This guide covers the ten things every small business website needs. We also explain how we approach each one in our own projects, because we think transparency about process builds better working relationships.
A note on shortcuts: It's easy to skip steps when building a website, particularly on tight budgets. But getting the foundations right will serve your business for years. These ten points are the foundations.
1. Professional content writing
The pages that matter most are your home page, about page, services pages, and contact page. These four form the core of almost every small business website and are the pages visitors are most likely to read before making a decision.
Good content is specific. It speaks directly to the type of client you want to attract, addresses their questions and hesitations, and gives them a clear reason to act. It also needs to be written with Google in mind, naturally incorporating the terms your potential clients are actually searching for.
Our approach: Every website we build includes professionally written content for all key pages. We research your industry and location, write content that reflects your specific business, and structure it to perform well in search from day one.
2. Quality images
If you have good photos of your team, your work, or your premises, use them. Personal images outperform stock photography for trust building. Where stock images are needed, they should be selected to match your brand tone and avoid the cliched 'happy people in a meeting' style that reads as filler.
Images also need to be properly sized and compressed for web use. An unoptimised image can add several seconds to your page load time, which directly affects both user experience and search rankings.
Our approach: Every website we build includes sourced, high-quality images selected to match your business and brand. We also optimise all images for web performance before they go live.
3. Mobile-responsive design
Mobile responsiveness means more than the page fitting on a small screen. Text should be readable without zooming. Buttons should be large enough to tap accurately. Forms should work without frustration. Images should load at an appropriate size for the device.
Our approach: Every website we build is tested across multiple device sizes before it goes live. We design for mobile first, then scale up to desktop, not the other way around.
4. On-page SEO
For a small business, this usually means targeting location-specific keywords, structuring your service pages around the terms your clients actually search for, and writing page titles and meta descriptions that accurately reflect the content.
On-page SEO is not a substitute for an ongoing SEO strategy, but it gives your site the best possible starting point. A site with poor on-page SEO is fighting Google from day one.
Our approach: Every website we build includes on-page SEO for all key pages. We research the relevant keywords for your industry and location, write content that reflects them naturally, and configure all SEO fields in WordPress using Rank Math before launch.
5. Fast page load speed
The most common causes of slow small business websites are unoptimised images, too many plugins, and shared hosting that can't handle traffic spikes. All three are fixable.
Our approach: We optimise all images before upload, keep the plugin count lean, and host client websites on reliable infrastructure. We also run speed tests before and after launch.
6. A contact form and clear contact details
Every page should display your phone number and email prominently. Your contact form should be short: name, email, phone if relevant, and a brief message field. Long forms with many required fields reduce completions significantly. Ask only for what you need to respond.
Our approach: We include a working contact form on every website, with your contact details visible in the header or footer of every page. We also set up a thank-you page so visitors know their enquiry was received.
7. Google Maps integration
Our approach: We include Google Maps integration on the contact page of every local business website we build.
8. Social media links
Keep this to the platforms you actually use and update regularly. A Facebook page with no posts from 2019 does more harm than good. Links to active profiles only.
9. Privacy policy
A privacy policy doesn't need to be long or complex, but it does need to explain what data you collect, how you use it, and how visitors can contact you about their information.
Our approach: We include a basic privacy policy with every website we build. For businesses with more complex data requirements, we recommend reviewing this with a legal professional.
10. Analytics tracking
Google Analytics 4 (GA4) is the standard tool for small businesses and it's free. It takes about ten minutes to set up correctly. Every website should have it installed before launch.
Our approach: We install and configure GA4 on every website we build. We also set up Google Search Console, which shows you which search terms are bringing visitors to your site.
If your current website is underperforming and you're not sure why, this list is a good place to start your audit.
We build all of this in as standard. Every website we deliver includes all ten of these foundations. Fixed price, 15-day delivery.