What is a small business website?
A small business website exists to make a company known and to prompt people to get in touch. It doesn't sell directly online: it explains what you do, for whom, where and on what terms, then steers visitors toward a call, a form or a booking. For a contractor, a consulting firm, a professional practice or a service business, it's often the first impression a prospect gets, before any conversation.
- 1What you doYour trade and who it's for, understood in secondsMessage
- 2Where and howService area, terms, contact details that are easy to findEssentials
- 3Getting in touchA call, a form or a bookingGoal
Its success comes down to a few things, but they have to be done with care: pages that answer your customers' questions, contact details that are easy to find, a flawless display on mobile and a presence on Google for the searches that matter. The small business website is one of the three offers in our website design services, alongside online stores and redesigns.
What our offer includes
Each project is priced individually, and what's included depends on the package you choose. The list below describes a complete business website, copywriting included; the essential package, built from copy you provide, keeps the site plan, the form, the legal pages, security, visit tracking and onboarding.
- A scoping interview and research into the phrases your customers search for
- The site plan, with the role and keyword of each page
- Mockups for desktop and mobile, to approve before development
- Writing or rewriting the copy, optimized for SEO
- A contact form protected against bots
- The legal pages required in your country, including the privacy policy
- The security certificate (HTTPS) and backup setup
- Tracking of visits and contact requests
- Submitting the site to Google and back-office training for a WordPress site
Optional extras include a booking module, a blog, a version in another language, professional photos or a maintenance plan. Each option is priced separately in the quote, so you can make an informed decision.
What a well-built business website looks like
As an example, here is the structure we most often recommend for a service business. It is then adjusted to your trade and the number of services you offer.
| Page | Role | Expected content |
|---|---|---|
| Home | Say in seconds what you do and for whom | A clear promise, main services, service area, contact button |
| One page per service | Rank for each specific search | Description, how it works, FAQs, call to action |
| About | Build trust | Background, team, values, real certifications |
| Our work | Show what you've accomplished | Project photos or examples of past work, with clients' permission |
| Contact | Make it easy to get in touch | Short form, phone, address, hours, directions |
Giving each service its own page is the choice that pays off most in visibility. A single page listing everything can't rank for each service, while a dedicated page answers exactly the question being asked.
The rule comes with one condition: each page must have something to say. Two services described with the same sentences, or city pages that only swap the town name, compete with each other and end up merged or ignored by Google. When two services are too similar, we combine them on one page and work on the difference elsewhere.
The steps, from first interview to launch
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01
Interview and questionnaire
Your services, your customers, your service area and the websites you like. From these we draw up the project brief and timeline.
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02
Site plan and copy
The site structure is approved, then the copy is written or adapted from your documents.
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03
Mockups
You receive screens for the homepage and one service page, on desktop and mobile, and request any adjustments you want.
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04
Development and testing
The site is built on a temporary address, tested on several devices and checked for speed with PageSpeed Insights.
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05
Launch and training
The site switches over to your domain name, it's submitted in Google Search Console, and a session teaches you how to edit your pages.
Speed depends above all on the copy: a site whose content is ready moves much faster than one where everything still has to be written. Each step gets a date in the project brief.
Getting found by customers in your area
Most businesses that need a small business website work in a specific area: a city, a region, a few neighborhoods. Their customers type a trade followed by a location, or simply search "near me" on their phone. The site therefore needs to clearly name the area served, on the homepage as well as on service pages, and display identical contact details everywhere.
With the complete package, we also connect the site to your Google Business Profile, which feeds Google Maps results, and add structured data describing your business: name, address, hours, type of business. To go further, with review management and city pages, our local SEO services take over.
How much does a small business website cost?
The price of a small business website is set by quote, because it depends on choices only you can make. We break down each item so you can adjust the scope to your budget.
Our simplest package starts at $900, excluding tax: four pages: a home page, an about page, a contact page and the legal notice, a design adapted to your brand and your own copy added as is. To price your project item by item, use the website cost calculator.
- The number of pages, and especially the number of service pages to write.
- The copy: provided by you, rewritten or fully written.
- The technology: WordPress, to keep control of your content, or fully custom code for a bespoke site.
- The design: a theme adapted to your colors or an original visual design.
- Features: booking, online quotes, gallery, blog.
- Languages: each additional version needs its own copy and SEO.
- Existing content: migrating old content, keeping the URLs Google already knows.
An honest quote also shows what comes back every year: the domain name, hosting or the CMS subscription, any licenses and maintenance if you hand it to a professional. Be wary of very cheap offers that turn into an endless subscription, or where you don't own the site: cost should be judged over several years, not on the first payment.
Website builder or agency: an honest comparison
Website builders like Wix or Squarespace let you publish a decent site on your own, starting from a template. For a business that's just starting out, with little online competition and time to spare, they may be enough.
| Criteria | Website builder | Agency-built website |
|---|---|---|
| Time required | Yours, for the structure, copy and settings | A few interviews and approvals |
| Structure and copy | Up to you to plan | Designed around your customers and their searches |
| SEO | Basic settings, to complete on your own | Built into every page from the design stage |
| Future changes | Limited by the platform | Planned into the site architecture |
| Cost | Monthly or annual subscription | Build priced by quote, then hosting fees |
Hiring a professional pays off as soon as your competitors rank well on Google, your services need explaining or your time is worth more than the cost of building the site. We build our business websites in two ways: in fully custom code when the project calls for something bespoke, or on WordPress when you want to manage your own copy, photos and pages.
After launch
A business website evolves: your hours change, you add a service, you publish a new project. Training makes you self-sufficient for these everyday edits, and a written guide remains available to your team.
For everything else, the optional maintenance plan keeps the CMS and its plugins up to date, backs up the site and keeps an eye on security. We also review indexing and the first inquiries received a few weeks after launch. And the day the site no longer fits your business, a redesign will build on what already works, without erasing the visibility you've earned.
Your questions: Small business website
Can’t find your question? Ask us
What budget should I plan for a small business website?
Plan on at least $900, excluding tax, for a four-page site where you provide the copy. Beyond that, the quote depends on the number of pages, how much copywriting we take on, the design and features such as online booking. It separates the build from annual costs: domain name, hosting and any maintenance.
How long does it take to build a small business website?
Usually a few weeks. The timeline depends mainly on the state of the copy and how quickly you approve each step; it's set in the project brief, with a date for each stage.
Will I be able to change the copy and photos on my own?
With WordPress, yes: back-office training is included, and a guide explains how to change text, a photo or your hours, add a page or publish an update. A site built in custom code is usually edited through us: that's the trade-off of a bespoke build.
Will my business website show up on Google?
It's designed to: each page targets a specific search, the tags are written, the site is submitted to Google and connected to your Business Profile. No one can guarantee a ranking, though; in a highly competitive industry, ongoing SEO work will be needed.
Who provides the copy and photos?
You can send us your copy and photos, or have us write the content based on an interview. For images, we use your own photos, licensed stock images or, as an option, a photographer.
Can I keep my domain name and my current site?
You keep your domain name. If you already have a site, we keep what works and redirect old URLs to the new pages, to preserve the visibility you've earned on Google.
Is WordPress a good fit for a small business website?
Yes, it's one of the most common choices: it's widely used, flexible and easy for another provider to take over.
What's the difference between a custom business website and a template-based one?
A custom site is built in fully custom code: design, features and speed aren't limited by a theme. A WordPress site starts from a proven foundation that we adapt to your brand, and lets you edit your content yourself. Either way, the structure, copy and SEO are tailored to your business.