DIY Website SEO Tips for Lancashire Small Business Owners

So, you’ve built your own website for your business – woohoo! Whether you used Wix, Squarespace, or another DIY builder, give yourself a pat on the back. Many Lancashire small business owners start out this way, and it’s a great first step. But now you might be wondering: “How do I actually get my site to show up on Google and attract customers?” Don’t worry – you’re not alone, and SEO (search engine optimization) isn’t as scary as it sounds. In this friendly guide, we’ll walk through exactly that.

We’ll chat about why platforms like Wix and Squarespace, while convenient, can be a bit tricky for SEO and long-term growth. More importantly, we’ll cover easy, platform-agnostic SEO tips you can implement right away, no matter what you built your site with. From getting Google to index your site, to using proper headings, to writing titles and meta descriptions – these are the simple fixes that can make a huge difference in your online visibility. We’ve even got a couple of real examples from fellow Lancashire businesses who missed a step or two (and how they bounced back). By the end, you’ll have a clearer roadmap for improving your website’s SEO – and if it ever feels overwhelming, remember: help is just a shout away (we love helping local businesses thrive).

So, brew a cuppa, get comfy, and let’s get your DIY website climbing those search rankings! Ready? Let’s dive in. 😊

The Wix & Squarespace Dilemma – They’re Great, But Not Perfect…

First, let’s address the elephant in the room: Wix, Squarespace, GoDaddy builder, etc. are awesome for getting a website up quickly. They’re user-friendly, no tech degree required, and perfect when you’re on a tight budget. In fact, for a one-person startup or a local hobby business, they can be a decent starting point​joerussori.com. No shame in that! But as your friendly digital advisor, I have to be honest – they do have some limitations when it comes to SEO and scalability.

Why? A lot of it comes down to how these platforms are built:

• “Heavy” Code & Limited Flexibility: The drag-and-drop ease you love comes at a cost – it generates lots of extra code behind the scenes. All that bloated code can sometimes confuse search engines and even slow down your site​joerussori.com. Google (and other search engines) prefer clean, efficient code so they can understand your content better. With Wix/Squarespace, you have less control over that. As your site grows, you might also hit a wall wanting features or custom designs that the platform can’t support easily​joerussori.com. It’s kind of like building on rented land – you can’t renovate beyond what the landlord allows.
• Basic SEO Tools Only: To be fair, Wix and Squarespace have improved their SEO features over the years. They usually let you set page titles, meta descriptions, and some URL customizations. But advanced stuff? Not so much. For example, Wix still has limitations in technical SEO (like how much you can tweak structured data or set up complex redirects) and can suffer from slower load speeds on larger sites​exposureninja.com. And Squarespace, while it has a relatively clean code structure and good hosting speed, gives you limited control over deeper SEO settings – plus their URL structures can be semi-rigid (you might not get to choose all your URL paths freely)​exposureninja.com. In short, these platforms cover the SEO basics, but if you want to really fine-tune things or scale up, you might feel a bit boxed in.
• You Don’t Own the Platform: This one isn’t about SEO per se, but it’s worth mentioning. With these hosted builders, you’re essentially renting space for your website. You can’t pick up your Wix site and move it to another host – if you ever outgrow Wix, you’ll likely have to rebuild your site elsewhere from scratch​joerussori.com. For now, that might be fine. Just keep it in mind for the long term: a custom WordPress site or similar might be more flexible as you grow. But hey, one step at a time! 😉

Does that mean your Wix/Squarespace site can’t rank on Google? Absolutely not! Plenty do just fine, especially for local and niche keywords​saradoesseo.com. It just means we need to be a bit clever and focus on the SEO fundamentals you can control. Think of it like tuning up a car – it might not be a racecar, but we can still get it running smoothly and efficiently to take you where you need to go.

5 SEO Boosters for Your DIY Website

Alright, let’s get into the good stuff: actionable SEO tips you can implement right now, regardless of platform. These are the tried-and-true basics that many DIY website owners overlook. Nail these, and you’ll be miles ahead.

1. Make Sure Google Knows You Exist (Indexing 101)

This sounds obvious, but you’d be surprised how many small business websites never actually get indexed by Google properly. If Google doesn’t know about your site, it won’t show up anywhere in search results – no matter how pretty or informative it is!

How to check if you’re indexed: Go to Google and search for site:yourwebsite.com (replace “yourwebsite.com” with your actual domain). This is a special search query that tells Google to show results only from your site. If you see your pages listed – congrats, you’re indexed! 🎉 If you get nothing, or only a handful of pages when you know your site has more, then Google might not have indexed it fully yet​developers.google.com.

If you’re not indexed or missing pages: Don’t panic, we can fix this. Here are a few steps:

• Double-check your settings: Some site builders have an option like “Discourage search engines from indexing this site” (it’s meant for under-construction sites). Make sure that’s turned off. Also, your pages should be public (not behind passwords). Basic, but worth checking first.
• Get on Google Search Console: This is a free tool from Google where you can officially see how Google views your site and request indexing. It’s a lifesaver for DIY SEO. Simply sign up with your Google account, add your site, and submit your sitemap (many DIY platforms generate a sitemap file for you, which is basically a list of your pages). You can also use the “URL Inspection” feature in Search Console to fetch any page and ask Google to index it​developers.google.com​developers.google.com. It’s like nudging Google and saying “Hey, check out my new page please!”
• Get some links in the wild: Google primarily discovers new sites by following links from other websites​developers.google.com. If no one links to your site yet, it’s like a little island. Try to get listed on local directories, your social media profiles, or any relevant listing (e.g., your LinkedIn, Facebook page, Yelp, etc. if applicable). Even a link from your friend’s blog or the Chamber of Commerce directory can help Google stumble upon your site faster.
• Be patient (but not too patient): Even after doing everything, it can take days or weeks for Google to crawl and index new sites. However, if it’s been a couple of months and you’re still largely MIA on Google, something’s up and you might want to consult an expert or do a deeper audit (more on audits later).

Lancashire SEO Story Time: I worked with a lovely café owner in Preston who built a snazzy site on Wix. It looked great, but it was virtually invisible on Google – even when searching for the exact business name, nothing showed up. Turns out, the site hadn’t been indexed at all. We quickly set up Google Search Console for her, submitted the sitemap, and in a week Google had indexed most pages. 🎉 Bonus: We also discovered her Wix site had a setting on that was telling search engines “noindex” (facepalm moment). We fixed that, and voila – her café started appearing for local coffeehouse searches. The owner was amazed that a simple step like “telling Google about the site” was the missing puzzle piece. Moral of the story: double-check that Google knows about you!

2. Use Proper Headings & Structure (No “Wall of Text” Syndrome)

When you write a blog post or a webpage on your site, do you just dump all the text in one big blob? (Hope not! 🙈) Proper formatting isn’t just about looking pretty – it’s about making your content understandable for both users and search engines.

Think of headings (H1, H2, H3, etc.) as the outline of your page. They’re like chapter titles and section headings in a book. For instance:

• Every page should have one main title (H1), which is usually the page or post title (you likely set this by default in Wix/Squarespace editor).
• Then, use H2 subheadings for major sections, and H3s for subsections under those, and so on.

Why does this matter? Two big reasons:

1. Readability: People tend to skim online. Clear headings break up your content and let readers jump to the section they care about. (Notice how you found this section by probably scanning for the heading? 😉)
2. SEO Understanding: Search engines also use headings to get the gist of your content. A well-structured page with descriptive headings is easier for Google to interpret. In fact, Google’s own SEO Starter Guide explicitly recommends writing easy-to-read content, breaking it into sections, and providing headings to help users navigate your pages​developers.google.com. It’s not so much that headings will magically boost your rank, but they support the overall SEO by improving user experience and content clarity (which indirectly helps your SEO).

Quick tip: In Wix or Squarespace, when editing text, look for the text style options. Instead of just enlarging text or bolding for a section title, actually apply the “Heading” styles for true headings. For example, highlight your section title and choose “Heading 2” from the text style menu. This ensures the underlying code marks it as an <h2> tag, which is what Google looks for. Simply making text big and bold without the proper tag is like wearing a name tag but writing your name in invisible ink – humans might see it, but Google won’t recognise it as a heading.

Example from the field: A boutique in Clitheroe had a single-page website (all info was on one long page, which is common in simple sites). But it was literally just a long paragraph describing the business – no headings at all, just line breaks. It was a nightmare to read 😵 and likely wasn’t helping their SEO. We reworked that content by introducing headings: “About Our Boutique”, “Our Products”, “Find Us in Clitheroe”, etc. Suddenly, the page was so much easier to scan. Users could find info quicker, and search engines could identify key sections. The result? That page started ranking for more specific queries like “boutique clothing Clitheroe” – likely because Google could now pick out that “Our Products” section which mentioned clothing brands, etc., instead of seeing one giant undifferentiated blob of text.

Bottom line: Don’t be shy with headings. Organise your info into logical sections, and use heading tags to label them. Your website visitors will thank you, and so will Google (in its own way).

3. Craft Unique Page Titles & Meta Descriptions for Each Page

Ever hovered over a browser tab and seen a little text appear? Or noticed the big bold text and little snippet that shows up in Google search results? That big bold title is your page title (or “title tag” in SEO lingo), and the snippet is often taken from your meta description. These are super important for SEO and click-through rates, yet many DIY websites forget to set them up properly for each page.

Page Titles (Title Tags): Think of the title tag as the headline for your page in Google’s eyes. It’s also what shows at the top of the browser window or tab. By default, your site builder might just use your page’s name (like “Home” or “About”) and your site name for every page. But if every page is titled “Home – My Business”, that doesn’t tell Google or users much (and it’s very redundant if multiple pages all appear as “Home”). Instead, make each title tag unique and descriptive. Aim for around 50-60 characters if possible, and include keywords that are relevant to that page. For example, instead of “Services – Bob’s Plumbing”, a better title might be “Plumbing Services in Preston – Bob’s Plumbing”. That way, people searching for plumbing services in your area see a relevant title, and they know it’s your business.

Meta Descriptions: This is the brief description (160-ish characters) that can appear below your title in search results. While Google doesn’t use meta descriptions directly as a ranking factor, a good meta description can improve your click-through rate – which does indirectly affect your SEO. More importantly, a clear meta description helps users decide if your page is what they need. Each page on your site should have a tailored meta description that summarises the content or offer on that page. According to Google’s SEO Starter Guide, a good meta description is short, unique to that page, and highlights the most relevant info​developers.google.com. Think of it as a mini-ad for the page.

How to set these in DIY builders: Most platforms have an SEO settings section per page or an overall SEO manager. In Wix, for example, you can go to the SEO (or page settings) for each page and there will be fields for “SEO title” and “meta description”. Squarespace similarly has an SEO settings area. It might also call the title “SEO title” or just “title tag”. Fill those in for each important page (Home, About, Services, Contact, etc., and any main products or blog posts if you have them). Make sure they’re all different! Your homepage title should be different from your about page title, and so on.

Real-world oopsie: Remember our Preston café owner? When we helped her get indexed, another thing we found was every page on her site was simply titled with her business name. The about page title was the business name, the contact page title was the business name… you get the picture. So if you Googled her business, multiple results came up all looking the same – not good. Plus, none of them mentioned “coffee” or “cafe” in the titles, so they weren’t very relevant to someone searching “coffee shop Preston”. We went through and updated her page titles: “Home – [Business Name] Coffee Shop in Preston”, “Menu – [Business Name] Coffee & Bakery”, “About – [Business Name] Cafe Story”, etc., and gave each a nice meta description talking about that cozy atmosphere, the locally roasted coffee, etc. Instantly, the Google results for her site looked way more enticing (and you could tell which page was which). It’s no surprise that within a short time, her click-throughs improved – more people who saw her site in results actually clicked it, because the snippet was welcoming and informative. This is an easy win you don’t want to miss.

Tip: When writing your titles and metas, include your important keywords but keep it readable and genuine. For example, if you are a photographer in Lancaster, a good title could be “Lancaster Wedding Photographer – [Your Name Studio]”. A bad one would be “Lancaster Wedding Photographer, Photographer Lancaster, Wedding Photography Lancashire” – yikes, that reads like a keyword salad. Don’t do that. 😅 Clarity and appeal are key. (Pro tip: Often your meta description can be a friendly two-sentence invite. E.g., “Looking for a wedding photographer in Lancashire? I’m [Name], a local photographer capturing candid, beautiful moments. Let’s chat about your big day!” – friendly and keyword-rich in a natural way.)

4. Be Clear and Intentional with Keywords (Keyword Strategy 101)

“Keywords” might sound very SEO-geeky, but all it means is: what words or phrases do you want to show up for on Google? It’s about aligning the language on your website with what your potential customers are searching for.

For small local businesses, this often means thinking about what services/products you offer and where. For example, if you run a bakery in Blackburn, obvious keywords might be “Bakery in Blackburn”, “Blackburn cupcakes”, “order birthday cake Blackburn”, etc. If you’re a personal trainer in Burnley, maybe “Burnley personal trainer” or “fitness coach Burnley”. You get the idea.

Now, a big mistake DIY site owners make is being too vague or using lots of industry jargon on their site instead of the plain terms people actually search. Remember: put yourself in your customer’s shoes. What would they type into Google to find you? Often, it’s simpler terms than you think. Google’s own advice is to “think about the words that a user might search for to find your content… and write with your readers in mind”​developers.google.com. This doesn’t mean stuffing those words everywhere, but it does mean make sure they’re present in your content where relevant.

Here’s how to tackle keywords on your DIY site:

• Pick a primary focus for each page: Each page should have a clear topic. For your homepage, it might be an overview of your main service and location (“accountant in Lancashire” for example). For a dedicated services page, focus on that service (“tax preparation Lancashire” etc.). Then ensure the page’s title, heading, and content use that phrase or similar phrases a few times naturally. If you never mention “tax preparation” on the page, how will Google know you offer it?
• Use natural language: Don’t obsess over exact match keywords. It’s more about covering the topic. If your keyword is “florist Clitheroe”, you’ll likely also naturally mention things like “flowers”, “bouquets”, maybe even “wedding arrangements in Clitheroe” if that’s a service. Google is smart enough to connect related terms. The key is that your content is clearly about that topic. If you have a page about wedding flowers, after reading it a person should easily be able to say “yep, that page was about wedding flower services in Clitheroe”. If so, Google will likely get it too.
• Don’t overdo it: Back in the day, people would cram keywords ad nauseam (think “Lancashire bakery, best bakery Lancashire, bakery in Lancashire UK” all in one paragraph). That not only reads horribly, but search engines now actively frown on “keyword stuffing.” Use your important terms in the title, a heading, and a few times in the text where it makes sense. That’s it. Write for humans first.
• Include local identifiers: Since this post is Lancashire-focused, I assume many of you serve specific towns or the whole county. Including your town names, county name, or phrases like “serving customers in X, Y, and Z areas” can help your local SEO. Just make sure it flows well. Maybe in your about or footer, list your location or the areas you serve.

Keyword research light: If you want to dig a bit deeper, there are free tools like Google’s Keyword Planner or even just using Google’s autocomplete suggestions. Try typing a service and location into Google and see what it suggests (e.g., start typing “hairdresser Lancaster” and see if it suggests “hairdresser Lancaster city centre” or other variations – those hints can be useful). But don’t get too bogged down. The essence is: be clear about what you do.

For example, a Lancashire catering company we assisted had a beautiful site but nowhere on their homepage did it explicitly say “catering” or “caterer”! They had flowery descriptions of “delicious dining experiences for your events” – which is nice marketing copy but didn’t include the word catering that people would search. We tweaked the copy to say “we provide catering in Lancashire for weddings, corporate events, and special occasions” right in the top section. Lo and behold, their rankings for catering-related searches improved. Sometimes it’s as basic as literally using the words people are searching for.

Action step: Make a small list of 5-10 keyword phrases that are important for your business (services + locations are a good start). Then audit your site’s pages – do those words appear on the relevant pages? If not, see where you can sprinkle them in more. This forms the foundation of your keyword strategy.

(Psst – at the end of this post, I’ve provided a brief “Keyword Strategy” section with example keywords for our topic here, just as an example. You’d do something similar for your own business.)

5. Don’t Forget the “Little” Things: Images, Links & Local Listings

We’ve covered the big four (indexing, structure, titles, keywords), which are top priority. Before we wrap up, here are a few smaller but still important items to put on your SEO to-do list:

• Add Alt Text to Your Images: Alt text is a short description for images, primarily used for screen readers (accessibility) and also for search engines to understand images. If you have pictures on your site (your logo, product photos, team headshots, etc.), make sure each has alt text describing it (most site builders let you add this in image settings). For example, alt text for a photo of a cake you made could be “Chocolate birthday cake with floral design by [Your Bakery Name]”. This way, even if the image can’t load, the text describes it, and Google can index that description. It can even help you show up in Google Images search. Plus, it’s good for web accessibility – a win-win. (Just don’t stuff keywords unnaturally; describe the image plainly.)
• Internal Links – Connect Your Pages: Within your site’s text, link to your other pages when relevant. If you mention your services on the homepage, make “services” a link to your Services page. Writing a blog post about a case study? Link to your Contact page with anchor text like “get in touch with us”. Internal links help guide visitors to more info and help search engines discover and understand the structure of your site​developers.google.com​developers.google.com. It’s like creating your own little web within your site. Aim for a few internal links per page if it makes sense.
• Get Your Google Business Profile Up: This isn’t on your website, but it’s critical for local SEO. Google Business Profile (formerly Google My Business) is what powers the map listings and the side panel info for businesses. If you haven’t already, claim your business on Google and fill out that profile (address, hours, photos, reviews, etc.). This will hugely help you show up for local searches (like “…near me” searches or when people search your exact business name). Pro tip: A lot of folks in Lancashire search on Google Maps directly for things like “restaurants in [Town]”, so you want to be on that map! The Lancashire Business View reported that roughly 7 in 10 online experiences begin on a search engine, mostly Google​lancashirebusinessview.co.uk, and a ton of those are local intent – so don’t skip this free opportunity to get noticed.
• Fresh Content & Updates: This might be a bit beyond basic, but if you can, keep your site content fresh. That could mean an occasional blog post, news update, or just updating your services page if something changes. Sites that are updated regularly can attract more frequent crawling by Google. It also shows users that you’re active. You don’t need to churn out content daily – even one update a month is great. Also, ensure your info (like contact details, pricing, etc.) is up to date; outdated info can hurt user trust and indirectly your SEO (if people keep bouncing because your info was wrong, Google notices that).
• Speed and Mobile-Friendliness: Wix and Squarespace templates are generally mobile-friendly out of the box (since they use responsive design). So you likely don’t have to worry about mobile usability (but do test your site on your phone to be sure everything looks good!). Speed can be a bit trickier on these platforms due to the previously mentioned heavy code. You can still do your part: optimise images (don’t upload a massive 5MB photo straight from your camera – resise or compress it for web), and don’t go crazy with too many third-party scripts or embeds. A faster site means happier users and better SEO. There are free tools like Google PageSpeed Insights that can analyze your site and suggest improvements. Some might be out of your reach to fix on a DIY platform, but do what you can on the basics (images, not using too many fancy animations, etc.).

Whew! That may seem like a lot, but if you tackle these one by one, you’ll set a solid foundation for your site’s SEO. Most of these are one-time or occasional tasks – do them once, and just revisit every now and then.

When It Feels Like Too Much, We’ve Got Your Back

If your head is spinning a bit, take a breath. It’s totally normal to feel a tad overwhelmed – you’re a business owner, not an SEO specialist! You don’t have to become an expert in all of this; you just need to get the basics down (which, if you’ve read this far, you’re well on your way 🚀).

But what if you’re too busy running your business to implement all this? Or you fix the basics and want to go further? That’s where we come in. We love helping Lancashire businesses turn their websites into customer-attracting machines. Sometimes a quick audit by a pro can reveal things you might never catch – and often it’s small tweaks that lead to big gains.

Feel free to reach out for help or advice if you need a hand. We offer a Website Audit service where we dive into your site and find all the SEO (and usability) opportunities you might be missing. It’s like a full health check for your website, and it can be an eye-opener (in a good way!). We’ll check all the stuff we talked about here, and more, and give you a clear action plan. We also have flexible SEO packages for ongoing support – from polishing up your on-site SEO to helping you create content, build local citations, you name it. Basically, if you ever hit a wall with DIY SEO, know that you don’t have to do it alone.

At the end of the day, the fact that you built your own website shows you’re proactive and care about your business’s success. SEO is just the next step to make sure that website gets seen by the people who matter – your potential customers. And every little improvement counts. Even implementing one or two tips from this post can start to move the needle.

So, keep at it! You’ve got the DIY spirit, and with these SEO tips, you’ll hopefully start seeing more visitors finding you online. Picture that: more inquiries, more customers walking through your door saying “I found you on Google.” That’s the goal, and it’s totally achievable.

Thanks for sticking with this chatty guide – I hope it felt like a friend explaining SEO over coffee, rather than some dull tech manual. 😉 If you have any questions or want to share your own experiences, drop a comment or reach out. We’re all in this together in the Lancashire business community, and helping each other succeed is what it’s all about.

Happy optimizing, and here’s to your website thriving (see what I did there?) in the search results!