Building a website for your small business? It can feel overwhelming, but getting the essentials right is key to making sure your site works hard for you. Whether you’re tackling it yourself or working with a web designer, this guide covers the 27 must-have components for your website. Save this blog and use it as a handy reference to make sure you’ve covered everything, and you’ll feel confident that your site will do its job and make the right impression.
To make it easy to follow, the blog has been split into five key sections:
Table of Contents
6 Essential Pages Every Small Business Website Should Include:
1. Homepage
Your homepage is often the first impression potential clients will have of your business, so it’s crucial to get it right. It should act as a welcoming introduction and offer a snapshot of what your business does. Aim for a clean, visually appealing design with clear navigation that makes it easy for visitors to find what they're looking for.
Include a strong headline that communicates your business’s unique value and helps visitors understand what you offer right away. This is also where you can place your branding, key services, and any calls to action (CTAs) that will guide visitors to the next step – whether that’s learning more about your services, viewing your portfolio, or contacting you.
Remember, your homepage should make it clear who you are, what you do, and how you can help your clients solve their problems. Keep it concise and visually engaging to hold their attention.
2. About Us Page
Your "About Us" page is a chance to introduce your business in a way that goes beyond what you offer. It's a place where you can show clients who you are, what sets you apart, and why they should choose you over the competition. This page is your opportunity to build a personal connection by sharing your story and values.
Start with a brief overview of your journey – how your business came to life and what inspired you to start. Clients often connect with personal stories, so be authentic and let your passion shine through. Include details about what makes your approach unique, whether that’s your experience, your service, or the way you work.
If you have a team, introduce them as well. A short bio and a friendly photo can help clients feel more familiar with the people behind the business. This can also reassure them that they’re working with a knowledgeable and capable team. Don’t forget to mention any industry recognitions or accomplishments to reinforce your credibility.
This page isn’t just about telling your story; it’s about showing potential clients that you’re trustworthy and passionate about what you do.
3. Services Page
The Services page is where clients get a clear idea of what you offer and how it can benefit them. It’s important to break down each service in simple terms, focusing on the outcomes clients can expect. For example, if you’re a dentist, instead of just listing “dental care,” expand on this and explain how you help clients achieve healthier, brighter smiles with services like routine check-ups, teeth whitening, and preventative treatments.
If you offer different packages or tiers, include them here, along with any relevant details, such as pricing or specific deliverables. Testimonials or case studies can also help demonstrate your expertise and results.
Finally, always include a clear call to action (CTA), like a button to book an appointment or schedule a consultation. The goal is to ensure potential clients understand your services and are encouraged to reach out.
4. Gallery Page
A Gallery page is an excellent way to showcase your work, products, or completed projects. For service-based businesses, it’s a chance to visually demonstrate your expertise and give potential clients a sense of what they can expect. Whether it’s before-and-after photos of your work, case studies, or images of your team in action, this page lets you build trust through visuals.
For example, a landscaping company might display pictures of their recent garden transformations, highlighting their skill in design and attention to detail. Each image can include a brief description of the work completed to provide context and show how it benefits clients.
Don’t forget to make your Gallery easy to navigate. Group similar projects together, and ensure each image loads quickly to improve user experience. A well-organised Gallery page can inspire confidence and encourage prospective clients to get in touch.
5. Contact Page
Your Contact page serves as the bridge between your business and potential clients. It’s essential that visitors can easily find the information they need to reach out to you. This page should include clear details like your phone number, email address, and a contact form. Make sure the form is simple and straightforward, asking only for the essential details, like name, phone, email, and message.
For example, a local plumber could include an enquiry form for emergency services, along with their contact information and a map to show their service area. If your business relies on appointments, offer an easy way to book through the page as well.
Including your business hours and a friendly call to action like "Get in touch for a free quote" can also encourage visitors to reach out without hesitation.
6. Blog Page
A Blog page is a great way to share valuable insights and establish your business as an expert in your field. It’s not just about posting articles; it’s about creating content that educates, informs, and engages your clients. Regular blog posts help improve SEO, attract new visitors, and keep your existing clients engaged.
For example, an accountant might write blog posts about tax tips, financial planning, and common mistakes businesses make with their taxes. A coach could post articles on personal development, goal-setting strategies, and success stories. These blog posts not only help your audience but also show that you’re an authority in your field.
Your Blog page should be well-organised, with categories and an intuitive layout so visitors can easily browse and find content relevant to their needs. Don’t forget to include a clear call to action within each post, such as inviting readers to get in touch for more information or sign up for updates, helping to nurture ongoing relationships with potential clients.
6 Key Features Every Small Business Website Should Include:
1. Professional Branding
Your website is often the first impression clients will have of your business, and strong, professional branding is essential for setting the right tone. From your logo to colour scheme, typography, and imagery, everything on your site should reflect the values and personality of your business.
Well-thought-out branding helps build trust, ensures consistency across your marketing materials, and makes your business look credible and professional. A website that feels polished and aligned with your brand’s identity will encourage clients to take you seriously and feel more confident in choosing you over competitors.
Make sure your branding is clear, cohesive, and tailored to your target audience. Whether you’re a boutique consultancy or a growing service provider, your website’s design should speak to the clients you want to attract, leaving a lasting, positive impression.
2. High Quality Images & Videos
Images and videos can make or break the impression of your business online. They’re one of the first things visitors notice, so using high-quality visuals is key to showing your professionalism. Whether you’re showcasing your work, introducing your team, or sharing a video explaining your services, good-quality images help build trust and credibility. Poor-quality visuals, on the other hand, can leave potential clients questioning your expertise.
For service-based businesses, think about adding before-and-after shots, video testimonials, or even a quick tour of your business. These types of visuals help bring your services to life and make it easier for clients to connect with you.
3. Mobile Responsiveness
In today’s world, a large portion of website traffic comes from mobile devices. If your site isn’t mobile-friendly, you risk losing potential clients who are browsing on their phones or tablets. A responsive design ensures that your website adjusts to any screen size, providing a smooth and enjoyable browsing experience.
For service-based businesses, this is especially important. Clients may be looking for quick information or trying to contact you while on the go. A mobile-optimised site makes it easier for them to find your services, book an appointment, or get in touch, all from their mobile device.
Without mobile responsiveness, you risk frustrating users, which could lead them to leave your site and find a competitor instead. Keep things simple and streamlined, with easy-to-navigate menus and readable text to enhance the user experience.
4. Clear Navigation
Clear navigation is essential for making sure clients can quickly find what they’re looking for on your website. If visitors have to search too long or struggle to figure out where to go next, they’ll likely leave your site frustrated.
Keep your menu simple and intuitive, with well-labelled sections that make sense for your business. For example, clear links to your homepage, services, gallery, and contact page will help guide users smoothly through your site. A sticky menu, which stays visible as users scroll, can also help ensure that important options are always accessible.
Good navigation isn’t just about making your site easy to use; it’s also about improving your site’s SEO. Search engines love well-structured sites, so a logical and easy-to-follow navigation can boost your chances of ranking higher in search results.
5. Fast Loading Speeds
A fast website is essential for keeping clients engaged and improving your chances of conversion. If your site takes too long to load, visitors will likely leave before even seeing what you offer.
One way to improve load times is by optimising the size of your images. Large image files can significantly slow down your website. By resizing and compressing images without sacrificing quality, you can reduce load times and create a smoother user experience.
Another way to speed up your site is by limiting the use of third-party plugins or widgets. While these can add useful features, they often introduce additional code that can slow down your site. Minimising unnecessary add-ons helps keep things running smoothly.
Faster load speeds not only enhance user experience but also contribute to better SEO, as search engines favour websites that perform well.
6. Clear Call-to-Action Buttons
Call-to-action (CTA) buttons are essential for guiding visitors through your website and encouraging them to take action, whether it’s making an enquiry, booking a service, or contacting you. Without clear and compelling CTAs, visitors may leave your site without interacting.
Your CTAs should be easy to find and stand out visually. Use contrasting colours to make them pop, and ensure the wording is direct and action-oriented, such as “Get a Free Quote” or “Book Your Consultation”.
Place your buttons strategically, such as at the end of service descriptions, in the header, or after a testimonial. This ensures your clients know exactly what to do next at key moments during their visit.
A well-placed, clear CTA makes it easier for clients to engage with you, boosting conversions and making your website a more effective tool for your business.
5 Trust-Building Components Every Small Business Website Should Include:
1. Testimonials & Reviews
Client testimonials and reviews are powerful tools for building trust and credibility on your website. When potential clients see positive feedback from those who have already used your services, it reassures them that your business delivers quality work and excellent customer service.
Feature a mix of written testimonials and reviews from platforms like Google or Trustpilot to show your reputation across various channels. Highlight specific aspects of your service that clients have praised, such as your reliability, expertise, or communication.
Ensure that your testimonials are genuine and, if possible, include the client's name, business, or photo for added authenticity. This personal touch helps humanise your business, making it easier for visitors to relate and trust you.
2. Case Studies
Case studies provide an in-depth look at how your services have successfully solved specific problems for clients. Unlike testimonials, which offer brief praise, case studies allow you to tell a complete story—highlighting the challenges your client faced, the solutions you provided, and the results achieved.
Case studies are particularly powerful for service-based businesses, as they allow you to showcase your expertise in real-world scenarios. By including detailed examples of your work, you demonstrate your ability to meet client needs, build solutions tailored to their unique challenges, and deliver measurable outcomes.
If relevant, be sure to include key metrics, such as increased sales, improved efficiency, or enhanced client satisfaction, to make the case study more compelling. This level of transparency builds trust, showing that you can deliver on your promises and bring tangible value to your clients.
3. Social Media Integration
Integrating social media into your website creates a direct link between your business and the broader online community, fostering trust and engagement. Displaying social media icons or feeds helps demonstrate that your business is active and approachable, which can reassure potential clients.
By linking to platforms like Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn, you show clients where they can find more of your work, customer interactions, and updates. This can strengthen your brand's credibility and offer clients the chance to engage with your business in a more informal, accessible way.
To maximise impact, make sure the social media buttons are visible and easy to navigate, typically placed in the website’s header, footer, or near key content. This encourages visitors to follow your profiles, leading to greater brand visibility and more opportunities to connect with your audience.
4. FAQ Page
An FAQ page is a valuable resource for building trust with potential clients. By addressing common questions and concerns upfront, you can clarify your services, reduce misunderstandings, and help clients feel more confident about working with you.
Think of the FAQ page as a helpful guide to both new visitors and existing clients. It can cover a range of topics, from the process of working with you and pricing details to turnaround times or the technical aspects of your services. This transparency not only reduces the need for clients to reach out for basic information but also showcases your expertise and willingness to provide clear communication.
A well-structured FAQ page can also save you time by handling repetitive inquiries, giving you more bandwidth to focus on other aspects of your business while offering clients a seamless, informative experience.
5. Recognisable Logos
Including logos of your suppliers, partners, or past clients on your website can greatly enhance your credibility and build trust with potential clients. When visitors see the logos of reputable brands or businesses they recognise, it instantly elevates your perceived authority and reputation. This gives the impression that your business is trusted by others in your industry or field, which can significantly boost confidence in your services.
For example, if you've worked with well-known brands or suppliers, showcasing their logos on your homepage or relevant pages signals to visitors that you're an established, reliable business. It also provides social proof that you're capable of delivering results and have built strong relationships with other respected businesses. Just make sure you have permission to display these logos and that they are presented professionally to maintain your website’s polished appearance.
6 SEO & Visibility Essentials Every Small Business Website Should Include:
1. Localised Keywords
For service-based businesses, targeting local clients is often a priority. One of the best ways to improve your website's visibility is by using localised keywords. These are keywords that not only describe your services but also include geographic terms, like your town, city, or region. For example, instead of just "Emergency Plumber," you could use "Emergency Plumber in St Albans" or "Emergency Plumbing Services in Doncaster.”
Incorporating these local terms helps search engines understand where your business is located and what areas you serve. It also increases the chances of your website appearing in local search results when potential clients search for services near them. Use localised keywords in your page titles, headers, meta descriptions, and throughout your content in a natural way. This approach not only improves your SEO but also ensures that you're attracting clients who are nearby and looking for your specific services.
2. Optimised Heading Tags
Heading tags (H1, H2, H3, etc.) play a crucial role in structuring your website content and improving its SEO. These tags help search engines understand the hierarchy and importance of the content on each page. For service-based businesses, using optimised heading tags can significantly enhance the clarity and readability of your website while boosting your visibility in search results.
Each page should have a clear and descriptive H1 tag that reflects the main topic, such as "Professional Plumbing Services in Manchester." Subheadings (H2, H3) can then break down the content into sections, like "Emergency Plumbing Repairs" or "Routine Maintenance Services." By incorporating relevant keywords into your headings, you improve the chances of ranking higher for those terms. Additionally, well-structured headings make it easier for potential clients to scan your content and find the information they need, enhancing their overall user experience.
3. Meta Descriptions & Title Tags
Meta descriptions and title tags are essential for SEO and play a significant role in attracting clicks from search engine results. The title tag is the clickable headline that appears on search engine results pages (SERPs), while the meta description is the brief summary beneath it. For service-based businesses, crafting compelling and keyword-rich meta descriptions and title tags can increase visibility and click-through rates.
A well-optimised title tag should include primary keywords relevant to the page's content, such as "Specialist Electrician Services in Birmingham." The meta description should provide a concise and engaging summary, like "Reliable and affordable electrician services in Birmingham, available for emergency and routine work." Including a call to action can also encourage users to click through to your site. These elements not only help search engines understand your page content but also entice potential clients to visit your website, increasing the chances of conversions.
4. Image Alt Text
Image alt text, or alternative text, is a crucial yet often overlooked aspect of SEO. It serves two primary purposes: improving accessibility for visually impaired users and providing search engines with more context about your site's content. By describing the content of images, alt text helps screen readers convey this information to users, ensuring a more inclusive browsing experience.
For service-based businesses, using descriptive and keyword-rich alt text can also boost SEO by making your images more likely to appear in search engine results. For example, instead of using a generic alt text like "image1," a landscaping company could use "Professional landscaping services creating a beautiful garden in Bristol." This approach not only enhances user experience but also helps your website rank higher for relevant local searches, making it easier for potential clients to find your services.
5. Internal Linking
Internal linking is a key SEO strategy that helps improve your website’s navigation and user experience while boosting your search engine rankings. By linking to other relevant pages within your site, you guide visitors to explore more content and help search engines understand the structure and hierarchy of your site.
For service-based businesses, internal linking can direct potential clients to important pages like your services, case studies, or contact page. For example, a cleaning company might link from a blog post about "Spring Cleaning Tips" to their "Deep Cleaning Services" page. This not only helps visitors easily find related information but also spreads link equity across your site, improving the SEO performance of multiple pages. Thoughtful internal linking keeps users engaged longer and signals to search engines that your content is valuable and interconnected.
6. Sitemap
A sitemap is an essential tool for improving your website's SEO and ensuring that search engines can efficiently crawl and index your pages. It acts as a roadmap, listing all the important sections and content on your site, helping search engines understand the structure and prioritize what to index.
For service-based businesses, having a well-organised sitemap can enhance visibility by making sure every service page, blog post, and resource is accounted for. For instance, a legal consultancy firm might ensure that pages for each type of service—like "Family Law," "Corporate Law," and "Personal Injury"—are easily discoverable through the sitemap. This ensures that search engines can index all relevant content, increasing the chances of appearing in search results when potential clients are looking for specific services. Additionally, sitemaps contribute to a better user experience by making it easier for visitors to navigate your website.
4 Core Fundamentals & Compliance Every Small Business Website Should Include:
1. Privacy Policy
A privacy policy is a critical component for any small business website, ensuring transparency about how user data is collected, used, and protected. With increasing concerns over data privacy and regulations like the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in the UK and the EU, having a clear and comprehensive privacy policy isn't just a best practice—it's often a legal requirement.
For service-based businesses, this policy builds trust by showing clients that their personal information, such as contact details or booking history, is handled responsibly. For example, a dental clinic’s privacy policy might outline how they collect patient information through online appointment forms, what they do with that data, and how they safeguard it. Including this policy not only helps you comply with legal standards but also reassures clients that their data is in safe hands. For something that might seem small to you could be a big deal for someone else and could contribute to them trusting you ahead of a competitor without a privacy policy on their website.
2. SSL Certificate
An SSL certificate is essential for securing your small business website and protecting client data. It encrypts the connection between your website and users, ensuring that sensitive information, such as contact details or payment information, is transmitted securely. Websites with SSL are marked with "https://" rather than just "http://," and this small but significant change boosts your site’s credibility.
For service-based businesses, an SSL certificate is particularly important as it builds trust with your clients. For instance, if you run a health consultancy website, clients will feel more confident submitting personal information for consultations if they see the "secure" icon next to your URL. Additionally, Google considers SSL a ranking factor, so having it on your site could help improve your visibility in search engine results, making it easier for potential clients to find your business.
3. Contact Information
Clear and accessible contact information is one of the most fundamental elements of any small business website. For service-based businesses, having your contact details prominently displayed helps potential clients reach out quickly, whether they’re inquiring about services, asking for a quote, or needing support.
Make sure your website includes multiple ways for visitors to contact you, such as an email address, phone number, and a contact form. If you have a physical location, including your address and a map can also be helpful. For example, a local electrician might list their phone number and a contact form to ensure easy communication for urgent requests, along with a Google map showing their service area. This not only makes it easier for clients to get in touch but also helps establish your business as approachable and responsive.
4. 404 Page (Error Page)
A well-designed 404 error page is essential for maintaining a positive user experience, even when something goes wrong. A 404 page appears when a visitor tries to access a page that doesn’t exist or has been moved. Instead of displaying a generic "Page Not Found" message, use this opportunity to guide users back to relevant content on your site.
For example, a local cleaning company might display a friendly message like, "Oops! The page you're looking for seems to be missing. But don't worry, you can quickly find more about our services below." Adding links to your homepage, services, or popular blog posts helps visitors stay engaged and reduces frustration. A 404 page that aligns with your branding and includes helpful links shows professionalism and keeps users from leaving your website.
Need Help With Your Small Business Website?
I hope you found this guide useful. If you’re looking for a bit of extra help with your website, whether you’re starting from scratch with brand new site, or planning a quick revamp, feel free to get in touch. I’m a freelance web designer working specifically with serviced-based businesses and would be happy to help.
You’re welcome to view my web design projects or read my client testimonials to see how I’ve helped other service-based businesses.