Like most things in SEO, it comes down to quality and relevance.

A good FAQ section can answer questions your main content doesn’t cover, make a page more useful and help you target additional searches naturally. A poor FAQ section filled with repetitive or unnecessary questions simply adds more content without giving the visitor anything useful.

So, are FAQs good for SEO?

Yes, they can be. But only when the questions genuinely help the person visiting the page.

How Can FAQs Help SEO?

FAQs aren’t a magic ranking factor.

Google isn’t going to rank your page higher simply because you’ve added a “Frequently Asked Questions” heading.

Their value comes from making the overall page more useful.

Google’s guidance consistently recommends creating helpful, reliable, people-first content rather than adding content purely to attract search traffic. A well-written FAQ section fits naturally into that approach when it answers genuine questions your audience has.

There are several ways FAQs can support your SEO.

Help You Answer More Search Queries

People don’t always search using short keywords.

They ask questions.

For example, someone looking for an SEO agency might search:

• How long does SEO take?
• How much does SEO cost?
• Can SEO guarantee first place on Google?
• Do I need SEO if I already run Google Ads?

Trying to answer every possible question within the main body of a service page can make the content difficult to read.

An FAQ section gives you somewhere to answer useful secondary questions without interrupting the flow of the page.

This is where good keyword research becomes particularly useful.

Our Keyword Research Guide explains how we identify the searches people are actually making rather than simply guessing which phrases to target.

Make Your Content More Complete

One of the questions we ask when reviewing content is:

Has this page given the visitor everything they reasonably need to know?

Sometimes the main content does that perfectly well.

Other times, there are a handful of related questions that don’t justify their own section but are still useful to answer.

That’s where FAQs work particularly well.

For example, a product category page may explain the different products available, while the FAQ section answers practical questions about delivery, sizing, compatibility or how the products should be used.

The aim isn’t to make the page longer.

It’s to make it more useful.

Our guide How to Create SEO-Friendly Content looks in more detail at how we create content around what searchers actually need rather than writing to an arbitrary word count.

Improve the User Experience

Good SEO and good user experience often go hand in hand.

Visitors shouldn’t have to search through several pages of your website to find the answer to a simple question.

A clear FAQ section can help someone quickly find the information they need, particularly when the questions are specific to the page they’re already viewing.

We’d much rather answer an important question on the page than force someone to leave the website and search Google for the answer.

This is especially useful on service and ecommerce pages, where removing uncertainty can also make visitors more confident about taking the next step.

Do They Help You Rank for More Keywords?

They can.

FAQ answers naturally give you an opportunity to discuss related topics and use the language your customers use when searching.

However, this shouldn’t become an excuse for keyword stuffing.

If you’re trying to force ten slightly different versions of the same keyword into ten questions, the FAQ probably isn’t helping anyone.

For example:

Do you offer SEO services in Cheshire?

followed by:

Are your Cheshire SEO services affordable?

and then:

What makes your Cheshire SEO services different?

isn’t a particularly useful FAQ section.

The questions should exist because people genuinely want the answers.

Keywords should follow naturally.

That principle applies throughout SEO. Our guide Google Ranking Factors: What Actually Matters for SEO? explains why helpful content and search intent are far more important than trying to manipulate individual signals.

Should You Add FAQs to Every Page?

No.

This is probably the biggest mistake we see with FAQs.

Once businesses hear that FAQs are “good for SEO”, they start adding them everywhere.

Every service page gets five questions.

Every category gets five questions.

Every blog gets five questions.

Before long, the website is full of generic FAQ sections that exist purely because someone thought Google wanted them.

It doesn’t.

Add FAQs when they make the page better.

If you’ve already answered everything clearly in the main content, you don’t need to repeat the same information again at the bottom of the page.

Where Should FAQs Appear on a Page?

Most FAQ sections work best towards the bottom of a page, after the main content.

This allows you to explain the core subject first before answering more specific questions.

However, there’s no rule saying FAQs have to appear at the bottom.

If a particular question is important enough to influence someone’s decision, it may deserve its own section higher up the page instead.

For example, if almost every customer asks how long a service takes, hiding the answer in an accordion at the very bottom of the page probably isn’t the best user experience.

Think about importance first and page layout second.

Are Accordions Good for SEO?

Yes, using an accordion is generally fine.

They’re particularly useful when you have several questions but don’t want a long FAQ section dominating the page.

The important thing is that the content is genuinely present on the page and available to users.

From a user experience perspective, accordions also make FAQs much easier to scan. Visitors can quickly find the question they’re interested in without scrolling through answers that aren’t relevant to them.

Just make sure the question itself clearly explains what the answer contains.

What About FAQ Schema?

This is an area where SEO advice has changed significantly.

For years, website owners were encouraged to add FAQ structured data because Google could display questions and answers directly underneath a search result.

Google gradually restricted those FAQ rich results, initially limiting them mainly to authoritative government and health websites. In 2026, Google removed the FAQ rich result feature entirely from Search.

That means you shouldn’t add FAQs purely because you’re hoping they will create a larger search result.

The FAQ content itself can still be valuable.

Structured data more broadly can help search engines understand information on a page, but adding markup does not guarantee a special search appearance.

For most businesses today, the reason to create an FAQ section should be simple:

It helps your customers.

Anything else is a bonus.

Can FAQs Help With AI Search?

Potentially, but we wouldn’t create FAQs purely for this reason either.

Google’s current advice for appearing in AI search experiences is essentially the same as its wider SEO guidance: create useful, original content, use a clear technical structure and follow established SEO best practices.

Clear questions followed by concise, accurate answers can make information easy for people to understand.

But there isn’t a special FAQ trick that guarantees your content will appear in AI Overviews or other AI-generated search results.

Again, focus on answering genuine questions well.

How Do You Find Good Questions?

You don’t need to invent them.

Some of the best FAQ ideas come directly from your customers.

Look at:

• Questions customers ask before buying
• Sales emails
• Enquiry forms
• Customer service conversations
• Google Search Console queries
• Keyword research
• Questions your sales team hears repeatedly

We particularly like using real customer questions because they often reveal things traditional keyword research misses.

If several customers ask the same question, there’s a good chance other potential customers are wondering the same thing.

How Many Should You Add?

There’s no ideal number.

Some pages may benefit from two or three.

Others may genuinely need ten.

Don’t start with a target such as “every page needs five FAQs”.

Start with the questions.

If there are four useful questions to answer, add four. If there’s only one, you probably don’t need a dedicated FAQ section at all.

Quality is far more important than quantity.

Are FAQs Worth Adding for SEO?

Yes, when they genuinely improve the page.

FAQs can help you answer additional searches, cover useful information that doesn’t fit naturally into the main content and make it easier for visitors to find the answers they need.

But they aren’t an SEO shortcut.

Don’t add FAQs simply to make a page longer, repeat keywords or chase search features that no longer exist.

Answer real questions.

Keep the responses clear.

Make sure every FAQ adds something useful.

That’s the same approach we take with all SEO content.

If you’d like help improving your website’s content and identifying opportunities to increase your search visibility, take a look at our SEO Services Or contact our team to discuss how we can improve your website’s SEO.

The post Are FAQs Good for SEO? appeared first on Carrie-Ann Sudlow.

When this client first approached us, the website had a solid foundation but wasn’t generating the level of organic visibility it should have been. Our goal was to help more local customers find the business online by improving its visibility in Google and driving more relevant organic traffic.

The Challenge

Like many local businesses, they had a website that worked well for existing customers but wasn’t reaching its full potential in search.

There were technical issues holding the site back, key service pages didn’t contain enough information to compete with other businesses, and there was very little supporting content to demonstrate expertise or answer the questions potential customers were searching for.

With most customers looking for pest control services online, improving visibility across Northampton and the surrounding areas became the focus of the campaign.

What We Did

Rather than concentrating on one aspect of SEO, we developed a strategy that improved every part of the website, from its technical foundations through to its content and local presence.

Technical SEO

Before focusing on rankings, we made sure the website gave search engines the right signals. This included resolving metadata and heading issues, improving internal linking, fixing indexing problems and carrying out ongoing technical maintenance to keep the site performing at its best.

On-page SEO

With the technical foundations in place, we turned our attention to the pages most likely to generate enquiries. The homepage and the core rodent, insect and bird control pages were expanded with more helpful content, improved page structure and stronger local targeting. We also refined the user experience, making the pages easier to navigate and understand for both visitors and search engines.

Local SEO

To strengthen their local presence, we built consistent business listings across trusted online directories. This helped reinforce local trust signals and supported the website’s visibility for searches in Northampton and the surrounding area.

Blogs

To build authority beyond the main service pages, we created a content strategy based around the questions people were already asking online. Articles covering pest control pricing, mouse infestations, wasp nest removal, insect control and other common pest-related topics gave potential customers useful information while strengthening the relevance of the core service pages through internal linking.

Maintenance

SEO is never a one-off project, so we continued refining the campaign month after month. We monitored keyword performance, improved internal linking, refreshed existing content, expanded service pages and made ongoing technical improvements to ensure the website continued moving in the right direction.

The Results

Comparing the last three months against the same period the previous year:

Organic clicks increased by 258%
Organic impressions increased by 458%
Contact form engagement increased by 450%
Local query clicks increased by 800%

These results weren’t driven by a single page or keyword. They were the result of consistently improving every aspect of the website, from its technical foundations and core service pages to its supporting content and local search presence. As more pages began ranking for relevant searches, significantly more potential customers were able to discover Pest2Go through Google.

The Outcome

They now have a much stronger presence in local search and are attracting substantially more organic traffic than when we first started working together.

With solid technical foundations, comprehensive service pages and a growing library of helpful content, the website is now in a much stronger position to continue building its visibility over the long term.

Rather than looking for quick wins, we focused on creating a sustainable SEO strategy that will continue supporting the business as it grows.

The post SEO For Pest Control Services appeared first on Carrie-Ann Sudlow.

Or perhaps the opposite.

You’ve dropped a couple of positions and immediately wondered if something has gone wrong.

I completely understand why.

I’ve worked in SEO since 2008, and for a long time rankings were one of the best ways to measure whether a campaign was moving in the right direction.

In many ways, they still are.

But Google isn’t the same search engine it was when I started, and that’s changed the way I look at SEO success.

Today, I still track rankings for every client. They’re an important health check and they help us identify opportunities or spot problems before they become bigger issues.

What I don’t do is judge the success of an SEO campaign on rankings alone.

Because here’s the thing.

I’ve seen businesses climb to the top of Google and see very little change in enquiries.

I’ve also seen businesses whose rankings barely moved, yet their phone started ringing more than ever.

That’s because rankings are only one part of the picture.

Google looks very different these days

Take a minute and search for a service you offer.

Don’t just look at where your website appears.

Look at everything else on the page.

You’ll probably see paid adverts.

Maybe an AI Overview.

Google Maps.

Business listings.

Videos.

Images.

People Also Ask.

Perhaps even a Reddit discussion.

Only then do you reach the traditional organic results.

A few years ago, being number one usually meant you were one of the first things people saw.

Today, you might technically be first organically but still appear halfway down the page.

That’s nobody’s fault.

It’s simply how Google has evolved.

Google’s priority has always been helping people find answers as quickly as possible, and over the years it’s introduced more and more features to do exactly that.

For businesses, it means being visible online has become much more complicated than simply reaching position one.

Stop Googling your own business

This is probably one of the biggest pieces of advice I give business owners.

Stop checking where you rank every morning.

I know it’s tempting.

Someone will search for their business, panic because they can’t see themselves immediately, then send me an email asking if something has happened overnight.

Most of the time, nothing has.

Google personalises search results.

Where you’re searching from matters.

The device you’re using matters.

Your previous searches matter.

Even the way you phrase your search can change what you see.

That’s why two people sitting in the same office can search for exactly the same phrase and get different results.

Professional SEO software removes as much of that variation as possible so we can monitor rankings consistently.

Searching for yourself every day with a cup of tea simply doesn’t.

Rankings are still important

I want to make something very clear.

This isn’t an article saying rankings don’t matter anymore.

They absolutely do.

If rankings improve across the keywords that matter to your business, it’s usually a sign that Google’s recognising the work that’s been done on your website.

If rankings suddenly fall across the board, it’s often an early warning that something needs investigating.

That’s exactly why we include ranking reports for every SEO client.

They’re incredibly useful.

The mistake is assuming they’re the only thing we should measure.

Imagine going to your doctor for a health check.

They’ll probably check your blood pressure.

It’s useful information.

But they wouldn’t decide you’re perfectly healthy based on that one reading alone.

They’ll look at lots of different indicators before giving you an overall picture.

SEO works in much the same way.

Rankings tell us something important.

They just don’t tell us everything.

The numbers that really matter

Whenever I sit down with a client, the conversation nearly always comes back to the same thing.

“Are we getting more business?”

Nobody has ever said to me,

“Carrie-ann, I don’t care whether the phone’s ringing. I just want to be number one on Google.”

It sounds obvious when you say it like that.

Businesses don’t invest in SEO because they want higher rankings.

They invest because they want more customers.

That’s why I always look beyond ranking reports.

Has organic traffic increased?

Are more people getting in touch?

Has the quality of enquiries improved?

Are visitors spending more time on the website?

Are more people buying online?

Is SEO helping the business grow?

Those are the questions that actually matter.

Everything else is supporting information.

I think the SEO industry has sometimes made this more confusing

This might be an unpopular opinion.

I think, as an industry, we’ve sometimes made rankings seem more important than they really are.

Not because rankings aren’t valuable.

Because they’re easy to explain.

It’s much simpler to show a client they’ve moved from position seven to position three than it is to explain how improvements in content quality, user experience and search visibility are contributing to long term business growth.

Green arrows are satisfying.

Business growth is even better.

Over the years I’ve had clients worried because they’d slipped a couple of places for a keyword.

When we looked at everything else, enquiries were up, website traffic had improved and sales were increasing.

Nothing was actually wrong.

The ranking report simply didn’t tell the full story.

That’s why every SEO report should include rankings, but it should never stop there.

AI has changed the conversation, but not the goal

You can’t talk about Google in 2026 without mentioning AI.

AI Overviews have changed the way many searches look.

Sometimes people get the answer they’re looking for without visiting a website at all.

Naturally, that worries some business owners.

Is SEO still worth doing?

In my opinion, yes.

More than ever.

People still need businesses.

They still need trusted experts.

They still need products and services.

AI hasn’t removed that.

What it has done is make visibility more important than ever.

Instead of asking whether you’re number one for a keyword, the better question is whether potential customers are seeing your business when they’re ready to buy.

That’s a much more useful conversation.

More visitors doesn’t always mean more customers

Another trap businesses sometimes fall into is focusing purely on traffic.

More visitors sounds like good news.

Sometimes it is.

Sometimes it isn’t.

I’d rather help a client attract 500 people who are actively looking for their services than 5,000 visitors who leave after a few seconds because the website wasn’t what they needed.

SEO isn’t about attracting everyone.

It’s about attracting the right people.

That’s why understanding search intent is just as important as rankings.

If your website is answering the questions your ideal customers are asking, you’re much more likely to generate enquiries than if you’re simply chasing high search volume keywords.

Trust matters just as much as rankings

Think about your own buying habits.

Do you always click the first result you see?

Probably not.

You might choose the company with the best reviews.

You might recognise the brand.

You might like the wording of one result more than another.

You might even scroll past the first few listings because one further down looks more relevant.

Your customers do exactly the same thing.

That’s why SEO doesn’t stop once someone reaches your website.

Clear information, helpful content, customer reviews, a fast website and an easy way to get in touch all influence whether somebody becomes a customer.

A great ranking might bring someone to your website.

Trust is what persuades them to choose you.

What I tell every new SEO client

When someone starts working with us, I explain that we’ll report on rankings every month.

They’re useful.

They help us understand how Google is responding to the work we’re doing.

But we’ll also spend just as much time looking at everything else.

Traffic.

Enquiries.

Conversions.

Which pages people are visiting.

How users behave once they arrive on the website.

Because that’s where the real value is.

SEO isn’t about producing a report that looks impressive.

It’s about helping businesses grow.

Everything we measure should support that goal.

Should you stop worrying about rankings?

No.

They’re still an important part of SEO.

In fact, I’d be worried if an agency never talked about rankings at all.

But I’d be equally concerned if rankings were the only thing they ever discussed.

The best SEO campaigns look at the bigger picture.

They ask whether the right people are finding your business.

Whether your website is answering their questions.

Whether more visitors are becoming customers.

Whether SEO is generating a return on your investment.

I’ve been doing this for nearly two decades, and one thing has never changed.

Businesses don’t grow because they’re number one on Google.

They grow because the right customers find them, trust them and choose them over the competition.

Rankings help us understand whether we’re moving in the right direction.

Customers tell us whether we’ve actually arrived.

And for me, that’s always been the measure that matters most.

The post Why your Google rankings don’t tell the whol … appeared first on Carrie-Ann Sudlow.

Choose the Right Keywords

Before writing any content, decide what you want each page to rank for. Every page should focus on one main keyword or search phrase, supported by related terms. Avoid trying to optimise several pages for the same keyword, as they can end up competing against each other.

Write Original Content

Every page should have useful, unique content that answers your visitors’ questions. Don’t copy content from other websites or reuse the same text across multiple pages. Write naturally, explain what you do, who you help, and why someone should choose your business.

Create Strong Page Titles and Meta Descriptions

Each page needs its own page title and meta description. Your page title should include your main keyword and clearly explain what the page is about. Your meta description should encourage people to click through from the search results by explaining the benefit of visiting your page.

Structure Your Content Properly

Use one H1 heading on every page, followed by H2 and H3 headings where needed. Breaking content into sections makes it easier for both visitors and search engines to understand.

Optimise Your Images

Large images slow websites down, so compress them before uploading. Give image files descriptive names instead of leaving them as random numbers, and add alt text that accurately describes the image.

Make Your Website Mobile Friendly

Most people now browse on their phones, so your website should work just as well on a mobile device as it does on a desktop. Check that text is easy to read, buttons are simple to tap, and pages display correctly on different screen sizes.

Improve Website Speed

A slow website frustrates visitors and can affect your search rankings. Compress images, remove anything you don’t need, and use reliable website hosting to keep loading times as fast as possible.

Use HTTPS

Your website should be secure and load using HTTPS. Visitors expect a secure connection, and search engines do too.

Create Clear Navigation

Your menu should make it easy for visitors to find the information they need. Keep important pages within a few clicks of the homepage and organise your content logically.

Link Your Pages Together

Internal links help search engines understand your website and encourage visitors to explore further. Link to relevant services, blog posts and supporting pages wherever it makes sense.

Create an XML Sitemap

An XML sitemap helps search engines discover your pages more efficiently. Once your website is live, submit your sitemap through Google Search Console.

Check Your Robots.txt File

Your robots.txt file should allow search engines to crawl the pages you want indexed. It’s surprisingly common for new websites to accidentally block search engines before launch and forget to remove the restriction.

Set Up Google Search Console

Google Search Console is one of the most valuable free SEO tools available. It shows which pages are indexed, highlights technical issues, and lets you submit your sitemap directly to Google.

Install Google Analytics

Google Analytics helps you understand how visitors find your website, which pages they visit, and where improvements can be made. Measuring results is essential if you want your SEO to improve over time.

Fix Broken Links

Broken links create a poor experience for visitors and waste search engine crawl time. Check your website regularly and redirect any pages that have moved.

Avoid Duplicate Content

Every important page should offer something different. Don’t create multiple pages covering exactly the same topic just to target slightly different keywords.

Add Trust Signals

Include clear contact details, an About page, customer reviews, and your privacy and cookie policies. These help build confidence with both visitors and search engines.

Keep Your Website Fresh

SEO isn’t something you do once and forget. Publish new content regularly, update older pages, and improve information as your business grows. Websites that stay active are more likely to continue performing well in search results.

Review Your Website Regularly

Check Google Search Console for errors, monitor your rankings, and review your content every few months. Small improvements made consistently often produce better long term results than making lots of changes all at once.

Don’t Try and Trick Google

The best SEO strategy isn’t about trying to trick Google. It’s about building a fast, well organised website that answers your customers’ questions and makes it easy for them to find the information they need. Get the basics right from the beginning, and you’ll give your new website a much stronger foundation for long term success.

The post SEO Checklist for a New Website appeared first on Carrie-Ann Sudlow.

Someone tells them they need Facebook ads. Someone else says they should be on TikTok. Another person insists SEO is the answer to everything.

Before they know it, they’re spending money on five different marketing channels and getting very little back.

The problem isn’t usually the marketing itself.

The problem is they’ve chosen the wrong marketing for their business.

Not every business needs the same marketing strategy. What works brilliantly for one company can be a complete waste of money for another.

That’s why choosing the right marketing is one of the most important decisions you’ll make as a business owner.

Stop Following the Crowd

I see this all the time.

A business owner notices their competitors posting on social media every day and immediately assumes they should be doing the same.

The trouble is, you don’t know what’s happening behind the scenes.

You don’t know whether their social media is generating enquiries.

You don’t know whether they’re making money from it.

You don’t know if they’re simply posting because they think they should.

Copying competitors is rarely a good marketing strategy.

What works for them might not work for you.

Your business is different.

Your customers are different.

Your goals are different.

Your marketing should reflect that.

Start With Your Goals

Before you spend a penny on marketing, ask yourself a simple question.

What am I trying to achieve?

It sounds obvious, but many business owners skip this step.

Some want more enquiries.

Some want more online sales.

Some want to increase brand awareness.

Others want long term growth.

The right marketing strategy depends entirely on the answer.

For example, if you’re a local service business looking for more enquiries, local SEO could be one of the best investments you make.

If you’re launching a new ecommerce business, you may need a combination of SEO, Google Ads and email marketing.

If you’re trying to build your reputation as an expert in your industry, content marketing could play a major role.

Different goals require different solutions.

Understand How Your Customers Buy

This is where many businesses get it wrong.

They focus on where they want to market instead of where their customers are actually looking.

Think about your own buying habits.

If your boiler breaks down, are you scrolling through Instagram looking for a heating engineer?

Probably not.

You’re heading straight to Google.

On the other hand, if you’re buying a gift, new clothing or home accessories, social media might influence your decision.

The key is understanding how your customers behave.

Where do they look?

What questions are they asking?

What problems are they trying to solve?

When you understand this, choosing the right marketing becomes much easier.

Don’t Try to Do Everything

This is another common mistake.

Business owners feel they need to be everywhere.

• Facebook
• Instagram
• LinkedIn
• TikTok
• Google Ads
• SEO
• Email marketing

The list goes on.

The reality is that most small businesses don’t have unlimited budgets or unlimited time.

Trying to do everything often means doing nothing particularly well.

I’d rather see a business focus on one or two marketing channels properly than spread themselves thinly across ten different platforms.

Marketing isn’t about doing more.

It’s about doing what works.

Think About the Long Term

Some marketing channels can generate quick results.

Others take longer.

Both have their place.

Google Ads can drive traffic almost immediately.

The downside is that the moment you stop paying, the traffic stops too.

SEO takes longer to build.

However, once rankings improve, they can continue generating leads and enquiries month after month.

That’s why I often tell clients to think beyond the next few weeks.

The businesses that achieve the best results usually take a long term view.

They’re not chasing quick wins.

They’re building sustainable growth.

Measure What’s Actually Working

One of the reasons business owners waste money on marketing is because they don’t track results properly.

They look at likes.

They look at followers.

They look at impressions.

None of those things pay the bills.

What matters is whether your marketing is generating enquiries, sales and revenue.

Ask yourself:

• How many enquiries did this generate?
• How many sales came from this activity?
• What was my return on investment?
• Is this helping me achieve my business goals?

If the answer is no, it may be time to rethink your strategy.

Marketing should be judged on results, not vanity metrics.

There Is No Perfect Marketing Strategy

Many business owners spend too much time searching for the perfect solution.

The perfect social media platform.

The perfect advertising campaign.

The perfect marketing channel.

The truth is there isn’t one.

Marketing isn’t about finding a magic formula.

It’s about understanding your business, understanding your customers and making informed decisions.

What works today may need adjusting in six months.

What works for another company may not work for you at all.

That’s completely normal.

The important thing is choosing marketing activities that support your business goals rather than blindly following trends.

Choosing the right marketing isn’t about doing what everyone else is doing.

It’s about doing what’s right for your business.

Start with your goals.

Understand your customers.

Focus on the channels that are most likely to deliver results.

Most importantly, stop wasting money on marketing activities simply because someone told you that you should be doing them.

Good marketing isn’t about being everywhere.

It’s about being in the right place, at the right time, in front of the right people.

Choose wisely and your marketing becomes an investment.

Choose badly and it quickly becomes an expense.

The post Choosing the Right Marketing Strategy for Your Bus … appeared first on Carrie-Ann Sudlow.

Sounds simple enough, doesn’t it?

The trouble is that many businesses rush this part. They create a handful of boards with vague names, pin everything into one place and then wonder why nobody finds their content.

Pinterest doesn’t work like that.

Your boards help organise your content, but they also help Pinterest understand what your business is about. Well-organised boards make it easier for people to find your Pins and encourage them to explore more of your content once they’ve landed on your profile.

So, let’s look at how to create a Pinterest board and, more importantly, how to use it properly.

What Is a Pinterest Board?

Think of a Pinterest board as a folder.

Each board should focus on one particular topic, making it easy for users to browse content that interests them.

For example, if you own a kitchen company, you might have separate boards for:

• Modern kitchen ideas
• Small kitchen storage
• Kitchen colour inspiration
• Kitchen renovations

Keeping your boards focused makes your profile easier to navigate and gives Pinterest a much clearer understanding of the subjects you cover.

How to Create a Pinterest Board

Creating a Pinterest board is straightforward.

From your Pinterest profile, choose the option to create a new board, give it a clear name and add a short description explaining what visitors can expect to find.

Pinterest also allows you to keep boards private while you’re building them. This can be useful if you’re planning a campaign or creating content that isn’t quite ready to share.

Once your board has been created, you can begin adding Pins from your own website or save relevant content from other Pinterest users.

The process itself only takes a few minutes.

The important part is what you do afterwards.

Choose Board Names Carefully

One of the biggest mistakes businesses make is giving boards clever or quirky names that nobody is searching for.

Instead, think about the words your customers would actually use.

For example, “Kitchen Inspiration” is far more descriptive than “Dream Spaces”.

Likewise, “Wedding Cake Ideas” tells Pinterest and your audience exactly what the board contains.

Pinterest has its own search engine, so board names matter.

Using relevant keywords naturally within your board titles and descriptions gives Pinterest more context about your content and improves the chances of your boards appearing in search results.

If you’re unsure how to find the right keywords, our Keyword Research Guide explains how to identify the phrases your audience is actually searching for.

Organise Your Boards Around Topics

Each board should focus on one subject.

Trying to cover too many different ideas within the same board makes it harder for both Pinterest and your audience to understand what it’s about.

If you offer several different products or services, create separate boards for each one.

This makes your profile easier to browse and allows you to build authority around each topic over time.

It’s the same principle we use in SEO.

Rather than trying to make one page rank for everything, it’s usually better to create focused content around specific topics.

Don’t Just Pin Your Own Content

Many businesses assume every Pin needs to link back to their own website.

It doesn’t.

Pinterest is a community, and people expect to discover useful ideas from a variety of sources.

Sharing relevant content from other users can help make your boards more useful and engaging, provided it fits naturally with your overall theme.

Of course, your own content should still form the backbone of your Pinterest strategy.

Every blog post, guide, product page or service page you create is another opportunity to drive visitors back to your website.

The aim is to create boards that people genuinely enjoy following, not simply collections of advertisements.

Fill Your Boards with Quality Content

An empty board doesn’t encourage anybody to follow you.

Before promoting your Pinterest profile, spend a little time adding useful, high-quality content to each board.

Focus on quality rather than quantity.

Every Pin should have a purpose.

Ask yourself:

• Would my audience find this useful?
• Would they save it for later?
• Does it fit the topic of this board?

If the answer is yes, it’s probably worth adding.

Keep Your Boards Active

Pinterest rewards fresh content.

That doesn’t mean you need to spend hours every day creating new Pins, but it does mean your boards shouldn’t be abandoned after a few weeks.

Adding new Pins regularly helps keep your profile active and gives Pinterest more opportunities to recommend your content.

If you notice that certain boards consistently receive more engagement than others, consider expanding those topics with additional Pins and related content.

Pinterest Analytics can help you identify which boards and Pins are performing best, allowing you to focus your efforts where they’ll have the biggest impact.

Creating Boards Is Only the Beginning

Learning how to create a Pinterest board is the easy part.

Turning those boards into a consistent source of website traffic takes a little more planning.

Well-organised boards, useful content, relevant keywords and regular activity all work together to improve your visibility and encourage more people to engage with your brand.

If you’re looking to use Pinterest as part of your wider marketing strategy, our Pinterest Marketing Guide explains how to attract more visitors, optimise your Pins and make Pinterest work harder for your business.

And if you’d like help growing your business across Pinterest and other platforms, take a look at our Social Media Marketing services.

The post How to Create a Pinterest Board appeared first on Carrie-Ann Sudlow.

You search for advice online, click on a few articles and within seconds you can already predict what they are going to say. The same headlines. The same tips. The same safe, polished wording that sounds like nobody actually wanted to write it.

Now AI tools can create content in minutes, that problem is getting much worse.

Businesses are publishing more content than ever, but much of it feels cold, empty and instantly forgettable. You read it, leave the page and cannot remember a single thing about the company behind it.

That is a problem for SEO.

Because search is changing quickly. People are tired of reading content that feels fake, forced or written purely to chase rankings. Search engines are also getting better at spotting content that adds no real value.

If businesses want to stand out now, they need to sound human again.

And that is where many brands are struggling.

For years, businesses were told to sound more professional online. Somewhere along the way, “professional” started meaning boring. Websites became filled with stiff marketing language, generic advice and articles written to please algorithms instead of actual people.

Then AI arrived and poured petrol on the fire.

Now anyone can generate endless blog posts in seconds. The internet does not need another article called “10 Ways To Improve Your SEO”. It already has thousands of them and most say exactly the same thing.

The truth is, people can feel when content lacks real experience behind it.

AI can pull information together. It can rewrite what already exists online. But it cannot genuinely talk about the stress of watching rankings suddenly disappear overnight. It cannot explain the frustration of spending months on a strategy that completely failed. It cannot describe the excitement when a campaign finally works after weeks of trial and error.

That emotional side matters because it makes content feel real.

People connect with honesty far more than polished perfection.

A business owner openly talking about mistakes they made will often build more trust than a company pretending they have never got anything wrong. Real stories feel believable because they are believable.

This is one of the reasons I invest heavily in video content as part of my own SEO strategy.

When people watch my videos, they see me. They hear my voice, my opinions and my passion for what I do. They can tell I am a real person who genuinely cares about helping businesses grow online.

I am definitely not AI.

You can see my reactions, my emotions and the energy I put into my work. That human connection matters because trust matters. Especially online, where people are becoming more suspicious of content that feels robotic or fake.

Small businesses should not underestimate how powerful that can be.

Big brands can rely on their name. Smaller businesses usually grow because people trust them. That trust often comes from personality, honesty and real life experience, not perfectly written corporate content.

Nobody wants to feel like they are reading words produced by a machine.

People want reassurance. They want insight. They want to know the person behind the business actually understands the problems they are facing.

That is becoming one of the biggest advantages in SEO.

The businesses standing out online now are often the ones willing to sound more human. They share lessons learned. They talk openly about what worked and what failed. They stop trying to sound perfect all the time.

Ironically, those imperfections are often what make content more powerful.

That does not mean businesses should stop using AI completely.

AI can absolutely save time. It can help with planning, research and speeding up parts of the writing process. Used properly, it is a useful tool.

But it should support human ideas, not replace them.

The problem starts when businesses let AI do all the talking. That is when websites lose their personality. Everything starts sounding flat and emotionless, like content written by someone who has never actually dealt with a real customer before.

And people notice.

In a world where AI generated content is everywhere, genuine human experience stands out far more than another perfectly structured article packed with keywords.

Because at the end of the day, people do not remember content that sounds polished.

They remember content that made them feel understood.

The post SEO Is Changing Fast, And Generic Content Is Becom … appeared first on Carrie-Ann Sudlow.

Luva Huva is an independent lingerie brand built around sustainability, transparency and ethical production.

The brand already had a strong identity and loyal customer base, but there was a clear opportunity to help more people discover the business through search, especially those who were not already familiar with the brand.

The goal was to grow non-branded traffic, increase organic sales and make sure the site was well positioned not just for traditional Google search, but for the growing number of people using AI tools like ChatGPT to research products.

What We Found

One of the biggest opportunities early on was the category pages.

A lot of them were quite thin, which meant they were not giving search engines much to work with and were missing the chance to answer the kinds of questions customers ask before buying.

Because the site is built on Shopify, we also needed to work within the platform rather than relying on heavy custom development. The challenge was making meaningful SEO gains using the tools available while keeping the site clean and easy to shop.

What We Did

Most of the early work focused on cleaning up technical issues and making the key collection pages clearer for Google.

The first step was improving the category pages.

We expanded the content across key collections so the pages became more useful for customers and gave search engines much better context around the products being sold. The focus was on helping Luva Huva show up for more relevant non-branded searches rather than relying too heavily on people already knowing the brand.

Once Google reprocessed the updated category pages, rankings started improving much more consistently

We also built out FAQ sections across important category pages to target longer-tail searches and answer common customer questions in a clear, useful way.

To support this, we created targeted blog content around the same themes to build stronger topical relevance and show more expertise in the space.

The Results

Comparing January to April 2026 against the same period in 2025:

• Non-branded organic clicks increased by 116%
• Non-branded Impressions increased by 41%
• Organic revenue increased by 11.6%
• Organic purchases increased by 14.4%
• Traffic from ChatGPT increased by 282%

There were some particularly strong wins too:

• SEMrush tracked organic keyword visibility grew from 130 keywords to 295
• The target keyword “cotton lingerie” moved from position 30 to position 1
• Clicks for “cotton lingerie” increased by 339%

What Happened

Luva Huva is now in a much stronger position across both traditional search and newer AI search platforms.

More importantly, the growth has come from bringing in more of the right people, not just chasing vanity traffic. More visibility, more non-branded discovery and stronger organic sales.

A good example of what happens when you consistently improve the right things over time, even on Shopify.

A Few Words from Luva Huva

“Working with this company has been a great experience from the start. Their team is professional, knowledgeable, and approachable. I’ve seen noticeable improvements in our website rankings, organic traffic, and overall online visibility within a relatively short time.

Communication has been excellent throughout, with regular feedback, updates, and clear reporting that made everything easy to understand.

I would highly recommend them to any business looking to improve their online presence and grow through SEO.”

Joanna, Founder, Luva Huva

The post Growing Non-Branded Organic Clicks by 116% for a S … appeared first on Carrie-Ann Sudlow.

The truth is, rankings on their own do not pay the bills. Clicks do. Enquiries do. Sales do.

This client was already well known in their industry and had a strong reputation. The problem was that their organic growth had started to slow down. Competitors were becoming more aggressive, search results were changing, and opportunities were being missed.

They came to us because they wanted to improve visibility, increase traffic from the right searches, and strengthen their position without relying more heavily on paid ads.

Over the course of the campaign, we increased organic clicks by 44%.

Not through shortcuts or SEO gimmicks. Just by doing the basics properly and consistently.

What We Found

When a website already ranks well, further SEO growth becomes much harder to achieve.

The site also had a number of technical and content issues holding it back, including slow page speeds, sitemap problems, multiple H1 tags and opportunities to improve visibility across important search terms.

The goal was simple: bring in more of the right traffic, generate more leads and continue growing sales through organic search while also improving visibility in AI search tools like ChatGPT.

What We Did

We focused on improving the site technically while also making the content more useful, easier to read and easier to find in search.

Important landing pages were rewritten and expanded to improve visibility, user experience and search relevance.

We also improved keyword targeting across key areas of the site so the business could appear for a wider range of relevant searches. Titles, meta descriptions, H1 tags and URLs were updated to help improve rankings and click-through rates.

On the technical side, we fixed issues including sitemap problems, multiple H1 tags, slow-loading pages and uncompressed files. Website speed and performance were also improved through caching and image optimisation.

FAQ sections were added to important pages to target longer-tail searches and answer common customer questions more clearly. This also helped the site appear more often in AI search tools.

The Results

Comparing the last 3 months against the same period in 2025:

• Organic clicks increased by 44%
• Organic impressions increased by 31%
• Organic leads increased by 22%
• Total sales increased by 15%

Some of the strongest gains came from important product and category pages, with one key landing page seeing organic clicks increase by 181%.

Visibility also improved significantly across high-intent commercial searches within the sector.

AI Traffic Growth

The improvements made across the site also helped increase visibility in AI search tools.

Traffic from ChatGPT increased by 1000%, showing how important clear, well-structured content is becoming as more people use AI tools to research products and services.

This client is now in an even stronger position within a highly competitive market.

The work carried out across the site helped improve visibility in both traditional search engines and newer AI search tools, while also driving more of the right traffic and stronger sales results.

Most importantly, the growth came from steady improvements over time rather than short-term spikes, leaving the business in a strong position going forward.

The post Increasing Organic Clicks by 44% for an Establishe … appeared first on Carrie-Ann Sudlow.

You can have a genuinely good business and still struggle to get enquiries consistently because the competition is relentless. Bigger companies are spending heavily, ad costs keep rising, and customers have more choice than ever.

That was the position this client was in.

They already had a good reputation and offered a strong service, but marketing had become frustrating. Some months were good, others were unpredictable, and too much money was being wasted attracting the wrong kind of traffic.

They did not come to us expecting miracles.

They just wanted a clearer strategy and better results from the budget they were already spending.

The Issues We Found

The biggest issue wasn’t demand.

There was clearly demand in the market because competitors were spending heavily to win customers.

The problem was efficiency.

Too much money was being wasted on the wrong traffic, weak targeting, and campaigns that weren’t properly optimised for conversions.

The client didn’t need more clicks.

They needed better quality enquiries at a cost that actually made sense for the business.

Starting With The Basics

When we first looked at the account, there was no single disaster causing the problem.

It was more a case of lots of smaller issues building up over time.

Targeting was too broad in places, budget was leaking into searches that were unlikely to convert, and some of the messaging was attracting clicks from people who were never going to become customers.

This is really common.

A lot of campaigns do not fail because the business is bad. They fail because nobody has properly slowed down and looked at how real people are actually searching and buying.

The Results After 3 Months

The improvements came quickly.

Within just 3 months, the client achieved:

📈 36% conversion rate
💷 £3.10 cost per conversion
🚀 Growth strong enough to support expansion plans

Most importantly, the business finally started seeing marketing as an investment rather than an expense.

The Bigger Lesson

A lot of small business owners assume a competitive industry means there’s no room left.

In reality, competitive markets often prove there’s strong demand.

The businesses that succeed are usually the ones making better marketing decisions consistently over time.

You do not always need the biggest budget.

You need the clearest strategy.

That is where the difference is made.

The post Case Study: Growing a Business in One of the Most … appeared first on Carrie-Ann Sudlow.