Local pack and SEO (2026)
Why a local business can rank in the map pack while its website sits on page two, and the profile details that are easy to miss.
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- 4 min read
Blog
SEO articles, checklists and comparisons
Articles on how search works for small businesses, the full checklist behind each Illucrum audit, and comparisons to help you choose the right kind of SEO help. Written for people who run a business, not for SEO specialists.
Try the Bulk SEO Checker See the audits
Every article is written by Szymon Kokot
01 SEO articles
02 Checklists
03 Comparisons
SEO articles
How search works for your business
Plain-English articles on local search, online stores, software companies and where SEO fits in a growing business.
Shopify SEO: 7 Issues the Platform Creates
Seven SEO problems Shopify creates by default, from duplicate product URLs and tag pages to thin collections and missing structured data.
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- 9 min read
When Should a SaaS Startup Actually Start Doing SEO?
Why a six-month-old SaaS and a three-year-old SaaS need different SEO, and how to tell when a startup is ready to invest in it.
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- 8 min read
Checklists
Run the audit yourself
The full method behind each Illucrum audit, check by check, using free tools.
SEO Checklist (2026): 54 Checks You Can Run Yourself
The 54 checks behind a full website SEO audit, from indexing and titles to backlinks, trust signals and AI search, with the free tool for each.
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- 33 min read
Local SEO Checklist (2026): 54 Checks for Local Businesses
54 checks for local businesses: the Google Business Profile, reviews against the map pack, service pages, listings, rankings across the service area and AI answers.
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- 28 min read
GEO Checklist (2026): 51 Checks for AI Search Visibility
51 checks on whether AI assistants can reach, read, trust and cite a business, from crawler classes and passage structure to prompt testing and measurement.
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- 28 min read
Comparisons
Choose the right kind of help
What each audit covers, and how an audit compares with a retainer, a tool or doing it yourself.
SEO Audit vs DIY: Should You Audit Your Own Site?
You can audit your own site with free tools and a checklist. What it takes, how long it takes, and where a do-it-yourself audit tends to break down.
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- 6 min read
SEO Audit vs SEO Retainer: Which Should You Start With?
A one-off diagnosis against ongoing monthly work: cost, output and commitment compared, with survey data on retainer prices and when each makes sense.
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- 6 min read
Technical SEO Audit vs Full SEO Audit: Which One Do You Need?
A technical audit asks whether search engines can use your site; a full audit asks why it ranks where it does. How to tell which one you need.
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- 8 min read
Other articles
Before SEO
Notes from my years as a Java developer: language internals, tooling and data structures.
Java Hot Code Reloader
Why Java needs a restart for every code change, how hot reloading tools work around it, and the approach behind the Java Hot Code Reloader.
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- 6 min read
Class loading and linking in Java
How the JVM loads and links classes: class loaders, delegation, initiating and defining loaders, and the klass representation.
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- 7 min read
A “perfect” data structure
An experiment in designing a list with constant-time access, insertion and removal, and the trade-off that makes it possible.
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- 8 min read