We are delighted to share that Design for Online® has been shortlisted at the UK Search Awards 2026 in the Best Use of AI in Search category.
Our shortlisted entry, custom AI MCP Tools for Client SEO, recognises the bespoke Model Context Protocol (MCP) technology we have built in-house to connect live search intelligence, technical auditing, and website execution across the client sites we manage.
Coming in the same year that we celebrated 10 years of Design for Online® and opened our new office and AI and digital studio space at Stowmarket Innovation Gateway, being named a finalist alongside some of the largest agencies and brands in the UK is a brilliant milestone for our team in Suffolk.
The winners will be announced at the UK Search Awards ceremony at Troxy in London on Wednesday, 25 November 2026.
Moving past the noise: why we built custom MCP tools for SEO
There is still a huge amount of noise around AI in digital marketing. Over the past couple of years, much of the industry conversation has focused on using off-the-shelf language models to mass-produce blog articles or generate generic website copy.
In our experience, simply adding AI for the sake of it rarely delivers lasting search growth.
Where AI genuinely makes a difference for an SEO agency is in removing the disconnect between separate marketing systems. Search performance does not live in a single dashboard. To make good decisions for a client, an SEO strategist has to look at live search query data, technical site health, competitor movements, keyword trends, local visibility, authority signals, and paid search performance, then translate all of that into accurate changes on the website itself.
Historically, that meant hours spent exporting spreadsheets, switching between platforms, and manually cross-referencing data before a single improvement was made on the page.
That is why we built our own connected ecosystem around Model Context Protocol (MCP).
How our connected MCP architecture works
Model Context Protocol (MCP) is a standard that enables AI systems to securely communicate with live software, databases, and APIs in real time, rather than relying on static prompts or isolated files.
Rather than treating each marketing tool as a separate island, our custom MCP infrastructure brings the entire search workflow into a single, connected environment. The real advantage of this approach is how each part of the system informs and strengthens the others:
- Unified search and market intelligence: Live query performance and indexing data are cross-referenced directly against UK keyword demand, search intent, ranking movements, and competitor visibility. When a page starts gaining impressions for a new commercial topic, we can immediately see the wider market opportunity alongside it.
- Technical health and authority signals: Site structure, crawl diagnostics, link profiles, and local search presence are analysed in context rather than in isolation, allowing our team to prioritise the exact fixes that will move the needle fastest.
- Paid and organic alignment: Insights from paid search campaigns and conversion data feed directly into organic strategy, ensuring that high-performing commercial terms are supported across both channels.
- Direct, controlled execution on the website: Insights are only valuable once they are implemented properly. By linking our search intelligence directly to our WordPress management tools, we can move from spotting an opportunity to staging the solution in minutes.
Because every tool in our MCP environment shares context with the rest of the stack, our strategists spend far less time gathering data and far more time making high-impact decisions for our clients.
Forerunner® WordPress AI Assistant & Multi-Site Manager
A standout part of this shortlisted technology is the Forerunner® WordPress AI Assistant & Multi-Site Manager, which forms a key part of our commercial Forerunner® AI Tools Suite.
Every tool in the Forerunner® range started the same way: we built the software we needed for our own agency work, tested it daily across our client portfolio, and then made it available for other businesses, e-commerce teams, and agencies to buy and run themselves. Today, our free and paid WordPress plugins are in operation on over 2,000 websites worldwide.
Built on MCP and an external CLI architecture, the Forerunner® WordPress AI Assistant & Multi-Site Manager lets you manage a single site or an entire WordPress network through natural language with zero slowdown on client websites:
- Multi-site management at scale: Execute updates across unlimited client sites simultaneously in minutes rather than logging into dozens of separate dashboards.
- Tool-aware discovery: The system automatically understands the context of each individual site, detecting SEO fields, metadata, categories, WooCommerce products, and custom Advanced Custom Fields (ACF) setups so every update fits the site’s exact structure.
- Staging, backups, and human control: Combined with our AI SEO & Content Automation tools, page updates, meta refreshes, alt text, and schema improvements are backed by live search data, staged with automatic backups, and queued for human approval before publishing.
| Area of Client SEO | Traditional Agency Workflow | Our Connected MCP + Forerunner® Workflow |
|---|---|---|
| Opportunity Discovery | Manual exports across separate analytics and keyword tools | Live cross-referencing of search queries, market demand, and competitor gaps in one view |
| Technical & Content Audits | Periodic manual checks and static spreadsheets | Continuous diagnostics across indexing, cannibalisation, and on-page structure |
| Website Implementation | Slow manual edits across individual WordPress dashboards | Natural-language staging and multi-site execution via Forerunner® WordPress AI Assistant |
| AI Search Visibility (AEO & GEO) | Bolted on as an afterthought | Built-in schema, entity, and citation structuring for ChatGPT, Gemini, and AI Overviews |
This connected approach also powers our AI Search Optimisation services, helping businesses earn visibility not only in traditional Google results, but also within Google AI Overviews, ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Gemini.
From our Suffolk AI & Digital Studio to the national stage
When we opened our new AI and digital studio space at Stowmarket Innovation Gateway (Gateway 14) alongside our Bury St Edmunds office, our goal was to have the room to build, test, and refine practical technology that solves real business problems.
Being shortlisted at the UK Search Awards 2026, widely regarded as the most prestigious search marketing awards in the country, is a fantastic validation of that approach.
In the Best Use of AI in Search category, our entry sits alongside campaigns for major national and international brands including Wella Professionals, Scott Dunn, Away Resorts, and Mitchells & Butlers. Seeing proprietary software designed and built by our team here in Suffolk recognised on a national shortlist is something we are genuinely proud of.
While awards and industry recognition are never the sole objective, they offer reassurance to our clients and software customers that the tools we build are delivering measurable value at the highest level.
Work with an AI SEO agency that builds its own tools
Whether you want an experienced agency to manage your search growth or you want to equip your own team with our software, you can benefit from the exact technology recognised in this year’s shortlist:
- Managed SEO & AI Search Packages: Our SEO packages start from £185 per month + VAT and combine traditional SEO, AEO, GEO, and our custom MCP and Forerunner® tooling.
- Buy Our Forerunner® Tools: You can explore and purchase our plugins, including the lifetime licence for the Forerunner® WordPress AI Assistant & Multi-Site Manager, directly through our Forerunner® AI Tools Suite page.
If you would like to discuss how our SEO services or AI business automation tools could help your business grow, get in touch with our team.
Frequently Asked Questions
What award has Design for Online® been shortlisted for at the UK Search Awards 2026?
Design for Online® has been shortlisted for Best Use of AI in Search at the UK Search Awards 2026 for our entry, custom AI MCP Tools for Client SEO. The winners will be announced in London on 25 November 2026.
What are MCP tools in SEO?
MCP stands for Model Context Protocol, a standard that connects AI systems directly to live software, databases, and APIs. In SEO, custom MCP tools allow an agency to bridge search performance data, keyword intelligence, technical diagnostics, and website management systems so insights from one area immediately inform actions across the others.
Can other businesses and agencies buy the tools Design for Online® builds?
Yes. While our custom MCP stack powers our managed agency services, our core WordPress and SEO tools, including the Forerunner® WordPress AI Assistant & Multi-Site Manager, are available to buy as part of our Forerunner® AI Tools Suite.
Does using AI in SEO mean content is published automatically without human checks?
Not at Design for Online®. We use our custom MCP architecture and SEO automation to handle heavy data cross-referencing, technical diagnostics, and staged preparation, while our human specialists make the strategic decisions and approve every change before it goes live.
About Design for Online®: We are an award-winning, full-service digital marketing agency based in Bury St Edmunds and Stowmarket, Suffolk. Our services include web design, SEO, AI search optimisation (AEO & GEO), PPC, AI business automation, app development, photography and videography, working with businesses across the UK to help them grow online. For enquiries: hello@designforonline.com
