If your business is not growing online, it helps to know where the problem actually is before you spend more. This self-check takes about 20 minutes and uses tools that are free or that you probably already have.
Score each item from 0 to 10, then add them up. The cut-off points are rough guides, not laws, and the best score is whatever tells you what to fix first.
The 10 checks
1. Website conversion rate
In Google Analytics, what share of visitors call, send a form or buy? Under one percent usually means something is broken. Several percent is healthy for many businesses, though it depends on your industry.
2. Traffic volume
How many people visit each month? With only a handful of visits, you cannot learn much from the numbers, and your first job is getting more of the right visitors.
3. Where traffic comes from
Check Acquisition in Analytics. If everything is direct or referral, you are not being found. A mix of search, social, referral and ads is healthier. If you cannot see this at all, tracking is missing.
4. Mobile performance
Compare how mobile visitors convert against desktop ones. A big gap points to a mobile problem.
5. Page speed
Enter your homepage at PageSpeed Insights. A low score on mobile is worth fixing, because slow pages lose visitors.
6. Search visibility
Search for the words your customers use, plus your city. Do you appear on the first page? Check Google Search Console to see which searches already bring people to you.
7. Message clarity
Show your homepage to someone outside your business. Can they tell you what you do in one sentence? If not, rewrite the headline.
8. Social proof
Count the testimonials, reviews and case studies on your site. None at all is a red flag.
9. Paid ad performance
If you run ads, divide the revenue they brought in by what you spent. If the answer is below one, you are losing money. If you do not run ads, score this a zero for now and decide whether they suit your goals.
10. Data tracking
Can you answer these four questions: where did my last customer come from, which page do most visitors land on, where do they drop off, and which ad makes money? Each one you can answer earns points.
Reading your total
- Under 30: the foundations are weak. Pick the lowest items and fix those before spending on more traffic.
- 30 to 60: there are real leaks. Fix the two or three lowest scores first.
- 60 to 80: solid foundations. Improve what is weakest, then scale what works.
- Above 80: your marketing is in good shape. Focus on scaling what already works.
What to do next
Find your lowest scores, fix one thing, give it a month and measure the result before moving to the next. Fixing everything at once makes it impossible to see what helped.
If you would like a professional review instead, our marketing diagnostic goes through your website, search, ads, brand and numbers and ends with a 90-day plan. For a quick look at your website alone, ask for the free website review on the same page.
Related services: Marketing diagnostic · Fractional CMO
