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Glossary

What is SEO (Search Engine Optimisation)?

The work of making a website easier for search engines to find, understand and rank, so it earns free (organic) visits from people searching.

In plain words

SEO is the practice of improving a website so search engines such as Google show it for searches that matter to your business. It covers the site's technical health, the pages and content it offers, and signals such as links from other sites. Unlike ads, you do not pay for each visit, but results take time and are never guaranteed.

Where it goes wrong

The most common problems are promises of a first-page ranking, work that is only reports with no changes made, links bought in bulk from poor sites, and content written for search engines rather than readers. Any of these can waste money or harm a site.

Questions to ask a company that offers this

  1. What will you change on my site, and how will I see it?
  2. How do you choose keywords, and who writes the content?
  3. How do you get links, and can you show examples?
  4. How will we measure success, and over what period?

A good company will answer these plainly and in writing. Vague or evasive answers are worth noting.

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Explanation last read through on 25 October 2026. It is general guidance in plain language, not advice for your particular project. Tell us if something is wrong or unclear.