Many designers do not provide search engine optimization (SEO) unless it’s specifically requested — and some charge substantially more for it. But without at least basic on-page SEO, the chances of your site being found in search results drop dramatically.

Basic SEO that should be included in any professional site build:

• Page titles and meta descriptions for every page — these are what appear in Google search results
• Image alt tags — which help search engines understand your images and improve accessibility
• Header tag structure (H1, H2, H3) — properly organized for both readability and search indexing
• Schema markup — structured data that helps Google understand your business type, location, reviews, and more
• Google Search Console submission — so Google knows your site exists and can index it promptly
• Core Web Vitals compliance — Google uses page speed and user experience metrics as ranking factors

Note: Ongoing SEO work — the kind that moves a site from page 3 to page 1 in search results — is a specialty unto itself and is typically not included in a standard site build. If that’s a priority for your business, ask about it separately. For e-commerce sites especially, ongoing SEO investment is not optional.