Practical SEO and marketing that helps the right customers find your business.
If you run a small or medium-sized business, being found in Google matters. When someone searches for what you do, you want your website to appear. But being visible is only half the story. The visitors you attract need to be the kind of people who are likely to become customers. That is what good SEO does. It helps your website show up for searches that matter to your business, and it makes sure the experience those visitors get encourages them to get in touch.
At Thunderhat, I have been building and optimising websites since 2004. I work with businesses across Staffordshire, Stoke-on-Trent and the West Midlands, helping them improve their visibility in search results without the smoke and mirrors. I do not promise first-page rankings, because nobody can honestly guarantee that. What I do is look at your website, understand your business and make sensible, lasting improvements that help you attract more of the right kind of traffic.
SEO is not a one-off job. It is a process of making your website easier for search engines to understand and more useful for the people who visit it. That means fixing technical issues, improving the words on your pages, making sure your business details are consistent across the web and building a site that loads quickly and works well on a phone. When those things line up, you give yourself the best possible chance of being found by customers who are actively looking for what you offer.
You do not need to understand how search engines work to benefit from SEO. You need someone who does. I explain what I am doing in plain English, focus on the things that will actually make a difference and keep you updated with clear, jargon-free reports. The goal is not just more traffic. It is more enquiries, more sales and better visibility for the business you have worked hard to build.
Search engine optimisation covers a lot of ground, but it boils down to a few core areas. Each one plays a part in helping your website rank for the searches your customers make.
Search engines need to be able to find and understand your website. If your pages load slowly, your site is hard to navigate on a phone or there are broken links and errors, you are making life difficult for both Google and your visitors. I check all of this and fix what needs fixing.
The words on your website need to answer the questions your customers are asking. If you are a plumber in Leek, your website should make it clear that you are a plumber, you work in Leek and you deal with the kinds of jobs local people need. I help you write pages that are clear, relevant and genuinely useful, not stuffed with keywords.
There is a difference between someone searching for "what is a heat pump" and someone searching for "heat pump installer near me". The first person is researching. The second is ready to buy. Good SEO targets the searches that are most likely to lead to a sale or an enquiry, not just the ones that get a lot of traffic.
This is about the details that help search engines understand what each page is about: the page title, the headings, the way images are labelled and the structure of the content. Done well, it makes your site clearer to both Google and the people reading it.
For most small businesses, the customers are local. That means your website needs to show up when people search for your services in your area. I look at your Google Business Profile, your local pages and how consistently your name, address and phone number appear across the web.
If your customers come from a particular town or region, local SEO is the part of search engine optimisation that matters most. When someone in Uttoxeter searches for a dog groomer or a person in Cannock looks for an accountant, Google tries to show them businesses that are close by. You want to be one of them.
The first step is making sure your Google Business Profile is complete and accurate. This is the free listing that appears in Google Maps and in the local results when someone searches for a business like yours. It should have your correct name, address, phone number, opening hours and a link to your website. It should also include photos and a clear description of what you do. A well-maintained profile makes you more likely to appear in the local pack, the map-based results that sit at the top of many local searches.
Your website also needs to support your local SEO. That means having pages that mention the areas you serve, written in a way that sounds natural and helpful. If you are a builder in Stafford who works across the surrounding villages, a page about the villages you cover is more useful than a list of postcodes. It tells both Google and your potential customers where you work and what you do there.
Consistency matters too. Your business name, address and phone number should be the same everywhere they appear online, from your website to your Facebook page to any local directories you are listed in. When Google sees the same details repeated across the web, it is more confident that your business is real, established and relevant to local searchers.
There is no point ranking for a search term that brings visitors who never become customers. The goal of SEO is not just to increase traffic. It is to increase the right kind of traffic. That means understanding what your business actually sells, who your customers are and what they type into Google when they are ready to buy.
For example, a solicitor in Lichfield might want to rank for "family solicitor Lichfield" rather than a generic term like "legal advice". The first search is specific, local and comes from someone who is likely to need a solicitor soon. The second is broad, competitive and could come from anyone in the country. Targeting the right searches means you spend your time and money on the visitors who are most likely to pick up the phone or send an enquiry.
SEO also needs to support your wider marketing. If you run a Facebook ad campaign or hand out leaflets, your website is where people end up. If the site is slow, confusing or hard to use on a phone, you are wasting that effort. Good SEO makes your website a better destination for every kind of visitor, not just the ones who find you through Google.
I do not believe in selling SEO packages full of tasks that do not help your business. I start by looking at what you do, who your customers are and what your website is currently doing well or badly. Then I recommend the work that will make the biggest difference for the money you are prepared to spend. Sometimes that is a full technical overhaul. Sometimes it is simply rewriting a few key pages and sorting out your Google Business Profile. The right approach depends on your business, not on a one-size-fits-all checklist.
SEO takes time. Google does not re-rank websites overnight, and if your competitors have been working on their sites for years, you are not going to leapfrog them in a week. Anyone who promises instant results or guaranteed rankings is either lying or using techniques that will get your site penalised further down the line.
What I do is build a foundation that gets stronger over time. The technical fixes I make today will help your site for years. The content I write will keep bringing in visitors as long as it stays relevant. The local listings I clean up will keep working for you month after month. SEO is an investment that compounds, but it needs patience and consistent effort.
That is why I offer ongoing SEO plans for businesses that want to keep improving. I monitor how your site is performing, look for new opportunities and make adjustments as Google changes its algorithms and your competitors change their tactics. I send you a plain-English report each month that shows what I have done, what is working and what we are doing next. No jargon, no vanity metrics, no confusing charts. Just a clear picture of how your website is performing and where we are heading.
Some businesses only need a one-off project to fix specific problems. Others benefit from a longer-term relationship. I will tell you honestly which one I think you need, and I will never try to tie you into a contract you do not want.
When you work with Thunderhat, you work with me, Tim Laws. I have been building and optimising websites since 2004, and I have seen SEO change a lot in that time. What has not changed is the basic principle: make a website that is fast, clear, useful and easy for Google to understand, and the rankings will follow.
I am based in Cheadle, Staffordshire, and I work with businesses across the county and the wider West Midlands. I am not an agency with a sales team and a long list of upsells. I am an independent practitioner who does the work myself, keeps my overheads low and passes that saving on to you. When you phone or email, you talk to me. When I make a recommendation, it is because I believe it is the right thing for your business, not because I am trying to hit a target.
I explain everything in plain English. If you do not understand what I am doing or why, I have not done my job properly. I would rather spend an hour walking you through a technical issue than leave you confused and uncertain. SEO is not magic, and you should never feel like you are paying for something you do not understand.
SEO is not right for every business. If you are a well-established company with more work than you can handle, you probably do not need to spend money on search engine optimisation. If you are a new business with no website yet, you need a website before you need SEO.
But if you are a small or medium-sized business that wants to attract more customers from your local area, strengthen your online presence or get more value from the website you already have, SEO is one of the most cost-effective marketing investments you can make. It works while you sleep, it targets people who are actively looking for what you sell and it builds a long-term asset that keeps paying dividends.
That includes tradespeople, professional services, shops, restaurants, clinics, salons, manufacturers and everything in between. If your customers use Google to find businesses like yours, SEO can help you reach them.
If you are wondering whether your website is doing its job, or you know it is not and you want to do something about it, get in touch. I will take a look at your site, ask a few questions about your business and give you an honest assessment of where you stand and what I would recommend. There is no charge for the conversation and no pressure to sign up for anything.
You can call me on 07930 127013 or email tim@thunderhat.com. Tell me a bit about your business and what you are hoping to achieve, and I will get back to you with some initial thoughts. If I do not think SEO is the right investment for you right now, I will tell you that too. The aim is to help you make a good decision, not to sell you something you do not need.
Can't see your question? Call or send a message and we'll answer it.
SEO is a long-term process. Most businesses see meaningful changes within three to six months, but it can take longer in competitive markets. The improvements compound over time, so the work you do now keeps paying off in the future.
No, and neither can anyone else. Google's algorithms change constantly, and no one can control where a website ranks. What I can do is follow best practices, fix technical issues and create content that gives your site the best possible chance of ranking well.
Not necessarily. Many existing websites can be improved with technical fixes, better content and local optimisation. If your site is very old or built on a poor platform, a rebuild might be the best option. I will give you an honest recommendation based on what you have.
Google Ads are paid adverts that appear at the top of search results. You pay every time someone clicks. SEO is about improving your organic rankings, the results that appear below the adverts. You do not pay for clicks, but it takes longer to see results. Many businesses use both.
Yes. I am based in Cheadle, Staffordshire, but I work with clients across the West Midlands and the rest of the UK. Most of my work is done remotely, so location is rarely a barrier.
It depends on the size of your website, the competition in your industry and the amount of work needed. I offer starter SEO packages from £500 and ongoing plans from £100 per month. After looking at your site, I will give you a clear quote with no hidden extras.
Tell us about your business and what you need — a new website, better rankings, or both. Free, no-obligation chat with Tim.
