SEO Optimisation in Cardiff

Cardiff is Wales's largest city and the economic engine of South Wales, with nearly 389,000 residents and a GVA growing at 2.0% annually. When Cardiff consumers search for local services, they turn to Google, and if your business doesn't appear on page 1, you're losing customers to competitors who do.

The Cardiff search market is fiercely competitive. With 20% of the workforce in financial services and thousands of SMEs across every industry, businesses in CF10 through CF24 are fighting for the same Google real estate. Generic SEO strategies don't work here. You need a Cardiff-specific approach that targets the postcodes, neighborhoods, and search terms your actual customers use.

Our Cardiff SEO services start from £200/month and deliver measurable improvements in your Google rankings, organic traffic, and enquiry volume. We've helped businesses across South Wales climb from page 3 to page 1, and we can do the same for your Cardiff business.

High competition density: Cardiff has more web design agencies, marketing companies, and SEO providers per capita than any other Welsh city. This means every industry keyword, from "solicitor Cardiff" to "restaurant Cardiff Bay", has multiple businesses competing for the top spots. Without professional SEO, your business gets buried.

Postcode fragmentation: Cardiff spans dozens of postcodes from CF3 (St Mellons, Rumney) to CF24 (Roath, Cathays). Customers search differently depending on area, "dentist Canton" versus "dentist CF5" versus "dentist near me." Effective Cardiff SEO must target all these variations.

Mobile-first audience: Cardiff's median age is just 34.4 years, one of the youngest city populations in the UK. This demographic searches almost exclusively on mobile. If your site isn't mobile-optimised with fast loading speeds, Google ranks it lower, and Cardiff's young professionals never find you.

Local pack dominance: For most Cardiff service searches, Google shows a "local pack" of 3 businesses with a map before any organic results. If you're not in this local pack, you're effectively invisible. Getting into the Cardiff local pack requires specific optimisation of your Google Business Profile, citations, and reviews, not just website SEO.

Local keyword research: We identify the exact terms Cardiff residents search for your services. Not just obvious keywords like "web design Cardiff" but long-tail opportunities like "affordable website designer Cardiff Bay" or "SEO specialist near Central Square." These longer searches have less competition and higher conversion rates.

Google Business Profile optimisation: We fully optimise your GBP listing with accurate business information, Cardiff-specific categories, regular posts, Q&A management, and a strategy for earning genuine Google reviews. This is critical for appearing in the local pack.

On-page SEO: Every page of your website gets optimised with title tags, meta descriptions, header structure, internal linking, and schema markup tailored to your Cardiff location. We include LocalBusiness schema with your exact coordinates, serving area, and opening hours.

Content strategy: We create location-specific content that establishes your expertise in the Cardiff market. Blog posts, service pages, and FAQ content that answers the questions Cardiff customers actually ask, building topical authority that Google rewards with higher rankings.

Technical SEO: We fix site speed issues, crawl errors, mobile usability problems, and structural issues that prevent Google from properly indexing and ranking your Cardiff business website. Many Cardiff businesses have fundamental technical problems they don't even know about.

Citation building: We ensure your business name, address, and phone number are consistent across the directories Cardiff customers use, Yell, Thomson Local, Bark, Checkatrade, Google Maps, Apple Maps, and Cardiff-specific directories like the South Wales Chamber of Commerce.

Month 1-2: Technical audit and fixes, Google Business Profile optimisation, initial keyword research and on-page SEO. You'll see improvements in site speed, mobile usability, and how Google crawls your site.

Month 3-4: Content creation and citation building begin driving results. You should see movement in rankings for lower-competition Cardiff keywords and increased impressions in Google Search Console.

Month 5-6: Established keywords start reaching page 1. Local pack appearances increase. You'll notice more phone calls and form submissions from Cardiff-area customers finding you organically.

Month 6-12: Compound growth as your domain authority builds. Higher-competition Cardiff keywords start ranking on page 1. Your website becomes a consistent source of new business enquiries from across the CF postcode area.

We provide monthly reports showing exactly which Cardiff keywords you rank for, how much traffic you're getting, and where your enquiries are coming from. No vague promises, just data-driven results you can verify yourself.

Professional services (accountants, solicitors, financial advisers): Cardiff's financial district generates high-value search queries. A single "accountant Cardiff" ranking can deliver clients worth thousands per year. We help professional services firms rank for their specialisms across Cardiff postcodes.

Hospitality and tourism: As Wales's most popular tourist destination, Cardiff businesses in food, accommodation, and entertainment need to rank for both tourist and local searches. We optimise for terms like "best restaurant Cardiff Bay," "hotel near Cardiff Castle," and "things to do in Cardiff."

Healthcare and dental: Competition for "dentist Cardiff" and similar health keywords is fierce. We help clinics rank with location-specific pages, patient review management, and healthcare schema markup that generates rich snippets in search results.

Trades and home services: Plumbers, electricians, and builders serving Cardiff compete for urgent "near me" searches. We optimise for emergency and time-sensitive keywords that generate immediate leads, plus build local authority through review management.

Tech and creative: Cardiff's growing tech scene around Tramshed Tech and the creative cluster needs visibility to attract both clients and talent. We help tech companies rank for B2B service queries and recruitment-related searches.