SEO

Also called Search engine optimisation, Organic search

Making your website more likely to appear when people search for what you do. Slow, cumulative, and full of people selling shortcuts.

What it means

Search engine optimisation is the work of making a website findable in unpaid search results: technical health, content that answers the questions people actually search for, and links from other credible sites.

It is distinct from paid search, where you buy placement. Organic results cost nothing per click and take much longer to earn.

Why it matters

For most local and service businesses, search is where buying intent lives. Somebody typing "emergency plumber Preston" is not browsing.

It compounds. A page that ranks keeps earning without further spend, which is the opposite of advertising and the reason it is worth the patience.

What it looks like in practice

The order that actually matters: make sure the site is technically sound and fast, make sure each page has a clear subject, write genuinely useful pages about the things customers ask about, and get listed accurately everywhere relevant.

For a local business, a complete and consistent Google Business Profile with real reviews is often worth more than everything else combined.

Expect three to six months before meaningful movement. Anyone promising faster is describing something else.

What to watch out for

Guaranteed rankings. Nobody controls the results, and guarantees are usually attached to search terms nobody uses.

Bought links. Link schemes are against search engine guidelines and the penalties are worse than the problem.

Reports full of impressions and rankings but silent on enquiries. Rankings are a means; the enquiry is the outcome.

Where to get proper advice

Google's own Search Essentials documentation is free and authoritative. If hiring, ask for the enquiries generated for two existing clients and speak to them.