Town centres are getting a digital health check, with an innovative programme offering communities a detailed diagnosis of their online performance and practical steps to attract more visitors, customers and investment.
The initiative, called SMART Busnes and delivered by the social enterprise Antur Cymru, has produced a series of Digital Place Plans for all six towns the programme supports in Ceredigion. Designed as a “health check for the high street,” each plan provides a comprehensive picture of how a place is performing online and on the ground, helping to identify missed opportunities and recommend improvements that strengthen the town centre as a whole.
How the digital health check works
The Digital Place Plans assess a town’s online performance by combining multiple data sources and analytical methods. They draw on search data to understand how easily a place is found online, footfall analytics to measure visitor numbers and movement, and digital behaviour analysis to see how people interact with online information about the town. This is layered with local intelligence and expertise from people who know the area.
The plans examine marketing and promotion strategies, social media activity, visitor behaviour both digitally and physically, digital infrastructure, and the extent to which local organisations are coordinating their efforts. Rather than focusing on individual businesses, the approach takes a whole-place view — assessing the entire town ecosystem. The findings highlight where digital gaps exist, how visitors navigate the place, and how effectively organisations work together to promote it.
Bronwen Raine, Managing Director of Newcastle Emlyn-based Antur Cymru, said the plans are designed to turn strategy into practical action. “Digital Place Plans help bridge the gap between strategy and delivery,” she said. “By taking a whole-place view, they support towns to make better use of existing assets, work more collaboratively, and build the confidence needed to make informed, long-term decisions that benefit local communities.”
The results help communities prioritise improvements and create long-term benefits that extend beyond any single project or business. According to Kevin Harrington, Programme Manager for SMART Busnes, the plans provide a shared evidence base for future decision-making. “By creating a shared evidence base, they show what is already in place, where the gaps are, and how digital can support local priorities in a practical and realistic way,” he said.
Lampeter leads the way
The most recent Digital Place Plan was developed for the town of Lampeter by Digital Place Lead Clive Davies. It was presented to Caru Llambed, the town’s regeneration partnership, and has already begun inspiring new ideas. Elen Page of Caru Llambed said the session prompted immediate action on a potential community project. “Thank you Clive,” she said. “Have just drafted the Expression of Interest for our skatepark – so inspired. Data next thing!”
The plans form part of the wider SMART Busnes programme, which is funded by the UK Government through the Shared Prosperity Fund and complements a growing range of digital support available to businesses and communities across rural Wales.
AI’s growing impact on high street visibility
As artificial intelligence reshapes how people discover businesses, services and destinations online, the programme has also moved to help rural Welsh SMEs stay competitive. Last December, SMART Busnes became one of the first programmes in Wales to launch a practical toolkit focused on Answer Engine Optimisation (AEO). This approach helps small businesses improve how they appear in AI-generated responses on platforms such as ChatGPT and Google AI Search.
The toolkit introduces “Agentic AEO,” a framework that prioritises clarity, structure and user intent to boost visibility within automated answers. Traditional search engine optimisation is losing effectiveness for direct answers as AI increasingly becomes the way people find information. By helping businesses structure their content so AI tools can easily digest and cite it, the initiative aims to give rural SMEs the same digital strategies often associated with much larger organisations.
Antur Cymru is also involved in wider digital transformation efforts in rural Wales, including the LoRaWAN Stimulation Project, which helps businesses adopt smart, low-power digital technologies, and Ceredigion County Council’s work towards creating “Smart Towns” through the use of data sensors and Wi-Fi equipment. For towns such as Lampeter, organisers believe the combination of place-based digital plans and AI-focused tools will play an important role in ensuring local businesses remain visible, competitive and connected in a rapidly evolving digital landscape.
