A scaled-content risk audit reviews a boiler website that already has a large page set, usually location pages or generated model pages, and makes a decision for every URL. The output is a sheet you can act on, not a slide deck about best practice. We are not a heating contractor; this is purely website and search work.
When you need one
You need an audit when a site has many pages that look alike and the numbers say they aren't working. The usual signs:
- hundreds of "boiler repair in [town]" pages, most with no impressions in Search Console
- model pages with a name and a photo but no specs
- a traffic drop that lines up with a Google update or a manual action notice
- a large share of URLs in Search Console reported as crawled but not indexed
Google's spam policies describe both scaled content abuse and doorway abuse, and its guidance on people-first content asks whether you are relying heavily on automation to produce content across many topics. An audit applies those tests to your pages one group at a time.
What we check on each URL
Each URL is scored against the same short list, so decisions are consistent and you can challenge any of them.
- Unique data. Does the page carry facts no other page on the site has?
- Search evidence. Impressions and clicks over the last 16 months, where Search Console holds them.
- Conversion evidence. Calls, texts or orders from visitors who landed there.
- Overlap. How closely it matches its nearest sibling page.
- Truth. Does it claim service in a place you don't serve, or specs you can't source?
- Links in. Whether other sites or your own pages link to it.
The four decisions
| Decision | When | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| Keep | Unique data and some search or conversion evidence | Left as is; maybe light fixes |
| Improve | Real subject, weak page | Added to a rewrite or data-fill queue |
| Merge | Overlaps a stronger page | Content folded in; 301 redirect |
| Remove | No unique data, no evidence, or untrue | Removed with a redirect to the closest useful page, or a 410 if nothing fits |
A worked example from the kind of site we often see: 240 town pages, of which 18 earn most of the impressions. A reasonable outcome is to keep and strengthen those 18 as real city hubs, merge another 30 small towns into the nearest hub, and remove the remaining 192 with redirects. The site gets smaller and much easier to defend.
What's included
- full crawl and URL inventory, grouped by template
- Search Console and call-tracking data matched to each URL
- the decision sheet, with the reason for each decision
- a redirect map ready for your developer, or implemented by us
- a short written summary you can share with your team or a buyer
- a follow-up review 90 days after the changes go live
Timeline
| Weeks | Work |
|---|---|
| 1 | Crawl, data access, URL grouping |
| 2–3 | Scoring and decisions |
| 4 | Review call with you; redirect map finalised |
| 5–6 | Changes implemented; sitemaps rebuilt |
| +90 days | Follow-up review |
Mistakes to avoid
- Deleting everything at once without redirects. You lose any links pointing at those pages and leave readers on error pages.
- Rewriting thin pages with an AI tool and calling it fixed. New words on the same empty data are still the same page.
- Keeping pages because they "might rank someday". Sixteen months with no impressions is a long enough wait.
- Ignoring the cause. If the template still generates weak pages, they come back. The fix belongs in your page system and indexing rules.
An audit is also a sensible step before selling a business or merging two websites, because a buyer or a new owner will want to know whether the site's traffic rests on pages that could be judged as spam.
Our guide to scaled-content and doorway risk explains the policies in more depth. When you're ready, call, text or email with your domain and we'll tell you whether an audit is the right first step.
Frequently asked questions
Will removing pages lose us traffic?
Pages with no impressions have no traffic to lose. Pages that do earn visits are usually kept or merged into a stronger page with a redirect, so their visitors land somewhere better.
We got a manual action. Can you fix it?
We can audit the pages, carry out the clean-up and help you document it for a reconsideration request in Search Console. Google decides the outcome, so nobody can promise when or whether it is lifted.
Do you need our old agency's files?
It helps but isn't required. A crawl of the live site plus your Search Console data is enough to start.
How long before we see a change?
Google revisits large sites gradually, so allow two to four months after the clean-up before judging it.