Made in Ireland: What the Law Requires Before You Write It
Made in Ireland is a claim of origin with a statutory test behind it. What Irish law actually requires before those words go on your product page.
·16 min read
Graeme Conkie founded SmartHost in 2020 and has spent years building hosting infrastructure for Irish businesses. He created Web60 after seeing the same problem repeatedly — Irish SMEs paying too much for hosting that underdelivers. He writes about WordPress infrastructure, server security, developer workflows, managed hosting strategy, and the real cost of hosting decisions for Irish business owners.
Areas of Expertise
Managed WordPress hosting infrastructureWordPress performance and Core Web VitalsIrish SME hosting strategyServer security and uptimeHosting platform architectureWordPress staging and deploymentServer-level security hardeningDeveloper tools - SSH, SFTP, WP-CLIDatabase management and phpMyAdmin
Background
- ✓Founder & Managing Director, SmartHost (est. 2020)
- ✓dot.IE accredited domain registrar
- ✓Built and operates Web60 hosting platform
- ✓Acquired AGENT Digital web services division (2022)
- ✓20+ years in Irish hosting infrastructure
Articles by Graeme Conkie
125 articles · Page 1 of 5
The NIS2 Supplier Questionnaire: A Law Ireland Has Not Passed Is Already on Your Desk
Your customer must vet its suppliers under NIS2, even though Ireland has not passed the law yet. What the form really asks, and how to answer it credibly.
·14 min read
The Deposit Return Scheme Rule That Lands on Your Product Page
Selling drinks online in Ireland? The deposit must be charged, shown on its own line, and carried on four documents. What the 2024 regulations require.
·13 min read
Cart Abandonment on a Small Business Website: Where the Sale Actually Dies
An abandoned basket never sends you an email. Where the sale dies on a small shop's checkout, which causes you actually control, and how to test yours.
·14 min read
Your Tips and Gratuities Notice Belongs on Your Website, Not Just the Wall
Since December 2022 your tips and gratuities notice has had to appear on your website, not only beside the till. Most businesses display half the rule.
·12 min read
EU Packaging Rules: The Irish Exemption That Does Not Travel With Your Parcel
The EU packaging rules applied from 12 August 2026. Ireland's 10 tonne exemption never covered exports. What that means for every parcel you post abroad.
·14 min read
Your Countdown Timer Is Only Legal If the Deadline Is Real
A countdown timer that resets for every visitor is a prohibited practice under Irish consumer law. Where the line sits, and how to audit your own site.
·12 min read
The VAT Threshold in Ireland: What Crossing It Does to Every Price on Your Website
Cross the VAT threshold in Ireland and every price on your website is wrong. What Revenue requires, what the law says you must show, and how to fix it.
·16 min read
Google Removed FAQ Rich Results. Your FAQ Page Still Has a Job.
Google switched off FAQ rich results on 7 May 2026. Your site was not penalised, and your FAQ page still has a job. What changed and what to leave alone.
·10 min read
Tracking AI Referral Traffic: The Customers Your Analytics Cannot See
Google and GA4 both shipped AI reporting in 2026, yet neither answers the real question. How to track AI referral traffic to your business website.
·13 min read
Your Printed QR Code Is Not Yours. Point It at Your Own Domain.
Free QR generators own the redirect behind your printed code. Why Irish businesses should point every QR code at a short path on their own domain.
·14 min read
AI Has the Wrong Information About Your Business. There Is No Edit Button.
ChatGPT and Gemini repeat stale details about your business and there is no edit button. How to find the wrong answers and fix the sources they read.
·14 min read
Pay Transparency Is Not Just a Big-Company Problem. It Starts With Your Job Advert.
Ireland missed the pay transparency deadline. The job advert rules carry no headcount threshold, and they land on the careers page you already publish.
·13 min read
What a Non-Refundable Deposit Is Actually Worth When Somebody Cancels
Irish law decides what a non-refundable deposit is worth when a customer cancels. What the Consumer Rights Act allows, and the wording that holds up.
·15 min read
The Right to Repair Rules Are a Win for Small Repair Businesses. Most of Them Cannot Be Found Online.
The EU right to repair rules started on 31 July 2026. For a repair business in Ireland the opportunity is not compliance, it is being findable online.
·12 min read
Your DoneDeal Ad Is Not a Shopfront: The Real Cost of Selling Through Classified Listings
Selling through DoneDeal or Facebook Marketplace ads? You rent visibility, compete on price alone, and can be suspended overnight. The owned alternative.
·14 min read
The EU Dispute Resolution Link in Your Terms Has Been Dead Since Last July
The EU switched off its online dispute resolution platform in July 2025. If your website terms still link to it, find out what to remove and what still applies.
·11 min read
Putting Customer Photos on Your Website: Consent, Children, and the Data Hidden in the File
A photograph of a customer, a child or a staff member is personal data. What Irish businesses need before publishing photos of people on a website.
·18 min read
Sell Event Tickets From Your Own Website, Not From a Platform That Just Changed Owner
Marketplace ticketing costs more than the percentage. What it takes to sell event tickets from your own website in Ireland, and when a marketplace still wins.
·14 min read
Free Product Listings on Google: The Shopping Slot Most Irish Shops Never Claimed
Your products can appear in Google's free listings at no cost. How Irish shops get listed, the CSS step most miss, and what changes on 18 August.
·11 min read
The Law on Website Reviews Reaches Your Own Testimonials Page
Fake testimonials, unverified five stars and cherry-picked feedback are banned under Irish law. What your website reviews page must show, and prove.
·11 min read
Delivery App Commission Costs a Third of Every Takeaway Order
Delivery apps take 25% to 35% of every takeaway order. What that costs an Irish food business, and what taking orders direct on your own site costs.
·13 min read
Click and Collect Is the Cheapest Way for an Irish Shop to Sell Online
Click and collect lets a shop sell online with no courier, no packaging and no return postage. What it costs, where it breaks, and how to set it up.
·14 min read
One Business, Two Websites: The Split That Halves Your Google Presence
Adding a second website for a new service or brand splits your rankings, your budget and your attention. When two sites genuinely work, and when one wins.
·14 min read
What Actually Happens When You Password Protect a Page on Your Website
An unlinked page is not a private one. How to password protect a page on your website, what WordPress does natively, and where hiding quietly fails.
·15 min read
The Fake Domain Renewal Invoice, and Three Other Website Bills You Do Not Owe
An invoice for your domain, an email about your SSL, a call about your Google listing. How to tell a real website bill from a fake one before you pay it.
·15 min read
One Page for Every Town You Serve Is Not a Local SEO Strategy
Building a service area page for every town you cover runs straight into Google's doorway rules. What actually earns local enquiries, and what to build instead.
·12 min read
Somebody Owns the Copyright to Every Photo on Your Website. It Might Not Be You.
Website photo copyright catches Irish business owners out every year. Irish law, licensing traps, AI images, and how to check what is on your site.
·14 min read
The AI Generated Website That Nobody Could Edit Six Weeks Later
An AI can generate a website in an afternoon. Editing it afterwards is a different job entirely. What to ask before you let one write yours.
·13 min read
Search Console Can Now Track Your Social Posts. It Still Cannot Hand You the Audience.
Google Search Console now shows how your Instagram, TikTok and X posts perform in Search. Useful, yes, but it still cannot hand you the audience.
·6 min read