Let’s be honest, SEO isn’t sexy.  It’s not shiny. It doesn’t come with jazzy graphics or viral hooks. But it’s the bit that quietly makes everything else work better. And if you want your website to perform consistently, attract the right people, and actually show up when it matters, SEO is non-negotiable.

At Hatter’s, we blend strategy with creativity to serve up SEO that works. Whether you’re a small business just getting started or an established brand looking to sharpen your visibility, here’s how we approach it, and why it matters.

Step one: build the base with the right keywords

Every great recipe starts with the basics. For SEO, that means keyword research. It’s the flour in your marketing cake. Without it, nothing holds together properly.

But keyword research isn’t just about cramming popular words into your content. It’s about understanding what your audience is searching for, and why. Are they looking for advice? Comparing options? Ready to buy? Or just curious? That’s search intent, and it’s what separates guesswork from strategy.

A well-chosen keyword or phrase reflects the language your customers are already using. But it also needs to be achievable. Chasing high-volume terms that huge corporations already dominate isn’t going to work. Instead, we look for realistic opportunities that will actually bring the right people to your site.

Not sure what those are? That’s okay. Most people don’t. But the difference it makes when you get it right is huge.

Step two: add flavour with content that delivers

Good SEO brings people to your site. Great content keeps them there.

You’ve probably heard that content is king. And yes, that’s still true. But it’s not about writing for the sake of it. It’s about creating helpful, well-structured, relevant content that answers questions, solves problems, and earns trust. Google is smart. It can tell when you’re genuinely being helpful and when you’re just stuffing in keywords and hoping for the best.

From blog posts to landing pages, we help clients build content that’s interesting, engaging, and strategically sound. The goal isn’t just to rank. It’s to convert. That might mean turning a reader into a customer, a scroller into a subscriber, or a one-time visitor into someone who comes back again and again.

Great content is also where your brand voice really shines. So while the SEO structure matters, we always make sure it still sounds like you.

Step three: let it rise with technical SEO

Now we’re getting into the part most people try to avoid. The techy bit. But just like you wouldn’t bake a cake without checking the oven temperature, you can’t do SEO properly without looking under the hood.

Search engines need to crawl your website. Think of it like indexing a library. If your site is slow, messy, or difficult to navigate, Google is going to move on pretty quickly. And so will your customers.

Technical SEO covers all the behind-the-scenes elements that help your site perform better. This includes:

• Page speed optimisation

   

• Mobile-friendliness

   

• Clean URL structures

   

• Meta tags and structured data

   

• Site hierarchy and internal linking

   

If none of that makes much sense, don’t worry. It’s not your job to know how it all works. That’s ours. But these elements quietly affect everything from your bounce rate to your rankings, so they’re well worth paying attention to.

Step four: taste test and tweak

The final stage of any good SEO strategy is analysis. We track what’s working, what isn’t, and what needs refining.

This is where audits come in. A good SEO audit looks at your site’s health and highlights anything that could be holding you back. That might be broken links, missing metadata, duplicate pages, or slow load times. We also keep an eye on traffic, bounce rates, and engagement so we can adapt your strategy as things change.

SEO isn’t something you do once and forget about. It’s a process. A good one feels like it’s working quietly in the background, supporting everything else you’re doing without you having to think about it constantly.

Why all this matters

Good SEO is what helps the right people find you at the right time. And when it’s working, it lifts the impact of everything else in your marketing mix. Paid ads perform better. Social posts lead to more clicks. Your email list grows faster. It all works harder when your foundations are in place.

But SEO isn’t a quick fix. It takes planning, consistency, and a solid understanding of how search engines and real people behave online.

If you’re not sure where to start, or you’ve done a bit and feel stuck, you’re not alone. Most people only realise they need help when traffic stalls or leads drop off. But you don’t have to wait for that moment. A small shift now can make a big difference later.

Ready to get your SEO in shape?

Whether you need a one-off audit or a long-term strategy, we can help you build something that fits your business, your goals, and your customers. Think of us as your SEO sous chefs. We’ll tidy up the mess, get your site in order, and help you rise to the top of the search results without burning out in the process.

Want to take things a step further? If you’re looking to learn more about how SEO fits into your wider marketing strategy, our sister brand White Rabbit offers training, resources, and live support for small businesses. Perfect if you want to get hands-on without getting lost.

Let’s bake something brilliant.