The Template That Turns Your Content Audit from Spreadsheet to Growth Lever

Too Long; Didn't Read (TL:DR)

Most audits just list your content. This one tells you what to do with it.

This free template helps you:

• Run a strategic content audit

• Evaluate business value, SEO, and ICP fit

• Take action with a built-in roadmap

Most marketers have a content audit file buried somewhere in their Google Drive. It’s usually a long sheet of links, publish dates, and vague notes like “update later” or “good post.”

However, that kind of audit doesn’t lead to action.

This template is different as it’s built to answer one question clearly: What should we actually do with our content to grow the business?

Before I walk you through how it works, let’s talk about…

Why Most Content Audits Templates Go Nowhere

Even the neatest audit fails if it doesn’t help you make decisions. 

Here’s where most of them go wrong:

• No business context: They treat all content the same, ignoring revenue impact, funnel stage, or product alignment.

• No decision framework: You’re left staring at data with no clarity on what to prioritize.

• No follow-up plan: The audit ends with a spreadsheet instead of a roadmap.

A great audit does more than track performance. It tells you what’s working, what’s holding you back, and where the biggest opportunities lie.

This template is built to do exactly that.

What's Inside the Template?

The spreadsheet has 4 main tabs:

Tab 1: Audit Readiness Checklist

Before you begin, this tab ensures you're set up for success. It includes questions like:

✅ Do you have access to GA4, Ahrefs, or your CMS analytics?

✅ Have you defined or updated your ICPs?

✅ Have you set a clear goal for this audit (e.g. increase conversions, align with new GTM strategy)?

✅ Do you have stakeholder alignment on what success looks like?

This step prevents you from jumping into the weeds before you’re clear on the why and how.

Tab 2: Overview

This is where you zoom out. Before you get further into the weeds, define:

• Your goal: Are you optimizing for conversions? Cleaning up old assets? Aligning to a new Ideal Customer Profile (ICP)? Write it down.

• Audit period: Choose a date range that reflects your goal (e.g. content from Q1 2023 to Q3 2024).

• Summary stats: Use formulas to track total pieces audited, how many to refresh, how many to sunset.

• Top opportunities: This is the story behind the numbers. “20 blog posts drive 80% of traffic but none have CTAs.” “Half of our MOFU content is outdated.” These insights drive buy-in.

This tab serves as an internal report to present to stakeholders without walking them through every cell.

Tab 3: Audit Table

Here’s where the real work happens.

For each piece of content, you’ll track:

Column	Why It Matters
Title + URL	Identify and locate the piece
Funnel Stage	See if you're overserving TOFU and neglecting BOFU
Content Type	Segment by format — blog, guide, landing page, etc.
Publish Date	Spot outdated content
Date Last Reviewed	Track when it was last audited
Target ICP	Check if content still aligns with your buyer persona
Search Intent	Clarify what the piece solves for (navigational, informational, transactional)
Monthly Search Volume (MSV)	Gauge keyword opportunity
Ranking Position	See how it performs on Google today
Sessions	Traffic data
Bounce Rate	Identify content with weak engagement
Keywords	Spot SEO gaps and overlaps
Business Value (Low/Medium/High)	Your honest take: does it drive revenue, leads, or strategic value?
Recommended Action	Choose from: ♻️ Refresh / 📦 Repurpose / 🔀 Merge / 🚫 Sunset / ✅ Keep
Notes	Add rationale, e.g. “Use in webinar series,” “Needs internal links,” “Add comparison table”

Even without fancy tools, this table forces you to think. You’ll start seeing trends: pages with traffic but no conversions. High-value content buried in old formats. Mismatched ICPs.

Tab 4: Action Plan

Once your audit table is filled out, the final tab helps you act.

You’ll map:

• What action needs to happen (e.g. Refresh, Repurpose, Merge)

• How many content pieces are affected

• Who owns the task

• When it’s due

This tab is crucial. It prevents the classic trap of doing an audit, sharing it on Slack, and never touching it again. Instead, it becomes your editorial project tracker for the next 4–6 weeks.

How Do You Use the Template?

Step 1: Define your goal

Example: “I want to align content with our new product positioning and ICP ahead of Q1 campaigns.”

Write it clearly in the Overview tab. It will guide every other decision.

Step 2: Set your audit period

Pick a realistic timeframe e.g. “Jan 2023 to Sept 2024.” You’re not auditing your whole blog from 2017.

Add this to the Overview.

Step 3: Run Your Readiness Checklist

Tick off the pre-audit requirements so you don’t miss key context.

Step 4: Fill the Audit Table

Start with your top-performing content, then move to the rest. Use tools like GA4, Ahrefs, or your CMS. Don’t aim for perfect data. Aim for patterns instead.

Step 5: Score the business value

Ask yourself:

• Does this piece attract our ideal buyers?

• Does it generate leads, signups, or demos?

• Is it aligned with current product strategy?

Assign a value (Low, Medium, High). Be honest, not optimistic.

Step 6: Choose an action

Based on traffic and business value, tag each piece with an action.

♻️ Refresh = valuable but outdated

📦 Repurpose = high value, low format match (e.g. long blog can be repurposed as a LinkedIn post and X thread)

🔀 Merge = 3 weak posts on the same topic can be merged into 1 strong one

🚫 Sunset = no value, no traffic, no point

✅ Keep = still works, no changes needed

Step 7: Create your action plan

Group pieces by action and assign owners. Set due dates that align with your editorial calendar.

Use filters to prioritize. For example:

• Show only content tagged "Refresh" and "High Value"

• Filter by ICP to align with campaign goals

• Sort by "Sessions" to catch SEO opportunities

  
  

Want to Go a Step Further?

If you’re more visual, you can plot your audit into a quadrant chart:

Traffic vs Business Value

• High traffic + High value = 💎 Maximize

• Low traffic + High value = 📈 Optimize for visibility

• High traffic + Low value = ⚠️ Update to convert

• Low traffic + Low value = 🗑 Sunset it

This gives you a bird’s-eye view of where to focus next. I’ll soon release an automated Google Sheets version of this chart.

Also, if you're running audits quarterly or bi-annually, create a second tab called "Past Audit Comparison" with snapshots from previous audits. Here, you compare metrics like:

• % of content aligned with ICP

• Average business value score

• of actions completed vs pending

• Top-performing assets then vs now

Need Help Running the Audit?

I offer:

• Done-for-you audit services for startups and content teams

• Team training on how to run these audits quarterly

• Strategy sessions to align audit findings with growth plans

If you want to stop treating your content like a blog archive and start treating it like a revenue asset, let’s chat. Book a free 20-min session or DM me to learn more.

Grab the Free Template

→ Download the Content Audit Template

Use it. Share it with your team. Show up to your next marketing meeting with clarity and a plan.

And if you use it, I’d love to hear what insights you uncover.