Practical How‑To Guide • 2025

website design optimisation australia

Step‑by‑step website design and SEO tactics Australian businesses can apply today to increase traffic, leads and conversions.

This guide combines UX best practice with local SEO tactics tailored for Australian trades, retailers and service businesses — with clear actions, tools, and measurable goals you can implement in hours, not weeks.

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In this guide

Site audit checklist Technical SEO & speed Mobile‑first UX Content & local keywords Local SEO (Australia) Images & accessibility Measure & iterate Action checklist

Start with a quick site audit

Before making design changes, measure current performance. Use the audit to prioritise high‑impact fixes.

Key metrics to capture

Traffic: Organic sessions (Google Analytics / GA4)
Top pages: Pages bringing traffic and conversions
Page speed: Mobile & desktop (PageSpeed Insights)
Core Web Vitals: LCP, FID/INP, CLS
Conversion rate: Contact form submits, calls, bookings
Indexing issues: Crawl errors in Google Search Console

Tools to run now

Google PageSpeed Insights (mobile & desktop)
Google Search Console (indexing & coverage)
Screaming Frog or Sitebulb (crawl overview)
Hotjar or Microsoft Clarity (heatmaps & recordings)
Ahrefs / Semrush (keyword and competitor insight)

Quick win: Fix the top 3 slowest pages and a single broken form — these typically deliver the fastest uplift in leads.

Technical SEO & performance fixes that matter

Hosting & HTTPS

Fast, reliable hosting and an SSL certificate are non‑negotiable. Use a hosting provider with Australian data‑centres if most visitors are local — it reduces latency for nearby users.

Prefer HTTP/2 or HTTP/3 support for faster asset delivery.
Enable gzip/Brotli compression and server-level caching.
Use a CDN for large images or national footprint (Cloudflare, BunnyCDN).

Core Web Vitals

Aim for LCP ≤ 2.5s, INP/FID as low as possible, and CLS < 0.1. These affect rankings and user trust.

Defer non‑critical JavaScript and use lazy loading for off‑screen images.
Preload key fonts and critical hero images.
Reserve space for ads and dynamic content to avoid layout shifts.

Image optimisation

Images are often the largest payload. Optimise without losing quality.

Serve next‑gen formats (WebP/AVIF) with JPG/PNG fallbacks.
Right size images for responsive breakpoints (srcset).
Compress with tools like Squoosh, imgproxy or automated build pipelines.

Clean markup & sitemap

Good HTML structure helps crawlers and accessibility.

Use semantic headings (H1, H2, H3) — one H1 per page.
Generate and submit XML sitemap to Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools.
Ensure robots.txt allows crawling of important assets and pages.

Australia tip: If several of your customers are in a single city (eg. Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane), host your site on servers in Australia for slightly better local latency and potentially small SEO advantages for local queries.

Design for mobile first (UX rules)

Most Aussie customers search and call from their phones. Designing for small screens improves conversions and SEO signals.

Clear calls to action

Place a prominent call button (tel:) at the top of pages.
Use contrasting colours and large tap targets (min 44x44px).
Include one primary CTA per screen to reduce decision friction.

Simplify navigation

Keep menus to essential pages: Home, Services, Areas, About, Contact.
Use click-to-expand (accordion) for service details on mobile.
Include a sticky CTA or contact bar for on‑the‑go users.

Content scannability

Use short paragraphs, bullets and bolded key lines.
Put the most important information (services, phone, hours) above the fold.
Use icons to break up text and communicate services quickly.

Fast interactions

Avoid heavy animations on entry screens; use subtle microinteractions.
Use pre-filled phone numbers and forms where possible.
Test on low-data/slow 4G to ensure usability.

Quick test: Open your site on the cheapest Android phone available. If the menu is slow or the buttons are hard to tap, prioritise fixes there.

Content strategy: keywords, pages & templates that rank locally

Content is how Google understands relevance. For Australian businesses, combine service keywords with local modifiers and intent-based phrases.

Keyword & page strategy (practical)

Identify 3‑5 primary service keywords — e.g. "emergency electrician", "blocked drains plumber".
Use Ahrefs/Keywords Everywhere or Google Autocomplete for volume and intent.
Add geo modifiers — "Sydney", "Melbourne CBD", "Mornington Peninsula". These become your service-area pages.
Create a service page template with H1, 300–700+ words, FAQs, schema and a clear CTA. Duplicate for each service-area combination.
Write for questions — start pages with the customer intent ("How quickly can I get a plumber in Sydney?"), then answer concisely.
Include local proof — testimonials, ABN, local imagery, Google reviews embed.

Meta templates that convert

Title: [Service] in [Suburb] | [Your Business] — Call Now
Meta description: Fast same‑day [service] in [Suburb]. Licensed, insured, 5★ reviews. Call us 24/7 on [phone].

Local landing pages (must‑haves)

Primary service page (detailed)
Service + suburb landing pages (shorter, unique content)
About / team page with local signals
Contact page with embedded Google Map & hours

Local SEO checklist for Australian businesses

Immediate actions (first 7 days)

Claim and fully complete your Google Business Profile (hours, services, photos, booking URL).
Ensure NAP consistency (Name, Address, Phone) across your site and major directories (Yellow Pages, TrueLocal, local Chambers of Commerce).
Add LocalBusiness schema with opening hours and geo coordinates.
Encourage Google reviews — ask satisfied customers and reply to reviews professionally.
Create service-area pages for suburbs where you work (don’t make them thin — add unique content & testimonials).

Schema example (LocalBusiness)

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "LocalBusiness",
  "name": "Your Business Name",
  "telephone": "+61 2 9123 4567",
  "address": { "streetAddress": "123 Example St", "addressLocality": "Sydney", "addressRegion": "NSW", "postalCode": "2000", "addressCountry": "AU" },
  "geo": { "latitude": -33.8688, "longitude": 151.2093 },
  "openingHoursSpecification": [{
    "@type": "OpeningHoursSpecification",
    "dayOfWeek": ["Monday","Tuesday","Wednesday","Thursday","Friday"],
    "opens": "08:00",
    "closes": "17:00"
  }]
}

Add schema to the page source to improve visibility in local results and rich snippets.

Images, accessibility & inclusive UX

Accessible images

Always include descriptive alt text (mention the service and suburb where relevant): "Plumber unblocking drain in Parramatta".
Use captions for context and credit local job photos to build trust.
Provide compressed WebP + fallback JPG to balance quality and speed.

Accessibility basics

Use sufficient contrast (WCAG AA) for text over backgrounds.
Ensure keyboard navigation works and forms have labels.
Provide clear focus indicators and avoid auto‑playing media.

Local photo strategy: Use photos of your actual team, vehicle signage and job sites — Australians trust local, authentic imagery more than stock photos.

Track results and iterate

Improvements should be measurable. Use a test → measure → iterate loop.

Key KPIs to monitor

Organic sessions and impressions (Search Console & GA4)
Phone clicks and contact form conversions
Ranking improvements for target local keywords
Core Web Vitals scores (Lighthouse / PSI)
Bounce rate and pages per session on service pages

Experimentation & testing

Run A/B tests on CTA text and button colours (start with small changes).
Use heatmaps to see where people tap on mobile and adjust layout accordingly.
Re-run PageSpeed and Core Web Vitals after each major change.

Important: Aim for incremental wins — a 10–20% lift in conversion on your top page often delivers more revenue than chasing rankings alone.

Practical action checklist (90‑day plan)

Days 0–7: Audit & quick wins

Run PageSpeed Insights and fix top mobile issues.
Repair broken forms and contact links.
Claim and optimise Google Business Profile.

Weeks 2–6: UX & content

Create or improve service pages with local content and schema.
Add CTAs and test button prominence on mobile.
Optimise images and enable lazy loading.

Weeks 6–12: Measure & scale

Run A/B tests on CTAs and headings.
Begin a review acquisition plan and add review snippets.
Plan content calendar for suburb/service blog posts.

Need help implementing these changes?

Congero builds mobile-optimised, SEO-ready websites for Australian businesses in 24–48 hours. All‑inclusive plans include hosting, SSL, local SEO setup and unlimited updates for a flat monthly fee.

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Frequently asked questions

How quickly will I see SEO improvements?

Technical & UX fixes can lift conversions immediately. Ranking changes usually appear in 2–12 weeks depending on competition and crawl frequency.

Should I create pages for every suburb I service?

Yes, but make each page useful and unique (avoid thin duplicate content). Focus on the highest-value suburbs first.

Do reviews really affect local rankings?

Yes — quantity, quality and recent reviews influence local pack placement. Responding to reviews also improves trust and CTR.

Can Congero help with technical SEO and ongoing updates?

Absolutely. Congero builds responsive, SEO-optimised sites quickly and includes unlimited updates, local SEO setup, hosting and analytics in a single monthly plan.

Ready to optimise your website for more local leads?

Follow the checklist above or let Congero deliver a high-converting, mobile-first website with local SEO included — live in 24–48 hours.

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