SEO Case Studies UK

Real results with real numbers, no vague claims, no invented metrics.

Our case studies

The most honest test of any SEO consultant is what they have actually achieved for clients. Not awards, not traffic counts without context, not ranking screenshots with no attribution. I share specific results from real clients, with clear explanations of what was done and why it worked. More case studies are added as I get permission from clients to share them.

Read our case studies

SEO results in detail

Professional Development • Global • Ongoing

APMG International: Embedded SEO Consultancy for a Global Certification Body

Multi-year external SEO partnership covering internal team development, technical strategy, and some of the most competitive keywords in professional training.

The Client

APMG International is one of the world's leading examination institutes and accreditation bodies, offering globally recognised certifications across disciplines including change management, agile project management, and project management. They operate across multiple countries and work with some of the largest organisations and training providers in the world.

The Work

My work with APMG spans several years as an external SEO consultant. The primary focus has been building and developing the capabilities of their internal team, upskilling them to read data more effectively, cut through noise, and make confident, evidence-based decisions. Alongside the mentoring element, I provide deep expertise in the areas where a specialist makes the biggest difference: technical audits, competitive analysis, content strategy, and ongoing optimisation.

APMG now ranks for some of the most competitive keywords in the professional development space, including "change management" and "agile project management", terms with significant commercial intent and fierce competition from established institutions globally. More recently, the strategy has evolved to account for the shift in how people search. We are now actively optimising for AI-generated results, ensuring APMG's content is structured to appear in citation-based answers and generative search responses, not just traditional rankings.

5+

Years as embedded external consultant working alongside their internal SEO team.

AI

Strategy now adapted for generative search and AI citation alongside traditional rankings.

Managed IT Services • UK, US, UAE • Ongoing

Microbyte: International Rankings for a Multi-Market IT Services Provider

Fully managed SEO across multiple countries for a Microsoft Gold Partner competing in one of the most competitive sectors in managed services.

The Client

Microbyte is an international managed IT services provider with offices across the UK, US, UAE, and the Philippines. They support SMEs across sectors including legal, finance, healthcare, and construction, acting as the outsourced IT department for businesses with 10 to 250 staff. As a Microsoft Gold Partner and ISO-certified provider, they operate in a highly competitive space where trust and visibility are everything.

The Work

My work with Microbyte is a fully managed SEO service covering the full scope: link building, new content production, page creation, competitor analysis, and ongoing optimisation. The international dimension adds significant complexity, as ranking pages in multiple markets means navigating different search behaviours, local intent signals, and competitive landscapes across the UK and beyond.

As AI search has become a more significant part of how business owners research IT providers, we have adapted the strategy accordingly, focusing on content that answers specific, high-intent questions in a way that surfaces in AI-generated answers. The result is organic visibility that reaches the right audience across multiple countries, at every stage of the decision-making process.

4

International markets ranked across: UK, US, UAE, and beyond.

Full

Fully managed service covering links, content, new pages, and competitive analysis.

Industrial / Air Compressors • East England • Ongoing

Anglian Compressors: Building One of the UK's Largest Air Compressor Knowledge Bases

A regional industrial supplier becomes a national content authority through a structured knowledge base, interactive tools, and a fully managed SEO programme.

The Client

Anglian Compressors has been supplying compressed air solutions across eastern England since 1977 and is now part of Atlas Copco, the global industrial group. They offer a full range of air compressors, vacuum systems, gas generation, and ancillary equipment, and despite being a regional business, they now have one of the largest and most comprehensive air compressor blogs and knowledge bases in the UK.

The Work

My work with Anglian is a fully managed SEO service with a strong focus on local visibility, content, and web development. The knowledge base has been built from the ground up through keyword research, competitive analysis, and a structured content strategy covering everything from buyer guides to technical explainers. Alongside written content, I have overseen the development of interactive tools including energy savings calculators, which add genuine utility and help convert technical visitors into enquiries.

The strategy has also evolved to incorporate AI search optimisation. As more engineers and procurement managers use AI tools to research compressed air solutions, we are ensuring Anglian's content is structured to appear in those results, building authority not just in traditional search but across the growing landscape of AI-generated answers.

8+

Interactive calculator tools built to engage and convert technical visitors into enquiries.

#1

Among the UK's largest air compressor knowledge bases, built from scratch.

Corrugated Packaging • Peterborough, UK • Ongoing

Fencor Packaging: Local Reach and National Authority in a Competitive Market

A specialist packaging manufacturer builds its digital presence against dominant national players through a two-track local and national SEO strategy.

The Client

Fencor Packaging Group designs and manufactures bespoke corrugated cardboard packaging through its production arm, Manor Packaging. Based in Peterborough, they create custom solutions for businesses across sectors including e-commerce, retail, and industrial transit, competing in a market where large national players dominate both search and share of voice.

The Work

The SEO challenge with Fencor is a two-track problem. In the short term, the priority is building strong local visibility to capture nearby clients who are actively searching for packaging solutions. In the longer term, the strategy is about establishing Fencor's authority in national and category-level search, making them visible not just by location but by product type, industry, and use case.

As part of that longer-term build, we are incorporating AI search into the strategy, creating content that positions Fencor as the authoritative answer when buyers use AI tools to research packaging options. In an industry dominated by volume suppliers, being the most visible and most informative option at every stage of the buyer journey is the competitive edge.

2

Strategic tracks running in parallel: local reach and national authority building.

AI

Strategy now adapted as buyer research shifts toward AI-generated answers and tools.

PropTech / Compliance Software • UK • Ongoing

Kamma: Strategic SEO Consultancy for a Growing PropTech Platform

External SEO direction for an established internal team in a niche where regulatory changes demand constant adaptation and content precision.

The Client

Kamma is a UK-based PropTech company helping letting agents, landlords, and surveyors stay compliant in an increasingly complex property licensing landscape. Their software monitors over 350 live licensing schemes across every council in England, giving property professionals real-time compliance alerts and automated application support.

The Work

With an established internal marketing and content team already in place, my role with Kamma is consultancy rather than execution. I work alongside their team to assess what is performing, what is missing, and what needs to be updated, providing the strategic direction and SEO expertise that keeps the content programme moving in the right direction.

A growing part of that strategy now involves AI search. Property professionals are increasingly turning to AI tools to answer compliance questions quickly, and Kamma's content needs to be structured to appear in those answers. We are evolving the content framework to serve both traditional search and generative results, ensuring Kamma is the source those tools cite when landlords and agents need guidance.

350+

Property licensing schemes monitored by Kamma's platform across every council in England.

Ext.

External strategic direction for an established in-house marketing and content team.

Paediatric Healthcare • Global • Completed

Don't Forget the Bubbles: Architecture and Content Strategy for a World-Leading Medical Education Site

Bringing structure and strategic clarity to one of the world's largest paediatric medical education websites, with a large internal editorial team already publishing at scale.

The Client

Don't Forget the Bubbles is one of the largest paediatric medical education websites in the world, serving clinicians across emergency medicine, critical care, and general paediatrics. With an extensive library of clinical articles, videos, courses, and a postgraduate MSc programme, they publish at a scale that requires serious editorial and technical infrastructure to manage effectively.

The Work

My work with DFTB was not about generating traffic from scratch. It was about imposing structure on a site that had grown enormously over many years. The core focus was helping their large internal editorial team understand which content was working, which needed updating, and which was holding the site back, through detailed content audits, pruning recommendations, site architecture improvements, and a clear framework for prioritising what to write and what to retire.

For a site with this level of medical authority, the emerging opportunity is significant. As clinicians increasingly use AI tools to look up clinical guidance quickly, having content that is well-structured, clearly attributed, and written to a high evidential standard makes DFTB a natural source for AI citation. That is now part of the strategic conversation.

Top

One of the world's largest paediatric medical education sites, serving clinicians globally.

Full

Full content audit, pruning strategy, and site architecture overhaul across a vast content library.

Flexible Workspace • UK (4 Sites) • Ongoing

Wrest Park Business Centres: Local and National SEO Across Four UK Locations

A multi-site workspace provider builds visibility against national coworking chains through a dual-track local and category-level SEO strategy.

The Client

Wrest Park Business Centres provide flexible workspace solutions across four locations in the UK, competing directly with major serviced office providers and national coworking chains. Their offer spans managed offices, meeting rooms, coworking spaces, virtual offices, and business units, catering to everyone from solo operators to growing teams needing professional, flexible space.

The Work

The SEO challenge for Wrest Park is typical of multi-site regional businesses. Each location needs to perform well in local search against dominant national competitors, while the brand as a whole needs enough authority to show up for broader category terms around serviced offices, meeting rooms, and flexible working.

The strategy combines strong local optimisation for each site with a national content programme covering industry-level topics where Wrest Park can build authority above the local level. We are also adapting for AI search, making sure Wrest Park appears when someone asks an AI assistant about flexible office space in their area. As more workplace decisions start with an AI query rather than a Google search, being present in those answers is becoming just as important as traditional rankings.

4

UK locations each requiring local SEO optimisation against dominant national competitors.

Dual

Dual-track strategy combining local optimisation with national content authority building.

B2B Professional Services • Denmark • 12 months

Half Double Institute: 578% Increase in Organic Clicks

From near-zero organic visibility to ranking for every major term in a specialist project management sector.

The Challenge

Half Double Institute is a Denmark-based organisation specialising in the Half Double project management methodology. When we started working together, their English-language website had minimal organic visibility. The site existed primarily as a brochure rather than an organic channel, with no real keyword strategy, thin content, and significant technical issues that prevented proper indexation of key pages.

The challenge was to build organic visibility in a competitive professional services space, targeting English-speaking project management professionals globally, while working within the constraints of a lean marketing team.

The SEO Strategy

The programme began with a full technical audit that identified several significant issues: pages that were not being indexed despite being important for the business, slow page speed that was affecting Core Web Vitals scores, poor internal linking that left key pages under-supported, and missing structured data that was preventing Google from properly understanding the site's content.

Once the technical foundation was fixed, we developed a content strategy focused on building topical authority in the project management space. This involved creating in-depth content for the highest-value keyword clusters: project management methodology, agile approaches, and the specific terminology of the Half Double system. Each piece of content was written to genuinely answer specific questions from project management professionals, not just to target keywords.

Link building focused on relevant project management publications, professional associations, and thought leadership placements that built genuine authority in the sector.

The Outcome

Over twelve months, organic clicks increased by 578% as measured in Google Search Console. The site moved from being invisible in search for its target terms to ranking on the first page for the majority of commercially important keywords. Organic traffic became a meaningful contributor to lead generation for the first time.

578%

Increase in organic clicks over 12 months in Google Search Console.

12

Months to transform the organic channel from near-zero to primary lead source.

What These SEO Case Studies Show

These case studies share a few common threads. Each one starts with a proper diagnosis of the current state rather than immediately executing against a generic plan. Each one prioritises technical foundations before investing in content. Each one measures success by metrics that connect to the business, not just traffic or ranking positions in isolation.

The timelines are also honest. The fastest meaningful organic result in these cases is around four to six months, for specific technical fixes. The broader strategic programmes take twelve to eighteen months to fully mature. That is the reality of organic search: it compounds, but it does not happen overnight.

SEO case study results
Behind the results

Understanding the Methodology

More detail on how these results were achieved and how I approach case study transparency.

I share case studies with specific numbers only when I have explicit permission from the client to do so. Most clients are happy to be referenced anonymously with specific metrics visible. A few permit full attribution. I do not fabricate case studies or approximate numbers to make the results look better than they were.

There are also client engagements where the results were more modest than these examples. SEO outcomes depend on the starting point, the competitiveness of the market, how quickly technical changes are implemented, and sometimes factors outside anyone's control like algorithm updates or significant shifts in search behaviour. I am honest about those engagements too.

Behind every case study is a systematic process that combines analysis, prioritisation, implementation, and measurement. There is no single tactic that produced these results: each one came from a combination of technical work, content investment, and authority building, sequenced in the right order and sustained over time.

The SEO consultant page explains my general approach to strategy and how I structure engagements. If you want to understand the methodology behind these results, that is the right place to start.

I measure SEO campaign performance against business outcomes, not vanity metrics. For these cases, the key metrics were organic clicks (from Google Search Console), keyword position tracking for commercially important terms, and, where attribution was possible, lead or revenue contribution from organic search.

Rankings are tracked, but they are not the headline metric. A client ranking first for a term that does not generate qualified traffic is not a success. The measurement framework for every engagement is agreed at the start, based on what the business is actually trying to achieve.

What clients say

In their own words

Josh transformed our organic traffic. Within 6 months we went from invisible to ranking for every major term in our sector.

Mark T, SaaS Founder

The technical SEO audit Josh delivered was the most thorough I've seen. Every recommendation was prioritised and actionable.

Sarah K, Head of Marketing

Josh acts like a member of our team. He understands the business, not just the rankings.

David R, CEO

Questions about case studies

Frequently asked questions

All case studies on this page are fully attributed with client permission, including the Half Double Institute, APMG International, Microbyte, Anglian Compressors, Fencor Packaging, Kamma, Don't Forget the Bubbles, and Wrest Park Business Centres.

I can connect prospective clients with references from any named client on request. Just ask during the discovery call and I will find out who is willing to speak to you. The numbers in every case study are accurate.

Technical improvements that fix crawl or indexation issues can show measurable impact within four to eight weeks if Google re-crawls affected pages promptly. Content improvements take three to six months to build meaningful traction. The broader strategic outcomes in these case studies took twelve to eighteen months to fully materialise.

These timelines are honest estimates, not guarantees. The pace of improvement also depends heavily on how quickly your development team can implement technical recommendations.

I have the deepest expertise in B2B SaaS, professional services, and ecommerce. Those are the sectors where I can bring pattern recognition and sector-specific knowledge that genuinely accelerates the work.

I have also worked with businesses in financial services, healthcare, and technology more broadly. For sectors very different from these, I am honest about whether I am the right fit or whether a consultant with deeper sector knowledge would serve you better.

SEO does not work equally well for every business. Some markets have limited search volume. Some businesses have structural reasons why organic search is difficult to compete in. Some sites have technical or content problems that take longer than expected to fix.

I am honest about these limitations at the discovery call stage. If I do not think SEO can deliver meaningful results for your business given the competitive landscape and your starting position, I will say so rather than take your money. If, during an engagement, results are not materialising as expected, I flag it early and explain what I think is happening.

The best starting point is a discovery call where I can understand your business, your current organic position, and your goals. From there, I will give you an honest assessment of what SEO can achieve for you and what kind of investment and timeline would be realistic.

See the SEO consultant page for a full explanation of how I work and what to expect from an engagement. When you are ready, get in touch via the contact page.

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