Most photographers pick their website based on how it looks. That makes sense. But there is a technical factor happening under the hood that determines whether Google — and AI tools like ChatGPT and Perplexity — can actually read your site. It is called your rendering model. And it could be the reason your SEO is underperforming even when you are doing everything else right. Two types of websites exist: SSR (Server-Side Rendering) The server sends a complete, fully readable HTML page instantly. Google reads it. Bing reads it. ChatGPT reads it. Done. CSR (Client-Side Rendering) The server sends an empty shell. The browser has to run JavaScript to build the page. Many crawlers never execute that JavaScript. They see a blank page and leave. Here is how photographer platforms stack up: ✅ WordPress (self-hosted) — SSR — Gold Standard ✅ Webflow — SSG — Excellent 🟡 Squarespace — Hybrid — Mostly fine 🔴 Wix — CSR — Weak 🔴 Showit — CSR (canvas-based) — Very poor for SEO 🔴 Pixieset — CSR — Poor Why does this matter right now more than ever? Google has always had a JavaScript rendering pipeline — it can usually get there eventually. But it is slower and less reliable than reading plain HTML. The bigger issue is AI search. ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google AI Overviews are becoming a major way clients discover photographers. These tools rely on basic web crawlers that do not execute JavaScript. A Showit or Pixieset site is essentially invisible to them. A WordPress site is fully readable from the first byte. If you are on WordPress with Kadence or a similar solid theme — you are already on the best possible SEO foundation. Every page you publish, every location page, every service page — instantly readable by every search engine and every AI tool the moment it goes live. If you are on Showit or Pixieset and organic traffic is part of your strategy, this is worth knowing. You are working against a structural disadvantage that no amount of keyword research or backlinks can fully overcome.

I'll be running the next Q&A session on Tuesday 7th April at 8pm UK time. After running 4 free sessions previously, they will now be limited to course members only. See you on Tuesday. Simon

This community is designed to help you master SEO and grow your photography business. We've recently updated our structure to a freemium model, offering both free and premium membership options. Free Community Access: As a free member, you have access to our community chat and posts. This is a great place to connect with other photographers, share your progress, and learn from the collective experience of the group. Premium Membership: Ready to take your SEO to the next level? Our premium membership gives you full access to the comprehensive SEO Course, regular live Q&A sessions and help sections for your specific questions (please provide context and screenshots for the best support), and in-depth feedback on your website or Google Business Profile. To get the most out of this community, we recommend the following: - Free Members: Dive into the community discussions and start networking with your peers. - Premium Members: Begin with the SEO Course to build a strong foundation. This isn't just a group for sharing random 'tips' – it's a practical, step-by-step system for achieving real results. The more you put in, the more you'll get out. We believe that better questions lead to better answers, so don't hesitate to ask for help when you need it. We're excited to have you here!