Insights
Research for people deciding where to spend next.
Practical analysis of search, advertising, competitors and customer demand. No daily SEO tips, and nothing written simply to fill a content calendar.
Losing patients to Turkey? The problem is rarely your dentistry — it's that nobody sees you
Irish clinics are losing implant and cosmetic cases to overseas clinics that out-market them online, not out-treat them. What it really costs, and what a practice can actually do about it.
Read → Irish small businessCan the Trading Online Voucher pay for a marketing audit?
What the Irish Trading Online Voucher actually covers and excludes, whether it can fund a marketing audit, and how to make sure a €2,500 grant is pointed at the right thing.
Read → CompetitorsCompetitors seem to be everywhere online? Here's how to find out what they're actually doing
"They're everywhere" is usually a handful of deliberate choices you can identify from the outside — their ads, their rankings, their reviews. How to find out what a competitor is really doing, and where the gap is.
Read → Agency relationshipsYour agency says everything's going well — but sales aren't increasing
When the reports are green and the sales line is flat, they're usually measuring activity, not outcomes. The questions that get a straight answer, and when to get an independent read.
Read → Field checkI checked 25 Irish dental websites — most track you before you agree to anything
A random sample of Irish dental clinics, checked by hand. Advertising and social pixels firing before consent — including TikTok. What it means for a clinic site.
Read → Field checkI checked 25 Irish law firm websites — here is what loads before you click accept
A random sample of Irish solicitors' sites, checked by hand. Eleven were tracking visitors before consent. The anonymised findings, and what they mean if it is your site.
Read → Case studyI ran a Growth Investigation on my own business — and published all of it
The most honest way to show what the investigation finds is to run it on my own business. What it found on MyLedgerBook — including an awkward contradiction on my own site.
Read → Buying adviceWhat an independent marketing audit is — and when it is worth paying for one
A review of your marketing by someone with no stake in the outcome. What it covers, what it costs, and when it is worth paying for.
Read → Agency relationshipsHow to tell whether your SEO agency is earning its retainer
Rankings reports and activity logs do not tell you whether an SEO retainer is working. Five questions that do, from someone with no stake in the answer.
Read → Paid searchHow much should a small business spend on Google Ads?
There is no correct Google Ads budget. There is a floor below which you learn nothing, and a method for deciding what to spend above it.
Read → PracticalFive Search Console reports that tell you whether your site is earning attention
Google Search Console is free and most businesses never open it. Five reports that answer real commercial questions, and what to do with each.
Read → Paid searchSpending on Google Ads but not getting customers? What to check before you spend more
Google Ads can report plenty of clicks and conversions while producing no actual customers. Where the money leaks, and what to check before adding budget.
Read → Decision makingDo I need an SEO audit, or something broader?
An SEO audit answers useful questions about a website — but not where to spend next. How to tell whether your problem is really SEO or something broader.
Read → ConversionGetting website traffic but hardly any enquiries? How to find out what's going wrong
Traffic without enquiries is usually one of three things — the wrong visitors, a page that doesn't ask, or friction in the contact step. How to tell which, before paying for more traffic.
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