SEO basics for a new business website

Search engine optimisation sounds mysterious, but the fundamentals are straightforward: make the site easy for search engines to understand, and make it genuinely useful to the people searching. No one can promise rankings, but you can do the work that makes them possible. This guide covers what matters most for a new business website, in the order it is worth doing.

1. Get the technical foundations right

• Serve every page over HTTPS and make sure it works well on mobile.
• Keep pages fast. Slow sites frustrate visitors and search engines alike.
• Give each page a unique title and meta description that describe it accurately.
• Publish an XML sitemap and a robots.txt file, and submit the sitemap in Google Search Console.
• Use one clear canonical URL per page so duplicates do not compete.
• Make sure important content is in the page’s HTML, not hidden behind scripts that crawlers may not run.

2. Find out what people actually search for

You do not need expensive tools to start. List the problems your customers come to you with, and write them the way a customer would say them, not the way you describe your service internally. Type those phrases into a search engine and look at the suggestions and “related searches”. Those are real wording people use.

3. Structure content around real questions

Each important service or topic deserves its own page that answers the questions around it clearly, rather than one page trying to cover everything. A page about one thing, done well, is easier for people and for search engines to understand than a page about ten things.

4. Write for people first

• Use the words your customers use, not internal jargon.
• Answer the question early, then add detail.
• Keep headings meaningful so both readers and crawlers can follow the page.
• Add concrete detail: examples, steps, and specifics make content useful and trustworthy.
• Update content when it goes out of date, and say when you last did.

5. Basic on-page checklist

1. One clear main heading per page that describes what it covers.
2. A title tag that leads with the topic and stays short enough to read in results.
3. A meta description that honestly summarises the page and invites the click.
4. Descriptive text for images, so they make sense to people using screen readers and to search engines.
5. Internal links from related pages, using descriptive link text.

6. Local signals, if you serve a local area

If customers find you by location, claim and complete your business profile on the major map and search platforms, and keep your name, address and phone number identical everywhere they appear. Mention the areas you serve on relevant pages, and collect genuine reviews from real customers; never buy or invent them.

7. Help machines understand the page

Structured data (JSON-LD) describes your organisation, services, articles, and FAQs in a form that search engines and AI assistants can read directly. It does not guarantee special treatment, but it removes guesswork about what a page is and who it is from.

8. Earn links honestly

Links from relevant, reputable sites remain a strong signal. Earn them through useful content, genuine partnerships, and being listed in the places your customers already look. Avoid purchased links and link schemes; they carry real risk of being discounted or penalised.

9. Measure and be patient

SEO compounds over months rather than days. Track impressions, clicks, and enquiries in Search Console and your analytics, and improve the pages that are close to performing rather than chasing every keyword. A page ranking on the second page for a good query is often a better opportunity than a new page aimed at a crowded one.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Launching without a sitemap, or accidentally blocking search engines in robots.txt.
• Using the same title and description on many pages.
• Publishing thin, generic pages created only to match a keyword.
• Neglecting mobile performance.
• Expecting results in days, then changing direction before anything has time to work.