Plain answers on getting found online.
Straight, no-jargon guides on what a website should cost, whether you need one, and how to get found by the people nearby. Written for the businesses I build for.
Every guide is written by Connor Jones, and there is an RSS feed if you would rather follow along.
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What is schema markup, and does my business need it?
Schema markup is a small block of machine readable detail that tells search engines and AI assistants what your business is called, where it is and when it is open. Here is what it does, what it does not, and exactly what to put on the page.
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Is your website blocking ChatGPT?
Most small business sites are not blocking AI crawlers, but the ones that do usually did it by accident and nothing tells them. Here is how to check in five minutes, which crawler name does what, and why a rule written in the wrong group does nothing at all.
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How fast does my website actually need to be?
Speed is the thing small business owners are told to worry about most, and it is rarely the thing costing them work. Here are the three thresholds that are actually measured, the difference between a lab score and real visits, and how slow is slow enough to matter.
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Wix vs Squarespace for a UK small business
An honest comparison for a UK business, taken from the two companies' own pricing and support pages rather than from affiliate round-ups. Includes the part neither of them advertises: how much of your site you can actually get back out.
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What to ask for when you leave your web designer
Moving your website to someone else is mostly an access problem, not a technical one. The list of what to ask for, why each item matters, and the switch day order that keeps your email and your Google rankings intact.
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My web designer has disappeared: how to get your website and domain back
If the person who built your site has gone quiet, start with the domain, not the website. Here is how to find out what you control, how to move a .uk domain without their help, and what to do if the company has been dissolved.
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How to transfer a .uk domain name
Moving a .uk domain to a new provider is not the same as putting it in a new name, and doing the wrong one leaves you where you started. The steps, the fees, the five day clocks, and what changes in February 2027.
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The state of small business websites in Croydon: 3,241 homepages checked
An audit of 3,241 small business homepages across Croydon and the surrounding towns, checked between 11 July and 16 August 2026. Half the borough's live homepages carry no machine readable local business detail, one in seven looks abandoned, and one in four links to nothing else at all.
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How to get your business recommended by ChatGPT and AI search
AI assistants recommend businesses they can find, read and verify. Most of the work is ordinary SEO, but four things are specific to AI answers: structured data that describes your business as one entity, the direct answer placed first, checkable specifics like real prices and dated sources, and explicitly letting the AI crawlers in.
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What does website maintenance cost in the UK?
UK website maintenance in 2026 typically runs £25 to £150 a month for a small business site. What that buys, what published price guides quote, and the two questions that expose an overpriced plan.
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How much does a web designer cost in Croydon?
What a web designer actually costs in Croydon and South London: typical freelancer and agency prices, what moves the number up or down, and the questions to ask before you pay anyone.
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How to verify your Google Business Profile
Google now decides your verification method for you, and for most service businesses that means recording a video. What each method involves, how long it takes, and how to pass first time.
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How long does it take a new website to show up on Google?
Google says crawling takes a few days to a few weeks. Here is what that actually looks like for a small business site, measured page by page, and the three things that genuinely speed it up.
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Will ChatGPT and AI search bring my business customers?
Do AI tools like ChatGPT and Google's AI answers actually send a local business customers? The honest answer: a growing amount, but not by magic, and the things that get you recommended by AI are the same fundamentals that get you found on Google.
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Why isn't my website getting any enquiries?
Your website exists but no enquiries come in. The cause is almost always one of six fixable things: nobody finds it, it loads too slowly, it hides how to get in touch, it does not look trustworthy, it has no proof, or it breaks on a phone. Here is how to tell which.
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Squarespace vs a custom-built website: an honest 2026 comparison
An honest 2026 comparison of Squarespace and a custom-built website for a UK small business: the real monthly cost, the transaction fees most guides skip, speed, SEO, and whether you can ever take your site with you.
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GoDaddy website builder vs a custom site: is it good enough to rank?
An honest 2026 look at the GoDaddy website builder against a custom-built site for a UK small business: introductory pricing versus renewals, the SEO controls it hides from you, and when GoDaddy is genuinely enough.
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Is a Facebook page enough, or do you need a website?
Plenty of local businesses run on a Facebook page alone. Here is the honest case for a website too: the reach you have lost, the trust you are missing, and the customers who check online before they call.
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Do you actually own your Wix or Squarespace website?
Most small businesses assume they own their website. On Wix, Squarespace and other builders you rent it, and the design cannot be exported. Here is what ownership really means and why it matters.
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Why doesn't my business show up on Google? Eight reasons, and the fixes
If your business is invisible on Google, the cause is nearly always one of eight fixable things: an unindexed site, a missing Business Profile, a website that never says what or where, inconsistent details, no reviews, a slow site, the wrong search terms, or simple newness.
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How to choose a web designer, without getting burned
Anyone can call themselves a web designer, so picking one is really a trust decision. Here is a practical checklist: what to look at before you enquire, the questions that reveal how someone actually works, the red flags that predict a bad ending, and the ownership terms that protect you.
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What pages does a small business website need?
How many pages a small business website actually needs in 2026: the core five, what each one is for, the pages you can skip, and why starting lean beats building fifteen pages nobody reads.
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How to get your business on Google Maps, and rank higher
A plain-English 2026 guide to ranking on Google Maps: why the local pack wins the clicks, the three things Google ranks you on, and how to set up your Google Business Profile so nearby customers find you first.
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How to get more Google reviews for your business
A practical 2026 guide to getting more Google reviews: why they matter more than ever, exactly how and when to ask, how to reply, and the Google rules you must not break.
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Wix vs a custom-built website: which is right for you?
An honest 2026 comparison of Wix and Squarespace against a custom-built website for a UK small business: real costs, speed, SEO, and the rent-versus-own question that most guides skip.
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What should a small business website actually cost?
A straight answer on UK website prices in 2026: the real range, freelancer vs agency, the hidden VAT and upkeep, and how to tell what you are actually paying for.
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Your own website vs Checkatrade and the directories
What Checkatrade and similar directories really cost a tradesperson in 2026, how shared leads work, and why your own website is the cheaper asset over time.
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How long does it take to build a website?
How long a small business website really takes to build in 2026: the honest timeline by project type, where the time actually goes, and why content, not code, is the thing that decides it.
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Do you actually need a website in 2026?
Whether a small local business still needs a website in 2026: what the numbers say, why social media is not a substitute, and when you might genuinely be fine without one.
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