SEO guides library
Practical SEO guides for UK businesses, from first steps to technical, local, content and AI search topics.
Each guide focuses on one job and explains how to do it on a small business website. Where we describe how Google works, we link to its own documentation so you can check the source.
New to SEO, or deciding whether it's worth it? Start with the benefits of SEO for UK small businesses, then what SEO is and how long it takes.
What is SEO? A practical guide for UK business owners
SEO in plain English for UK business owners: how Google finds and ranks pages, what you control, what you don't, and where to start this month.
On-page SEO checklist for small business websites
A page-by-page SEO checklist for small business sites: titles, headings, opening copy, proof, internal links, images and the checks to run before you publish.
Technical SEO basics UK businesses actually need
The technical SEO a small UK business really needs: crawling, indexing, HTTPS, speed, mobile, redirects and sitemaps, plus what you can safely ignore.
Local SEO guide for UK businesses
How UK businesses get found in local search and the map pack: Business Profile, local pages, reviews, citations and the signals Google says it uses.
Google Business Profile optimisation checklist
A field-by-field Google Business Profile checklist for UK businesses: categories, hours, services, photos, reviews and the rules that can get you suspended.
Keyword research for UK small businesses
A practical keyword research method for UK small businesses using free tools: find customer phrases, judge intent and map each phrase to the right page.
Content SEO strategy for small businesses
How to plan content that keeps paying off: decide what to write, organise it into topic clusters, schedule refreshes and judge results without guesswork.
Ethical link building and digital PR for small businesses
How small UK businesses can earn links that help, from suppliers, trade bodies, local press and useful resources, and which link schemes to avoid.
Ecommerce SEO guide for UK shops
SEO for UK online shops: category structure, product page content, filters and duplicate URLs, out-of-stock items, structured data and Merchant Center.
AI search, AI Overviews and what small businesses should do
What AI Overviews and AI answers mean for UK small businesses, what Google says about appearing in them, and the practical steps that still matter most.
Core Web Vitals guide for business websites
Core Web Vitals in plain English: what LCP, INP and CLS measure, Google's thresholds, how to check your site and the fixes that usually help small sites.
Internal linking guide for growing websites
How to link your own pages so visitors and Google find what matters: menu structure, contextual links, anchor text, orphan pages and a simple audit.
SEO for service businesses
How UK service businesses win search: one page per service, honest pricing, proof that builds trust, local signals and making enquiries easy on a phone.
How long does SEO take?
An honest answer on how long SEO takes for UK businesses: what Google says, what can move in weeks, what takes months and what slows results down.
SEO reporting in plain English
What a useful SEO report should show a small business owner: the few numbers that matter, how to read them, what to ignore and the questions to ask.
Schema markup guide for small businesses
What schema markup does for a small business site, which types are worth adding, how to test it and why it helps understanding rather than rankings.
Mobile SEO essentials for UK websites
Mobile SEO for UK small business sites: what mobile-first indexing means, how to test on a real phone, and the fixes that stop mobile visitors leaving.
Title tag examples for UK service pages
Before-and-after title tag examples for UK service pages, a simple pattern that works, length guidance and the mistakes that make Google rewrite titles.
Meta descriptions that earn clicks
How to write meta descriptions that win clicks: what Google does with them, a simple structure, UK examples and when it's fine to leave one to Google.
Heading structure for SEO and accessibility
How to structure H1, H2 and H3 headings so pages are easy to scan, accessible to screen reader users and clear to search engines, with UK examples.
Image SEO without the fluff
Image SEO for small business sites: file sizes and formats, alt text that helps, file names, captions, lazy loading and getting your work into Google Images.
Blog SEO for businesses that sell services
How service businesses can blog for SEO without wasting time: picking topics customers search for, linking to service pages and when to stop posting.
SEO copywriting that still sounds human
How to write web copy that ranks and still sounds like you: plain British English, answering real questions, using customers' words and cutting the filler.
Competitor SEO analysis for small businesses
A simple competitor SEO analysis for small UK businesses: who you really compete with in search, what to compare, and turning findings into actions.
SEO audit checklist you can run monthly
A monthly SEO audit checklist for small business websites, using free tools: indexing, errors, speed, on-page basics, local listings and what to log.
Site architecture for SEO growth
How to organise a small business website so it can grow: menus, URL folders, hub pages, depth and when to split or merge pages, with a worked example.
International SEO basics with a UK focus
International SEO for UK businesses: when you need hreflang, choosing domains and folders, en-GB content, serving Ireland or the US, and common mistakes.
Google Search Console guide for business owners
A plain-English Google Search Console guide for UK business owners: setting it up, the reports worth checking each month and what to do with the data.
GA4 basics for SEO reporting
How UK small businesses can use Google Analytics 4 to measure SEO: setting up key events, finding organic traffic, linking Search Console and consent.
How to write local landing pages that aren't doorways
How to write local landing pages that help customers and stay within Google's rules: when a town page is justified, what to include and what to avoid.
Reviews and SEO: what helps and what hurts
How reviews affect local search and enquiries for UK businesses, how to ask for them, replying well, and the fake review rules under UK law since 2025.
SEO penalty and update recovery basics
What to do when Google traffic drops: tell a manual action from an algorithm update or a technical fault, diagnose the cause and plan a sensible recovery.
Website migration SEO checklist
An SEO checklist for website redesigns, platform moves and domain changes: URL mapping, redirects, content parity, launch-day checks and what to watch after.
FAQs and natural-language questions
How to answer the questions people ask Google, voice assistants and AI tools: finding real questions, writing direct answers and where FAQs belong.
Growing branded search demand
Why searches for your business name matter, how to measure branded search in Search Console, and practical ways small UK businesses can grow it.
SEO for lead generation websites
How businesses that rely on enquiries can use SEO to win better leads: matching intent to pages, building trust, forms that convert and tracking quality.
Using crawl stats and server logs
How to use Search Console's Crawl stats report and server logs to see what Googlebot fetches, spot wasted crawling and fix errors on small and mid-sized sites.
Website security issues that affect SEO
How hacks, malware and spam injections hit small business sites in Google, the warning signs to check, how to clean up and request a security review.
Accessibility and SEO: where they overlap
Where web accessibility and SEO overlap for UK businesses: headings, alt text, link text, contrast, captions and forms, plus your duties under the Equality Act.
Video SEO basics for business websites
How UK small businesses can get videos found: YouTube or self-hosting, watch pages, titles, transcripts, thumbnails and structured data for video results.
Seasonal SEO planning for UK businesses
How UK businesses can plan SEO around seasonal demand: spotting patterns in Search Console, preparing pages early and keeping seasonal URLs year to year.
Multi-location SEO without doorway pages
SEO for businesses with several UK branches: a Business Profile per location, genuinely different branch pages, managing reviews and keeping details right.
B2B SEO guide for UK firms
SEO for UK business-to-business firms: long buying cycles, several decision-makers, problem-led content, case studies, proof and measuring pipeline.
SaaS SEO basics for small software companies
SEO basics for small SaaS and software firms: feature, use-case, comparison and integration pages, help docs, JavaScript pitfalls and measuring sign-ups.
SEO for charities and nonprofits
SEO for UK charities and nonprofits: clear routes for people seeking help, donors and volunteers, trust signals, local pages and measuring what matters.
SEO for startups on a budget
SEO for UK startups with little time or money: get the foundations right at launch, own one narrow topic first, earn early links and avoid costly habits.
DIY SEO if you can't hire anyone yet
A practical DIY SEO plan for UK owners who can't hire help yet: what to do first, an hour-a-week routine, free tools and when to bring someone in.
How to brief an SEO provider
How to brief and choose an SEO provider in the UK: setting goals, sharing access safely, questions to ask, contract terms to check and red flags to avoid.
Measuring SEO return without fantasy maths
How UK small businesses can measure SEO return honestly: tracking enquiries and sales, valuing leads, attribution limits and judging results over quarters.
Content pruning and consolidation
How to review old pages safely: when to update, merge, redirect or remove content, how to use Search Console data, and how to avoid deleting what works.
Entities, brands and topical clarity
What entities mean in search, why Google needs to be sure who your business is, and simple ways to make your brand, people and topics clear and consistent.
Crawl budget myths for small sites
Why crawl budget rarely matters for small business sites, what Google says about it, the real reasons pages don't get indexed and what to fix instead.
JavaScript SEO essentials
JavaScript SEO in plain English: how Google renders pages, why key content and links must be in the HTML, rendering options and how to test your pages.
HTTP to HTTPS and host migrations
How to move a site to HTTPS, change www settings or switch hosts without losing search visibility: certificates, redirects, mixed content and monitoring.
What monthly SEO should look like
What a sensible monthly SEO routine includes for a small UK business: checks, improvements, local upkeep, reporting and what you should see month by month.
Cheap SEO: what you really get at low prices
What low-cost SEO can honestly deliver for a UK small business, the warning signs of cheap SEO that does harm, and the questions that separate the two.
Affordable SEO buying guide for UK small businesses
How to buy affordable SEO in the UK: setting a budget, comparing deliverables not slogans, checking contracts and reports, and the main options compared.
SEO packages explained in plain English
What the common lines in UK SEO packages actually mean: audits, on-page, content, links, local, reporting and tiers, plus questions to ask about each.
Why SEO never really stops
Why SEO works best as a steady habit rather than a one-off project: how sites, searches, competitors and Google change, and what ongoing upkeep looks like.
How automation helps SEO for small businesses
What automation does well in SEO, from monitoring to spotting issues, where human judgement still matters, and how to use automated tools safely.
Start with a free SEO audit
Your whole site, audited free. No card and no obligation.