Just like any other report, an SEO one needs to be informative, succinct and useful. It needs to provide information about what you’re doing, what results you’ve achieved and how you believe things should develop in the future.
Still, it’s easier said than done. Since no two businesses have exactly the same needs, you have to adapt the focus of your SEO reports to suit your clients’ needs. In order to do that, you need to know what their objectives are and those objectives have to be realistic and measurable. So, let’s take a look at four vital steps that should improve your SEO reports.
1. What is the objective?
As the name suggests, a report is supposed to show the progress of an endeavor. To be able to have a clear picture of how well things are going, you need to always bear in mind what is it that you wish to achieve. You and your clients have agreed on SEO goals and you’ve devised a strategy that you’ve been implementing for some time. These goals are just part of a much greater objective of improving the company’s overall business.
To have a good report, all your objectives need to be clear, realistic and measurable. Only then can you actually report objectively on the progress. If possible, make sure that your report includes mentions of how achieving certain SEO goals helps the overall performance of the company. The clearer the rationale, the better your client will understand what you’re trying to do.
2. Find a focus
Your report should contain references to what you’ve done and why, as well as to what you’re planning to do in the future. To succeed, you have to know what your client’s expectations are. Let’s say they wish to boost organic search traffic to their site. What you’ll have to focus on is improving their keyword ranking. Your report needs to contain your plan and prediction of what will have the most impact.
This type of information is crucial in effective SEO reports and must not be accompanied by numerous irrelevant pieces of data, so that its importance is not lost. Remember that you’re writing a report on a subject that your client may know little or nothing about (which is why they hired you in the first place), so make sure they understand exactly what is going on and what the plans for future actions are.
3. Your procedure should be included
Don’t forget to list all the objectives you’ve met so far, such as page optimization for target keywords, resolved missing descriptions, etc. This will show your client that their investment has been paying off and will increase their trust in your expertize and professionalism. Again, if possible, link your results with a broader picture, i.e. demonstrate how that is helping the company.
It’s vital that you do that in each report you submit to your client, since that will help them get accustomed to your reports and they’ll find it much easier to find the information they are interested in. The more knowledgeable your client is, the easier it will be for you to establish good professional cooperation.
4. Make it comprehensive
Possibly the worst mistake you can make while creating a report is to miss some vital information or observations. The latter are important, since they are supposed to explain to your client what you think about the results so far and what you’re going to do in the future. Let them know, for example, which of the keywords have improved in the rankings and how their search visibility has changed since you last submitted a report.
If you manage to submit useful, comprehensive and understandable SEO reports, you’ll not only improve your image and client’s satisfaction, but you’ll also be able to use the findings to prepare more efficient future actions. So, it’s a win-win situation for both sides, which is why you need to give SEO reporting the attention and care it deserves.
