standards
3) Beyond compliance, looking at well presented mark up
4) Cross browser performance
5) Cross platform performance
6) Adaptive technologies performance
7) Responsive features
We will look beyond the navigational structure of a website and analyse the management of information:
1) Meta tagging, including Dublin Core standards
2) Methods for encouraging browsing by subject matter, not simply by navigational structure
3) Search engine ranking and optimisation
Looking at wider business processes and their relationship with the web:
1) Aligning web strategy to business strategy
2) eMarketing
3) Site promotion
4) Competitive positioning
5) Analysing business process and potential benefits of moving these online
6) Application of new technologies to enhance business process
