University at Buffalo (UB)
Transforming UB’s digital communications.
Creating a Content Audit
As part of conducting an inventory of your site, you need to make reasonable judgments about what should be done, if anything, to remediate your site for the short term, and what’s more instructive for building your site in the longer term. The content audit should encourage you to look at your site without prejudice as to what should or should not be there.
What to Document
Site Inventory
* Indicates minimum information needed for audit
- Page ID Number*: You’ll want to use a numbering system to identify each page within your department’s website (e.g. 1.0 Academics; 2.0 Faculty; 3.0 Research, 3.1 Recent Research, 3.2 Research Facilities, etc.).
- Page Name*: This is the name of the page as it appears in the site’s navigation and/or the main page heading.
- URL*: The hyperlink of the page that appears in the address bar of your Web browser.
- Link: Does the navigation link to a page in another section of your site or a different site? Include only those links that are part of the navigation.
- Resources on the page: Are there resources on the page worth noting? If so, what format are they in (PDF, video, Word/Excel, RSS feed, etc.)?
Integrity Evaluation
- Owner: Who is charged with maintaining your site’s content?
- Last Updated: Note the date your site was last modified.
- How often should this be updated: This is a recommended timeline for review of and/or updates to your website.
- Statistics: How often is the current content being viewed?
Quality Evaluation
- Purpose*: Why does this page exist? What is it trying to achieve?
- Evaluation of page quality:
- Is it useful and relevant?
- Necessary?
- Written for the user in a way that’s clear and logically organized?
- Accurate, current and complete?
- Is it written for your users?
- Does what you're saying and how it's being said meet your users' needs and connect with their interests?
- Does it use the right tone and style?
- Are the images and videos of good quality? Do they communicate the best message?
- Is it written in a way that is sustainable? Does it require constant maintenance and updates?
- Should we write it?
- Is there another department that produces the information that you can link to or use as shared content?
Recommended Action
- Keep*: The content does not need to be changed.
- Revise*: Some content on the page needs to be updated or rewritten.
- Remove*: A page should be removed if it is inaccurate, redundant, unnecessary or out of date.
Next Step:
Related Online Training
Content Audit Template
Download this helpful Content Audit Template available in Excel format. You may choose to perform the audit in a different format. If so, please read the "What to Document" section on this page.