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Useful ideas for a better website

Plain-English articles for trades, founders and small teams who want a clearer website, sharper content and a more useful online presence.

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Article index

Every article

27 guides on websites, search and getting found, newest first.

Best Website Builder for Small Business Free: The Honest Guide

Best Website Builder for Small Business Free: The Honest Guide

Looking for the best website builder for small business free? Compare top platforms, features, and limitations before you commit. An honest, practical guide.

12 min read
Small Business Website Design Services: What You're Actually Paying For

Small Business Website Design Services: What You're Actually Paying For

Small business website design services explained: real UK pricing, agency vs freelancer vs DIY, and how to choose the right provider for your budget.

3 min read
What Makes a Small Business Website Convert
Guides

What Makes a Small Business Website Convert

Most small business websites lose people for reasons the owner never sees. Here is what actually turns a visitor into an enquiry, which parts of the page do the work, and the changes worth making first.

23 min read
What Eleven Months of SEO Actually Looks Like
Business

What Eleven Months of SEO Actually Looks Like

We run a second website of our own. Here is the honest shape of its first eleven months in Google, what the work really involved, and why results like it are rarer than they should be.

20 min read
What Technical SEO Actually Is, in Plain English
Guides

What Technical SEO Actually Is, in Plain English

Technical SEO gets sold hard and explained badly. Here is what the term genuinely covers, what it does not, and how to work out whether your site has a real technical problem or whether the honest answer is content and competition.

23 min read
Local SEO for Tradespeople: Showing Up When Someone Nearby Searches
Guides

Local SEO for Tradespeople: Showing Up When Someone Nearby Searches

Local search decides who gets the call when somebody nearby has a leak, a dead socket or a roof problem. Here is how ranking in your area actually works, what you can genuinely influence, and why fifty town pages is the fastest way to waste money.

23 min read
Google Analytics 4 Explained Without the Jargon
Guides

Google Analytics 4 Explained Without the Jargon

GA4 confused almost everyone who had got comfortable with the old Analytics. Here is what actually changed, which reports are worth opening, and the handful of settings that turn it into something useful for a small business.

23 min read
Small Business Website Design UK: The Complete Comparison Guide 2024

Small Business Website Design UK: The Complete Comparison Guide 2024

Small business website design UK: compare DIY builders vs professional designers, real pricing, hidden costs, and how to choose the right option for your budget.

19 min read
Structured Data and Rich Results: How to Earn the Extra Detail in Google
Guides

Structured Data and Rich Results: How to Earn the Extra Detail in Google

Structured data tells Google what a page is about in a format it cannot misread. Rich results are the stars, questions, breadcrumbs and opening hours that appear under a listing. Here is how the two connect, what to add, and what to honestly expect.

23 min read
Google Search Console Explained for Small Business Owners
Guides

Google Search Console Explained for Small Business Owners

Search Console is free, takes ten minutes to set up, and is the only place you can see the words people actually typed into Google before they found you. Here is what every report means and which ones are worth your time.

23 min read
How Fast Should a Small Business Website Be? A Plain-English Guide

How Fast Should a Small Business Website Be? A Plain-English Guide

How fast should a small business website be? Get plain-English targets, the real causes of slow sites, and the fixes that actually move the needle.

12 min read
Core Web Vitals Explained for Small Business Owners
Guides

Core Web Vitals Explained for Small Business Owners

Three numbers, one confusing report and a lot of bad advice. Here is what LCP, INP and CLS actually measure, why your testing tools disagree with each other, and which handful of fixes are worth your time.

23 min read
Sitemaps, robots.txt and Indexing: Making Sure Google Can Find Your Pages
Guides

Sitemaps, robots.txt and Indexing: Making Sure Google Can Find Your Pages

Before a page can rank it has to be indexed, and those are two different problems with two different fixes. Here is what sitemaps, robots.txt, noindex and canonical tags actually do, what the Search Console exclusion reasons mean in plain English, and how to work out why a page will not appear.

23 min read
Ecommerce Basics for Small Businesses UK: What You Actually Need to Know

Ecommerce Basics for Small Businesses UK: What You Actually Need to Know

Ecommerce basics for small businesses UK explained: platforms, real costs, VAT, and what actually drives early sales. No fluff, just practical advice.

11 min read
The Google Tools Every Small Business Website Needs, Explained
Guides

The Google Tools Every Small Business Website Needs, Explained

Business Profile, Search Console, Analytics, Tag Manager, Merchant Centre, Ads. Six products with similar names that answer completely different questions. Here is what each one is for, which you actually need, and the order to set them up in.

23 min read
SEO Basics for Small Businesses UK: A No-Nonsense Guide That Actually Works

SEO Basics for Small Businesses UK: A No-Nonsense Guide That Actually Works

SEO basics for small businesses UK explained clearly. Learn what actually moves the needle, how local SEO drives leads, and what to do in your first 90 days.

13 min read
How Much Does SEO Cost UK: Real Prices, Real Expectations

How Much Does SEO Cost UK: Real Prices, Real Expectations

How much does SEO cost UK? From £300/month freelancers to £5,000+ agency retainers, we break down real prices and what you actually get at each tier.

15 min read
How Much Does a Small Business Website Cost UK: The Real Numbers

How Much Does a Small Business Website Cost UK: The Real Numbers

How much does a small business website cost UK? From DIY builders to bespoke design, we break down every cost so you know exactly what to budget.

13 min read
Google Tag Manager: What It Is and Whether You Actually Need It
Guides

Google Tag Manager: What It Is and Whether You Actually Need It

Everyone tells small business owners to install Google Tag Manager and nobody explains why. Here is what it actually does, in plain English, and an honest answer about whether your site needs it at all.

23 min read
How to Get More Google Reviews, and What to Do With Them
Tips

How to Get More Google Reviews, and What to Do With Them

Reviews decide both where you appear in local search and whether the person looking picks you. Here is a practical system for collecting them as part of the job, replying properly, and turning what customers write into better copy on your website.

23 min read
How to Get More Leads From Your Google Business Profile
Tips

How to Get More Leads From Your Google Business Profile

Your Google Business Profile is usually the first thing a local customer sees and the most neglected thing you own. Here is how to turn it into a steady source of enquiries, field by field.

21 min read
Google Business Profile Categories and Services: Getting the Basics Right
Tips

Google Business Profile Categories and Services: Getting the Basics Right

Two settings decide which searches your business is allowed to appear for at all. Here is how categories and services really work, how to research yours from the map pack, and how to change them without wrecking what already works.

23 min read
Why Every Small Business Needs a Website in 2026
Business

Why Every Small Business Needs a Website in 2026

A third of UK small businesses still don't have a website. If you're one of them, here's why that's costing you customers and what you can realistically do about it for less than a newspaper ad.

7 min read
5 Things Every Business Website Must Have
Tips

5 Things Every Business Website Must Have

Most small business websites fail at the basics: mobile, speed, SEO, contact info, and calls to action. Here's what to fix and why each one matters more than you think.

8 min read
How AI Is Changing Web Design for Small Businesses
AI & Tech

How AI Is Changing Web Design for Small Businesses

AI website builders aren't template pickers any more. Here's an honest look at what they can do, what they can't, and why the cost and speed difference matters for small businesses.

7 min read
Starter vs Business: Which Website Package Is Right for You?
Business

Starter vs Business: Which Website Package Is Right for You?

Not sure whether the Starter or Business website package is right for you? Here's a straightforward breakdown with real numbers so you can decide based on what your business actually needs.

7 min read

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