Guides

Plain-English answers on websites for UK local service businesses, written by the people who build them.

Small grey building silhouettes lined up on a near-black green-tinted ground, one lit by a narrow beam of acid green light while the rest sit in shadow.

does ChatGPT know your business?

ChatGPT doesn't search the web the way Google does, and a site that ranks well on Google can still be invisible to it. What actually decides whether ChatGPT can find and mention a business.

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what should a website quote include?

Three quotes, three completely different numbers, and nothing that says why. What a proper website quote spells out before you sign, and the red flags when it doesn't.

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Google review replies: should AI write them?

A crop of new apps now offer to draft your Google review replies for you. What Google's own guidance actually says about replying, how long an approved reply takes to appear, and where a generated one starts to show.

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AI search optimisation: worth paying for?

Agencies are now pitching 'AI search optimisation' as a paid extra. Google's own documentation says no special markup is required. What actually helps a business show up in an AI answer, according to Google itself.

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AI website builder or studio? The honest answer

Wix, GoDaddy and Squarespace all now build you a site from a prompt. What an AI website builder is genuinely good at, where a UK trade business will feel the gaps, and how to tell if it's enough.

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Who owns my website? The honest answer

The domain, the words and the code can belong to three different parties, and paying the invoice moves none of them on its own. How to check, and what to ask.

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Google Business Profile: the free fix for being found

The free listing that decides whether you show up on Google Maps: how to claim it, pass video verification, and make it earn its keep.

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