Reynolds – Ahrefs 100 & Google Ads Audit
Overview
During the 2026-03-17 internal sync, Mark walked through a comprehensive remediation of the Reynolds site covering SEO health, Google Ads configuration, and conversion tracking. The Ahrefs site health score reached 100 following AI-assisted meta fixes and a full ads/tracking audit. Several critical Google Ads issues were identified and resolved.
Related: [1] | [2] | [3]
SEO Health
Result
Ahrefs site health score: 100
AI-Automated Fixes
An AI tool connected via the WordPress REST API crawled all 60 pages and resolved the following in minutes:
- 27 pages were missing meta titles → all generated and set
- 7 pages were missing meta descriptions → all generated and set
- SEO plugin variables replaced with actual text
- Descriptions exceeding 160 characters trimmed
- Target keywords set on all 56 applicable pages (thank-you pages, test pages skipped)
"27 pages were missing titles, now have them. Seven pages were missing descriptions. All 56 pages have the SEO target keyword set." — Mark Hope
Remaining Issues (Manual / Developer Work Required)
- 23 pages are missing H1 tags — requires developer intervention; AI cannot safely inject heading tags into Elementor without risking site breakage
- 42 images are missing alt text — likely icons or non-image files in the image directory; AI tool skips these consistently
Schema
Mark is building a must-use (MU) plugin to inject proper schema sitewide. MU plugins execute automatically on every page load without appearing in the standard plugin list — documentation is required so the injection isn't forgotten.
Action (Mark): Build and document the Reynolds MU schema plugin. See [4].
Google Ads Audit
Mark ran a full Google Ads audit on the Reynolds account (performed 2026-03-16). Findings were significant.
Critical Issues Found
| Issue | Detail |
|---|---|
| Conversion value set to $0 | Prevents Smart Bidding from optimizing — system cannot calculate max CPC without knowing conversion value |
| No negative keywords | Budget wasted on irrelevant search terms |
| Duplicate/overlapping keywords | Campaigns competing against each other |
| Irrelevant search terms spending budget | Search query report showed spend on non-converting queries |
| Quality score issues | Multiple keywords with critically low quality scores |
| Wrong bid strategy | Strategy did not match campaign goals |
"Conversion value is zero. The problem with that is you'll say I want to optimize the bids for conversion — it doesn't know what a conversion is worth. So it doesn't know how to optimize." — Mark Hope
Actions Taken
All audit recommendations were implemented:
- Conversion values corrected
- Negative keyword lists built and applied
- Duplicate keywords resolved
- Bid strategy updated
- Ad copy reviewed
Conversion Tracking Audit
A separate tracking audit was run after the Ads audit.
Issues Found
- Overlapping conversion actions
- Too many primary conversions configured
- Duplicate conversion events
Conversions Identified on Site
- Phone clicks
- Email clicks
- Form submissions
Actions Taken
- Duplicate conversion actions removed or demoted to secondary
- Primary conversions rationalized to match actual business goals
- GA4 configuration verified as correct
- GTM container reviewed; tags confirmed firing correctly
Process Notes
Why H1/H2/H3 Cannot Be AI-Automated (Yet)
The AI tool operates via the WordPress/Yoast REST API and can safely write to SEO metadata fields. Heading tags (H1–H3) live inside Elementor page builder components. Attempts to modify these via API have caused site breakage requiring restores. Mark is researching safer injection methods.
Action (Mark): Research H1/H2/H3 automation methods that avoid Elementor breakage.
Developer Handoff Standard (New Process)
Going forward, all sitemaps delivered to developers must include the target keyword for each page. This allows developers to correctly implement H1/H2/H3 headings at build time — the one SEO task that cannot be automated after the fact.
See: [5]
Action Items
- [ ] Build MU plugin to inject schema sitewide on Reynolds — Mark
- [ ] Document MU plugin implementation so it's discoverable later — Mark
- [ ] Research H1/H2/H3 injection methods that don't break Elementor — Mark
- [ ] Add H1/H2/H3 headings with target keywords to all Reynolds pages (23 missing) — Developer
Source
Internal sync, 2026-03-17. Attendees: Mark Hope, Karly Oykhman.
Recording: https://fathom.video/calls/602614412