If you run a small business in Lagos or anywhere in Nigeria, your website should be helping you get more enquiries, calls, and sales—not just acting as an online brochure. A simple website audit at least once or twice a year can reveal problems that quietly make you lose customers and revenue.
This checklist will walk you through four key areas to review: technical health, SEO, user experience, and performance/analytics. You can use it to audit your own site or understand what a professional audit should include.
Technical health – is your site stable and safe?
Technical issues make visitors leave before they even see your offer. Start by confirming that your site is secure, working and mobile‑friendly.
Checklist items:
- SSL/HTTPS:
- Does your site load with https:// and show a secure padlock in the browser?
- Make sure all pages redirect to the HTTPS version, not mixed between http and https.
- Mobile‑friendliness:
- Open your site on 2–3 different phones.
- Check that the layout doesn’t break, text is readable and buttons are easy to tap.
- Broken links and errors:
- Click through the main pages and menu items—do any links go to a 404 error or wrong page?
- Fix or redirect broken links to avoid confusing visitors and search engines.
- Platform updates and security:
- For WordPress or similar, check that the core, theme and plugins are updated.
- Remove unused or suspicious plugins and make sure you have basic security tools installed.
SEO basics – can people find you?
Good SEO makes sure your ideal customers can actually discover your site when they search on Google for services in Nigeria.
Checklist items:
- Page titles and meta descriptions:
- Each page should have a unique, descriptive title that includes your service and location (e.g. “Laundry Service in Ikeja Lagos | [Brand Name]”).
- Meta descriptions should briefly explain what the page offers and include a call‑to‑action.
- Headings and content structure:
- Every page needs one clear H1 heading that matches the main topic.
- Use H2/H3 sub‑headings to break content into sections—services, benefits, FAQs, etc.
- Keywords and local signals:
- Naturally mention your main service and city/state (e.g. “web design company in Lagos”, “accounting services in Nigeria”) in headings and first paragraphs.
- Check that your business name, address and phone number (NAP) are easy to find and consistent with your Google Business Profile.
- On‑page SEO hygiene:
- Ensure images have descriptive alt text.
- Use internal links to connect related pages (e.g. from services to contact, from blog posts to services).
User experience – can visitors quickly understand and act?
Even if people find your site, they won’t convert if your pages are confusing or lack clear next steps.
Checklist items:
- Clarity above the fold:
- On your homepage, within 3–5 seconds a visitor should know who you serve, what you offer, and what to do next.
- Avoid vague headings like “Welcome to our website”—be specific and benefit‑focused.
- Simple navigation:
- Keep the main menu short and clear: Home, Services/Shop, About, Projects/Portfolio, Blog, Contact.
- Make sure important pages are no more than 1–2 clicks away from the homepage.
- Strong calls‑to‑action (CTAs):
- Each page should have at least one clear CTA (e.g. “Call Now”, “Get a Quote”, “Shop Now”, “Book an Appointment”).
- Place CTAs in visible positions—near the top and after key sections.
- Trust elements:
- Add testimonials with names/locations if possible.
- Show client logos, certifications, awards, or basic guarantees (response time, refund/return policies).
- Contact experience:
- Test your forms. Are they easy to fill? Do you only ask essential information?
- Provide multiple contact options: form, WhatsApp, phone, and email.
Performance and analytics – is your site fast and measured?
Speed and tracking are essential to understanding whether your site is actually helping your business.
Checklist items:
- Page speed:
- Use a tool like Google PageSpeed Insights to test your homepage and key pages, especially on mobile.
- If your site is slow, start by compressing images, enabling caching, and removing heavy scripts or plugins.
- Mobile data usage:
- Many Nigerian visitors use mobile data; heavy pages can cost them time and money.
- Keep pages lightweight and avoid auto‑playing large videos where possible.
- Analytics setup:
- Make sure Google Analytics (GA4) is installed and working.
- Set up basic events for key actions: contact form submissions, WhatsApp/call clicks, and orders/checkout success for ecommerce.
- Measure conversions:
- Track how many leads or orders you get from the website each month.
- Calculate conversion rate: leads or orders ÷ total visitors, and monitor this over time.
When should Nigerian SMEs do a website audit?
For most small businesses, a full website audit is useful:
- At least once a year as a health check.
- Whenever the business changes direction (new services, new niche).
- When traffic is coming in but enquiries or sales are low.
DIY vs professional website audit – what’s the difference?
- DIY audit:
- Good for spotting obvious issues and learning how your site works.
- Use this checklist to get started.
- Professional audit:
- Deeper technical checks and SEO analysis.
- Detailed recommendations prioritised by impact and effort.
- Often includes a video walkthrough and a call to explain findings.
Turn your audit into more sales
Download a one‑page version of the checklist by clicking this link. Or request your “Website Audit & Conversion Review” where you apply this checklist to their site and provide a custom action plan.
If you’d like a professional pair of eyes to go through this checklist for your website, I offer a structured Website Audit & Conversion Review for Nigerian small businesses. I’ll review your site across technical, SEO, user experience and performance, then send you an easy‑to‑understand report and video explaining the most important fixes to increase your enquiries and sales.
