Static Sites vs WordPress for SEO: Real-World Results for UK Small Businesses

Why This Follow-Up Matters

The first article makes the case that WordPress is outdated for many small businesses.

This one answers the question business owners actually care about:

“Will a static site help me get more enquiries from Google?”

For UK small businesses and UK SMEs, SEO isn’t about “traffic” in the abstract — it’s about local visibility, trust, and consistent enquiries.

What Google Actually Rewards

Google doesn’t rank websites because they use WordPress or because they’re static.

It ranks pages that deliver a better overall experience:

• Fast loading on mobile
• Stable layout and interaction (no jumping, lag, or blocked clicks)
• Helpful content that satisfies the search intent
• Clear relevance to the topic and the audience

Performance alone won’t make weak content rank.

But performance can absolutely stop a good site being held back.

Core Web Vitals: The Practical Difference

When people talk about “static sites are faster”, this is what they usually mean in practice:

• LCP (Largest Contentful Paint): how quickly the main content appears
• INP (Interaction to Next Paint): how responsive the page feels when someone taps/clicks
• CLS (Cumulative Layout Shift): whether the page jumps around while loading

WordPress can score well — but only after:

• caching,
• optimisation,
• plugin control,
• and ongoing maintenance.

A static site tends to start closer to “good” by default because it serves pre-built HTML with minimal runtime overhead.

Static vs WordPress: The SEO-Relevant Comparison (UK SME View)

This is why static sites are often easier to keep fast over time.

The Real SEO Gains After a Migration (What Usually Changes)

When a WordPress-to-static migration improves SEO, it’s rarely “magic”.

It’s usually one or more of these:

1) Faster pages reduce abandonment

If a mobile visitor doesn’t wait for the page, they don’t read it, click, or enquire.

Static sites typically:

• load more consistently,
• render faster,
• and feel smoother on low-end mobile devices.

2) Cleaner pages are easier for Google to interpret

Heavy theme markup, builders, and stacked plugins can produce messy HTML.

Static builds tend to produce:

• simpler HTML,
• fewer scripts,
• fewer render-blocking assets, which improves both crawl and user experience.

3) Better engagement signals (because the site feels “professional”)

This is the underrated part.

When a site feels fast and stable, users trust it more. Trust increases:

• time on page,
• scrolling,
• clicking,
• and enquiries.

What Clients Typically See (Without Overpromising)

Every site is different, but typical outcomes I aim for in UK SME migrations include:

• Key pages loading in under ~2 seconds on real mobile connections
• A noticeable reduction in “maintenance emergencies”
• A tighter security posture with fewer exposed components
• A cleaner content structure that supports long-term SEO growth

Important: if your content strategy is weak, speed improvements won’t fix that. But speed improvements can remove friction and unlock the value of your content.

The Migration That Actually Works (Practical Approach)

A successful migration isn’t “copy the old site and hope”.

It’s usually:

1. Map the existing URLs

   • keep the same URLs where possible
   • plan 301 redirects for anything that changes

2. Keep the SEO signals

   • titles, meta descriptions, headings
   • internal links
   • structured data where relevant

3. Fix the content that’s holding you back

   • thin pages
   • unclear service messaging
   • duplicate pages
   • slow-loading media

4. Launch clean

   • validate redirects
   • submit sitemap
   • check indexing and crawl stats in Search Console

When WordPress Still Wins on SEO (Yes, Sometimes)

WordPress can still be a strong choice when you have:

• multi-author publishing needs
• complex editorial workflows
• large dynamic features (eCommerce, membership portals)
• a team that can maintain and govern plugins properly

For most service-based UK SMEs, that’s not the reality.

They want a site that:

• ranks,
• loads fast,
• and generates enquiries without becoming a part-time IT job.

• “Why WordPress Is Outdated for Most Small Businesses”

If you’re reading this because your site feels slow or fragile, start here:

See my services for small business websites Book a consultation

If you’re considering a WordPress-to-static migration and want it done without SEO loss, I can review your current site and map a safe plan.