WordPress website hacked? Get practical help from the person doing the work.
Unexpected redirects, strange pages in Google or a website your host has blocked? I investigate what has happened, explain the recovery options clearly and agree the work and costs with you before proceeding.
Support can include restoring access, removing identified malware and addressing spam left in search results, with a clear account of completed work and further checks needed.
Get help with broken pages, contact forms, slow loading and a backlog of website jobs. Choose a one-off fix or flexible monthly care, with hourly work and a budget agreed first.
I’m Ciaran, the consultant behind First Search Digital. I bring a big-business mindset to small businesses across Sussex: clear priorities, commercial thinking and practical digital support that fits your budget.
I spent 11 years in a corporate environment at American Express, and then 12 working with small local business. Today, I combine that experience with hands-on work in SEO, PPC, websites, AI and digital strategy to help small business owners make better decisions and put them into practice.
I understand that you are balancing customers, day-to-day work and limited time. You work directly with me to focus on what will make the most useful difference. I explain the technical detail clearly and charge hourly, so we can agree work that fits the resources you have.
I believe in honesty, transparency and integrity. I use rolling contracts with no minimum term or notice period, so clients stay because of the quality of my work, not because a contract ties them down.
(Experience & value)
Why work with me?
Big-business thinking for small businesses, with practical support charged by the hour.
Experienced help within your budget
Get direct access to my experience without committing to a large package. We agree the hourly rate, priorities and time to spend before work begins. A smaller budget can start with one useful, focused task.
One budget, the right mix of skills
At the beginning of each month, we agree a plan around your business needs, budget and available time. Those hours can cover SEO, PPC, social media or website work as needed, with the mix changing as your priorities change.
Clear advice from the person doing the work
I explain the technical detail in plain language and connect recommendations to your business goals. I only take on work where I believe I can help, and I’ll be honest if something is unlikely to be worthwhile.
No minimum term or notice period
I aim to earn your continued business by doing a good job. If your business needs a financial break, you can pause, reduce or stop future work; just let me know. I’m happy to adjust the support when circumstances change.
The move from desktop to mobile changed where people searched. AI is now changing how people ask questions, compare options and discover businesses.
A customer might read an AI answer, check a map, watch a video or look at reviews before visiting your website. The familiar habit of searching Google and clicking a list of links is becoming one of several routes to a decision.
If your enquiries depend on traditional Google results alone, changing habits and fewer clicks can put your pipeline at risk. Google still matters, but your plan needs to consider the other places your customers look.
I can help you review how people find you today, identify gaps and agree practical improvements within your budget. Start adapting while you have time to plan, rather than waiting for enquiries to fall.
Your website, search listings, reviews, social presence and advertising should tell a consistent story about what you do and who you help.
Useful content, clear business details and a website that search systems can access support visibility across several channels. The website then needs to make it easy for a person to choose you and enquire.
We can bring SEO, AI search visibility, PPC, social media and website improvements into the same monthly plan, focusing your hours on what your business needs most.
Search jargon, in plain English
Different names, closely connected work. Here is what the terms mean for your business.
SEO
Search engine optimisation
Helping search engines find and understand your website, and helping relevant customers discover it in unpaid search results. This remains an important foundation for AI search too.
GEO
Generative engine optimisation
Work aimed at making your business and content easier to find, understand and reference in AI-generated answers. It overlaps substantially with good SEO.
AEO
Answer engine optimisation
Making useful answers to customer questions clear and easy to find. The term covers visibility in answer-led experiences, including search features and AI assistants.
AIO
Two meanings to watch for
AIO can mean AI optimisation, a broad term for improving visibility in AI experiences. It is also used for AI Overviews, Google’s AI-generated search summaries. The context matters.
Local SEO
Visibility in your area
Helping nearby customers find and assess your business through maps and local search. Accurate business listings, genuine reviews and useful local service pages all play a part.
PPC
Pay-per-click advertising
Paid advertising where you pay for clicks. It can complement organic visibility and reach people with a specific need. Paying for ads does not buy better organic rankings.
You do not need a separate strategy for every acronym. We start with your customers, make your business easy to understand and choose the mix of channels that fits your goals and budget.
You do not need to know which marketing service to ask for. If one of these situations sounds familiar, it gives us a useful place to begin.
Customers struggle to find you
You rely on word of mouth, but people searching for your services do not always reach your business. Your website and local listings may give an incomplete picture of what you offer or where you work.
A useful starting point is to review your search presence, the services you want to promote and the information a prospective customer needs.
People arrive, yet the phone stays quiet. They may struggle to understand your offer, find the right service or decide whether you are the right fit. Sometimes the next step is simply hard to spot.
We can review the journey from arrival to contact, looking at the message, page structure and the questions left unanswered.
You can see clicks and spending, but connecting them to worthwhile work is harder. Perhaps the enquiries are inconsistent, the targeting feels too broad or the reports leave you with more questions.
An account and landing-page review can help explain the current picture and identify what to investigate before changing the budget.
Your services, customers or priorities have changed, but the website and marketing still describe an earlier version of the business. You may be attracting work you no longer want while newer services remain difficult to find.
We can revisit your offer and content, then plan the changes needed to present the business you are building now.
Repeating the same admin, moving information between tools or starting every piece of content from scratch can interrupt more valuable work. You know something could be easier, but choosing another tool feels like another job.
We can map one recurring task, explore practical improvements and test whether AI or automation would make it easier to manage.
Your website, ads, search activity and internal processes may each have their own plan. What is missing is a clear view of how they support the same business objective and which change should come first.
We can bring those decisions together, identify dependencies and define practical priorities for you and any existing suppliers.
Help local customers find your business through search, maps and paid advertising. Bring your website, Google Business Profile and campaigns together around the services you want to grow.
02
Website Design & Conversion
Give visitors a clear reason to choose you. Create or improve a website that explains your services, works well on mobile and makes it easy for potential customers to get in touch.
03
Digital Consultancy, AI & Automation
Make confident decisions about your marketing and technology. Get practical business advice, understand your performance and explore useful ways to put AI and automation to work.
(Explore the services)
The right support for the next stage of your business
You may need a clearer plan, more relevant enquiries or a website that explains your business properly. Choose a service to see what the work can involve.
SEO & local search
Review how customers find you, improve your service content and strengthen the connection between your website and local presence. Start with the services and areas that matter to your business.
Give paid advertising a clear purpose. Review an existing account or plan a campaign around relevant searches, useful landing pages and the enquiries you want to attract.
Create a new site or build on the work you already have. Bring together clear service pages, a consistent design and a straightforward way for customers to get in touch.
Look for practical improvements to recurring tasks, content preparation and everyday administration. Assess useful tools, start with a manageable pilot and keep human review where it matters.
Bring your marketing, website and technology decisions into one plan. Understand the current position, decide what deserves attention and turn recommendations into a clear sequence of work.
Support also covers social advertising, ecommerce, analytics, content and AI search visibility. Explore the full range and find a useful starting point.
Personal support shaped around the realities of running a small business.
Clear answers, without jargon
I make technical subjects understandable, explain the options logically and make sure you know what the work is for. You can ask questions without feeling you should already know the answer.
Advice grounded in your business
I take time to understand your customers, priorities and constraints. Recommendations start with what will be useful to your business and what you can realistically afford.
A broad skill set, one point of contact
You speak directly to the person doing the work. I can connect SEO, PPC, social media and website improvements, so your budget can go towards the task that matters most.
Flexibility when priorities change
We agree the plan, hours and budget together. If you need to change direction or take a financial break, we can adjust or pause future work without a notice period.
A joined-up approach to digital marketing
Good digital marketing connects the bigger picture to the everyday details. Clear priorities, useful data and practical improvements help your business move forward.
A Clearer Digital Strategy
Understand where to focus your time and budget. Get straightforward recommendations connected to your business goals.
A Better Customer Journey
Connect the way people discover your business with what they see on your website and how they get in touch.
Technology That Earns Its Place
Use AI and automation where they solve a real problem, reduce repetitive work or help your team make better use of its time.
(How we work together)
From the first conversation to practical progress
You do not need a finished brief. Start with what you want to change, and we can work out the right questions together.
01 — Understand the business
We talk about your services, customers, service area and goals. I want to understand what is working, where you feel stuck and the practical limits on your time and budget.
02 — Review and prioritise
We look at the relevant website, marketing activity or process. The aim is to identify the important gaps, separate immediate work from longer-term improvements and explain the reasons behind each recommendation.
03 — Agree the scope
Before work begins, we agree what is included, who is responsible and how costs will be handled. A focused piece of advice, a defined project or ongoing support can each be appropriate.
04 — Put the plan to work
We carry out the agreed work and review progress against the original goal. What we learn helps shape the next decision, whether that means improving a page, adjusting a campaign or changing the priority.
Specialist digital expertise
A personal approach. Practical support for local businesses across Sussex.
Joined-up expertise
5
Digital strategy, SEO, PPC, websites and AI.
Personal support
1:1
Work directly with your digital consultant.
Local focus
Sussex
Helping local businesses reach the right customers.
Ways I can help
Choose your starting point
Be found when local customers search. Connect your website, local visibility and paid advertising around the services you want to grow.
More local enquiries
SEO, maps & paid search
Give your business a website that makes a strong first impression, explains your services and makes the next step clear.
A stronger website
Website design & conversion
Make sense of your digital options. Get practical advice on strategy, measurement and useful ways to apply AI in your business.
A clearer digital plan
Consultancy, AI & automation
(Ways to work together)
The right level of support for your business, with a clear scope and costs agreed before we begin.
Companies I’ve worked with
A selection of client relationships across websites, search, advertising and training.
Before choosing the activity, we should be clear about the business question it needs to answer.
Are the enquiries a better fit?
Look beyond the number of contacts. Are people asking for the services you want to grow, in the places you cover? Your feedback about lead quality brings context to the marketing data.
Can customers take the next step easily?
Review whether important information is easy to find and whether calls, emails or forms give visitors a clear route to your business. Gaps in the journey help guide the next improvement.
Is spending tied to a clear purpose?
Connect each piece of work to an agreed objective and consider what the available evidence is telling us. Where measurement is incomplete, that should be part of the conversation.
Is a process easier to run?
For AI or automation work, consider the time involved, the checking required and the quality of the result. A useful change should make sense to the people who use and maintain it.
(Before we get started)
A few questions you might have
For anything specific to your business, get in touch. We can talk through where you are now and what you need.
Who do you work with?
My focus is local businesses across Sussex, particularly those that depend on enquiries for their services. That might be an independent professional, a trade business or a growing service company. The plan should fit your business model and the customers you want to reach.
Which parts of Sussex do you cover?
I support businesses targeting customers across East and West Sussex, including Brighton & Hove, Worthing, Eastbourne, Lewes, Horsham, Crawley and Chichester. We build the plan around the places you actually serve and where there is a useful opportunity. I do work with companies outside of Sussex too, just local clients tend to find me more with work of mouth.
I am not sure which service I need. Where should I start?
Tell me what is happening in the business. Perhaps enquiries are quiet, your ads are difficult to assess or the website no longer reflects what you do. An initial discussion can help identify a sensible starting point.
Can you improve an existing website or campaign?
Yes. The first step is to understand the work already in place. Useful design, content and campaign history can inform the improvements. We can agree whether a targeted change or a wider project is appropriate.
How much does it cost?
Costs depend on the work required and the level of support. We agree a scope before starting, including any relevant advertising spend or third-party costs. The ways to work together above show the different types of support available.
What should I send when I contact you?
Your website address, the services you offer, the areas you cover and your main priority are a good start. If you have a deadline or a budget in mind, include that too. You do not need to prepare a technical brief.
