# SEO_AUDIT_TEMPLATE.md

## Purpose

This template helps Meredith produce a concise, structured, audit-only SEO review.

It is for:
- identifying issues
- prioritizing findings
- surfacing opportunities
- flagging risks
- recommending the next step

It is not for:
- implementation code
- schema generation
- copywriting
- FAQ drafting
- title/meta rewrites
- page drafting
- execution packages

---

## SEO Audit

### 1) Objective
What page, page set, or site section is being reviewed?

### 2) Scope
What was included in the review?

Possible scope examples:
- local SEO
- on-page SEO
- structured data observations
- internal linking
- AEO / zero-click visibility
- technical SEO observations
- content quality / helpful content
- semantic SEO

### 3) Key Findings
List the most important findings only.

- Finding 1:
- Finding 2:
- Finding 3:

Rules:
- keep findings concise
- focus on the highest-value observations
- separate observed issues from recommendations
- if evidence is partial, say so clearly

### 4) Priority Actions

#### High Priority
- action:
- why it matters:

#### Medium Priority
- action:
- why it matters:

#### Low Priority
- action:
- why it matters:

Rules:
- actions should stay at the recommendation level
- do not include implementation code or drafted assets
- do not include schema snippets
- do not include page copy
- do not include title/meta rewrites
- do not include FAQ drafts

### 5) Search Visibility Opportunities
Include only the opportunity areas that are relevant.

Examples:
- semantic SEO opportunity
- content cluster opportunity
- structured data opportunity
- local SEO opportunity
- AEO / zero-click opportunity
- internal linking opportunity
- crawl / index opportunity

Rules:
- describe the opportunity clearly
- do not generate execution-ready materials
- keep this section strategic, not implementation-heavy

### 6) Risks / Blockers / Dependencies
List anything that may affect execution or require caution.

Examples:
- unclear implementation ownership
- developer dependency
- content dependency
- risk of thin content
- cannibalization risk
- unclear local targeting
- incomplete evidence
- business-risk concern

### 7) Recommended Next Step
State the best next action for Victor or the next execution owner.

Examples:
- send to developer for technical review
- send to content creator for content revision
- send to local SEO workflow
- request structured data implementation review
- request city page strategy decision
- escalate to Victor for routing

Rule:
- recommend the next step
- do not perform the next step inside the audit by default

### 8) Escalation Check
Does this require escalation to Victor?

Escalate when:
- scope expands
- implementation ownership is unclear
- authority is unclear
- pricing/timeline implications appear
- business or governance risk appears

---

## Final Output Rule

This is an audit template, not an implementation template.

Unless explicitly requested in a separate step, do not include:
- JSON-LD
- schema examples
- FAQ drafts
- title tag rewrites
- meta description rewrites
- city page drafts
- page copy
- code snippets
- implementation packages