Hey hey,
I’m away having fun at the Being Freelance Christmas party today, and meeting up with two of my best business buddies, Holly Christie and Louise ☪ Little Nerd ☪ Foster tomorrow, so this week’s newsletter is more of a postcard than a letter.
(This is the 08/12/2025 issue of my newsletter – subscribe here)
I’m in the middle of recording a two-parter for my podcast SEO F*king What? about how NOT to get ripped off by so called SEO “experts” in 2026, so it seemed apposite to use this shortened newsletter to talk about my latest and previous episodes.
I’ve tried to keep most of my episodes under 10 minutes – we’re all short on time, and if you stick them on 1.5x speed, you can get through them pretty quickly.
Latest episode: Microbusinesses need effective SEO too!
“SEO isn’t worth it for businesses your size.” I’ve lost count of how many small business owners have been told this. By agencies. By “experts.” By people who should know better.
It’s bullshit.
SEO isn’t just for corporations with massive budgets. It’s not some exclusive club you need a £2k monthly retainer to join. If you’ve got a website and you want people to find it, SEO is for you. Full stop.
The people telling you otherwise? They’re not saying it because it’s true. They’re saying it because you’re not profitable enough for them to bother with. Don’t let someone else’s business model convince you that you can’t compete online. You absolutely can.
Previous episodes:
Episode 6: The SEO your web designer promised vs what you got Your web designer said they’d handle the SEO. They installed a plugin and charged you two grand. Spoiler: that’s not SEO. This episode covers how to tell if you’ve been stitched up and what to do about it.
Episode 5: I’m SEO f*cking tired… A slightly more personal one. I’m knackered from watching dickheads with dodgy tactics get bigger platforms than people doing things properly. If you’re exhausted too, you’re probably on the right track.
Episode 4: ChatGPT isn’t your SEO team Some LinkedIn “gooroo” told you to bin your SEO tools and use ChatGPT instead. That’s how you fuck your entire website. I break down why those “magic prompts” are complete bollocks and what to do if you’re on a budget.
Episode 3: Why isn’t my blog post SEO working? You’ve spent hours crafting content and Google’s completely ignoring it. This episode covers why your posts aren’t ranking and how to fix them without selling your soul to a monthly retainer.
Episode 2: Who owns your SEO shit? Agencies and freelancers ending up owning your entire Google presence without you knowing. I’ve seen it happen for years and it still pisses me off. Here’s how to get out of the mess and stop it happening again.
Episode 1: SEO is not dead, FFS! LinkedIn “gooroos” announcing SEO is dead so they can sell you courses on GEO or AIO or whatever bollocks acronym they’ve invented this week. I call it out and explain why they’re full of shit.
As always, a massive thank you to Neal Veglio , my Podcast Producer and Promoter, who takes my ramblings and intermittent utterances of “Bollocks, why can’t I speak?” and makes the episodes sound better than they should.
And, if you have something you’;d like me to cover (it doesn’t have to be a rant) then drop me a DM on LinkedIn, or email me at nikki@nikki-pilkington.com.
That’s it for now,
Always non-wanky,
Nx
P.S Baby Remi is doing well – she’s still in hospital as we speak, but we’re hoping she’ll be home by the end of the week. Thank you to everyone who sent good wishes.
