Locating Most Important URLs

Metrics to find significant URLs

[Mostar]

What metrics do you use to locate the most important URLs to optimize (seo) first? I have Google Analytics, Search Console, and Moz to help me with tracking. I have dozens of websites and thousands of URLs that need various SEO tweaks. Which ones should I do first?

[tangor]

First, welcome to webmasterworld!

What kind of tweaks are you planning?

What platform? (CMS, hand-coded...?)

You've asked a very open ended question.

[LifeinAsia]

How are you defining "most important" URLs? Makes the most revenue? Gets the most traffic? Highest position in SERPs? Money/resources you've spent to create the page?

Depending on your definition can determine where to look for the information.

[buckworks]

>> Which ones should I do first?

One place to start: If you know of any pages that are ranking on the second page for a desired search, see if you can identify some tweaks that might nudge them onto the first page.

[tangor]

Also for curious mind: Do you want to tweak the URL or the content of the page located with that URL?

[engine]

Welcome to WebmasterWorld.
Most important urls are the ones that convert best, but they may not be the the ones that need the attention.

As was suggested, look at the ones that are not performing particularly well.

Look at the highest bounce rate for starters.

[Mostar]

Thanks so much for the help! I am using sitecore cms and have numerous on-page seo tweaks to make in addition to off-page. I'm also tasked with adjusting content. Our most important metrics are SERP rankings and organic traffic. While i'm here, I'm also really confused with keyword research. Are the Wordtracker and Google Keyword Research tools enough to effectively locate the best keywords?

[tangor]

If you intimately know your product or content you have all the keywords you need. If you want to track what others are using those tools will AID but will not give you THE ANSWER. Webmasters beg for the shortcut to The Answer... but only trial and error will reveal YOUR answer as regards effective keyword or keywordphrase for your website. Chasing the long tail is a slightly different aspect of the same thing.

In some respects it would be easier to share what NOT to do! (ie. don't put "free" or "buy now") in the mix. :)

[buckworks]

Re Wordtracker: it can be a big help for identifying terms to aim for, but also keep in mind that Google is less keyword-centric these days. The busiest search terms are not always the most productive in terms of conversions. Sometimes a lower volume search will put more money in your pocket because there's less competition, and also because of the mindset of the searcher who uses that term. Like so many things in life, deciding on your SEO targets is a balancing act.

most important metrics are SERP rankings and organic traffic

Both of those can be tricky to monitor because you can't always tell what keywords are driving traffic, and users might be seeing very different rankings than you do.

Here's another metric to monitor. Drill into your analytics and see how often Page XYZ is the entry point to the site. That should go up for the pages you're working on.

AND ... monitor conversions, whatever that means in your context. If you're getting more conversions, that's the ultimate measure of effectiveness.

As well as working on individual pages, make some passes through your site(s) to make sure the basics are in good shape. Check the Google Search Console (Webmaster Tools) and work on any issues reported there. Ditto for Bing tools. Run a link checker through your site. Check some sample pages with PageSpeed and also with a code validator. If those tools report any issues do what you reasonably can to improve them. Especially try to fix issues that occur in your templates. Perfection isn't possible but improvement usually is. :)

[tangor]

Perfection isn't possible but improvement usually is. :)

Truer words have never been spoken!

[Mostar]

Thank you so much! I can't tell you how much I appreciate the insight!