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Content Discovery Guide

Find and catalog every piece of content in your digital ecosystem

Effective content discovery is the foundation of a successful audit. This guide covers methods, tools, and best practices for finding all your content—even the pieces you didn't know existed.

Discovery Methods Comparison

Website Crawling

Tools

  • Screaming Frog
  • Sitebulb
  • DeepCrawl

Pros

  • Comprehensive
  • Finds orphan pages
  • Technical data included

Cons

  • May miss dynamic content
  • Requires technical setup
Best for:Most websites, especially static content

CMS Export

Tools

  • WordPress export
  • Drupal views
  • Custom queries

Pros

  • Gets all CMS content
  • Includes metadata
  • Draft content visible

Cons

  • Only CMS content
  • May include unpublished
Best for:CMS-heavy sites

Analytics Mining

Tools

  • Google Analytics
  • Adobe Analytics
  • Search Console

Pros

  • Performance data included
  • Finds high-traffic pages
  • User behavior insights

Cons

  • May miss low-traffic pages
  • Historical data limits
Best for:Performance-focused audits

XML Sitemap Analysis

Tools

  • Online validators
  • Excel/Sheets
  • Python scripts

Pros

  • Quick overview
  • Intended for search engines
  • Usually current

Cons

  • May be incomplete
  • No performance data
Best for:Initial discovery phase

Manual Navigation

Tools

  • Browser
  • Spreadsheet
  • Screenshots

Pros

  • User perspective
  • Finds UX issues
  • Context understanding

Cons

  • Time-consuming
  • Not scalable
  • Human error
Best for:Small sites or sample validation

6-Step Discovery Process

A systematic approach ensures you capture 100% of your content landscape, including hidden pages, orphaned content, and dynamic elements.

1

Define Scope

  • Identify domains and subdomains
  • List content management systems
  • Define inclusion/exclusion rules
  • Set discovery boundaries
2

Technical Crawl

  • Configure crawler settings
  • Run comprehensive site crawl
  • Export crawl data
  • Identify technical issues
3

CMS Audit

  • Export all CMS content
  • Include draft/scheduled content
  • Document content types
  • Map taxonomy structure
4

Analytics Integration

  • Pull traffic metrics
  • Export conversion data
  • Gather engagement metrics
  • Identify top performers
5

Gap Identification

  • Compare crawl vs CMS
  • Find orphan pages
  • Identify missing content
  • Document discrepancies
6

Consolidation

  • Merge all data sources
  • Remove duplicates
  • Standardize formats
  • Create master inventory

Content Types to Discover

Content TypeExamplesAudit Priority
PagesLanding, product, service pagesHigh
Blog PostsArticles, news, updatesMedium-High
ResourcesGuides, whitepapers, ebooksHigh
MediaImages, videos, infographicsMedium
DocumentationHelp docs, FAQs, tutorialsHigh
ToolsCalculators, configuratorsHigh
LegalTerms, privacy, disclaimersLow
ArchivesOld news, past eventsLow

Common Discovery Challenges

Hidden Content

Password-protected, no-index pages, or JavaScript-rendered content

Solution: Use multiple discovery methods and authenticate crawlers

Multiple Systems

Content spread across different CMSs, databases, or platforms

Solution: Map all systems first, then extract systematically

International Content

Multiple languages, regional variations, or geo-targeted content

Solution: Crawl from different locations and document variations

Download Discovery Checklist

Get our comprehensive content discovery checklist to ensure nothing is missed.

Download Discovery Checklist

Need Help with Content Discovery?

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