A small business website should include clear contact details and location, a list of services with prices or price ranges, real photos and reviews, and an easy way to book or get in touch. It needs fast mobile pages on your own domain with HTTPS, a privacy policy, any legally required business details, local structured data and a sitemap.
- Put the answers to "what do you do, where, for how much and how do I reach you" on the first screen of the home page.
- Trust comes from specifics: your own photos, real reviews with names, licenses and the people behind the business.
- Showing prices or "from" prices saves you from inquiries that were never going to buy.
- Legal pages depend on where you trade: a privacy notice when you collect personal data, cookie consent for non-essential cookies in the UK and EU, and an imprint in Germany.
- The work continues after launch: a matching Google Business Profile, Search Console and a monthly check of hours and prices.
The 25 essentials at a glance
Print this table, or copy it into a spreadsheet, and tick each row against your current site or your plan for a new one. The sections below explain what "done" looks like for each item and the mistakes that most often slip through.
| # | Item | Why it matters | Done? |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | A headline that says what you do and where | Visitors decide in seconds whether they're in the right place | ☐ |
| 2 | Real photos of your work, team and premises | Proves you exist and shows the quality customers will get | ☐ |
| 3 | Genuine reviews with names and context | Strangers trust other customers more than your own claims | ☐ |
| 4 | An About section with people and credentials | Licenses, insurance and faces answer "can I trust them?" | ☐ |
| 5 | Tap-to-call phone and email on every page | One tap to call removes the biggest step | ☐ |
| 6 | A short inquiry form that confirms receipt | Captures people who won't call, at any hour | ☐ |
| 7 | Online booking or a quote request | Turns interest into a committed slot or a lead | ☐ |
| 8 | Address, map and directions, or your service area | Answers "can you reach me?" and "how do I find you?" | ☐ |
| 9 | Opening hours, including holidays | Wrong hours send customers away angry | ☐ |
| 10 | A clear section or page per main service | Matches how people search: service plus town | ☐ |
| 11 | Prices or price ranges | Filters out mismatched inquiries before they cost you time | ☐ |
| 12 | FAQs from your real phone calls | Handles objections while you work | ☐ |
| 13 | Proof of work: gallery, menu or case studies | Shows the result instead of describing it | ☐ |
| 14 | Your own domain | Looks established and survives a change of platform | ☐ |
| 15 | HTTPS everywhere | Browsers warn visitors about forms on insecure pages | ☐ |
| 16 | A layout that works on a phone | A cramped phone layout loses the visitor | ☐ |
| 17 | Fast pages: compressed photos, few widgets | Slow pages lose visitors before they see your offer | ☐ |
| 18 | Accessibility basics | More people can use the site, and it reads better for everyone | ☐ |
| 19 | A unique title and description per page | They become your listing in search results | ☐ |
| 20 | LocalBusiness structured data | Tells search engines your name, address, phone and hours | ☐ |
| 21 | A sitemap and robots.txt | Helps search engines find every page | ☐ |
| 22 | A privacy policy and cookie consent where needed | Required when you collect personal data in many countries | ☐ |
| 23 | Terms and legally required business details | Sets expectations and meets disclosure rules where they apply | ☐ |
| 24 | A Google Business Profile that matches the site | Puts you on Maps and in local results | ☐ |
| 25 | Search Console and an update routine | Shows how Google sees you; keeps facts current | ☐ |
How many pages does a small business website need? For most local businesses, five covers it: home, services with prices, about, contact or booking, and a privacy page. A single page works when you offer one service in one area. Add a page per service once you offer several, because each page can then target its own search, such as "boiler repair in Sacramento".
Identity and trust: name, real photos, reviews, about
- A headline that says what you do and where. "Emergency plumber in Sacramento, same-day service" beats "Welcome to our website". Use your business name exactly as it appears on your signage and Google profile, and name your service area in the first screen.
- Real photos of your work, team and premises. A photo of your storefront helps people recognize it from the street; a photo of your team tells them who will turn up. Shoot in daylight and in landscape for wide header images. Stock photos are fine as placeholders, but replace them before you advertise.
- Genuine reviews with names and context. Quote three to six real customers, with permission, plus the service they bought ("Maria, Midtown, kitchen remodel"), and link to your full Google reviews. Be careful with anything an AI builder drafts as a sample testimonial: delete it before launch. In the US, the FTC's rule on fake reviews and testimonials explicitly covers reviews from people who don't exist, including AI-generated ones.
- An About section with people and credentials. Who runs the business, since when, and why. List licenses, insurance, certifications, trade memberships and any guarantee you offer, with numbers customers can check where relevant.
Contact and conversion: phone, form, booking, map
- Tap-to-call phone and email on every page. Put the phone number in the header as a tappable link, and repeat the full contact details in the footer. If customers message you on WhatsApp, add that link too.
- A short inquiry form that confirms receipt. Ask only for name, a way to reply and the message; a photo upload helps trades that quote from pictures. After sending, the visitor should see a clear confirmation. Decide where submissions land: in an admin area you check daily, in your inbox, or both. Test it with a real message.
- Online booking or a quote request. If you sell time, let people pick a real free slot, and make sure two people can't book the same one. If every job is different, a structured quote form (job type, zip code, timeframe, photos) gets you better leads than a blank message box. The guide to building a booking website with AI covers slots, deposits and reminders.
- Address, map and directions, or your service area. Shops and clinics need the address, a map, parking and entrance notes. If you go to your customers, show the towns or zip codes you cover and keep a home address off the site.
- Opening hours, including holidays. State them as text, not inside an image, and update them before every public holiday. They must match your Google profile, because mismatched hours mean wasted trips and annoyed reviews.
Content customers search for: services, prices, FAQs
- A clear section or page per main service. Say what's included, who it's for, how long it takes and where you offer it. Write the way customers talk: "AC repair", not "climate solutions".
- Prices or price ranges. Exact prices where you can, "from" prices or typical ranges where jobs vary, plus what pushes a price up. A range like "most bathroom refits: $9,000 to $15,000" sets expectations without boxing you in.
- FAQs from your real phone calls. Write down the questions you answer every week, such as payment methods, cancellations, lead times, parking and areas covered, and answer each in two or three sentences.
- Proof of work. A gallery, before-and-after pairs, case studies or a menu. Restaurants should publish the menu as text rather than a scanned PDF so it reads well on phones and can be found in search; the guide to making a restaurant website with AI shows how.
Technical basics: HTTPS, mobile, speed, your own domain
- Your own domain. yourbusiness.com on vans, cards and receipts looks established, and an email address on the same domain looks more credible than a free webmail one. Keep the domain registered in your own name. Here is how to connect a custom domain to an AI-built website.
- HTTPS everywhere. Every page should load with the padlock, including on the www version of your domain. Most hosts, WisyLink included, issue and renew the certificate automatically; check that old http links redirect.
- A layout that works on a phone. Open the site on your own phone and try the three main tasks: find the phone number, read the prices, send the form. Text should be readable without zooming, buttons big enough for a thumb, and nothing should scroll sideways.
- Fast pages: compressed photos, few widgets. A single phone photo can weigh several megabytes, so resize and compress before uploading. Skip autoplaying background videos, and question every third-party widget, because each one adds load time.
- Accessibility basics. Describe images in their alt text, keep enough contrast between text and background, use headings in order and make sure every form field has a visible label. The W3C's "Easy Checks" list is a good first pass you can run without tools.
SEO basics: titles, descriptions, local structured data, sitemap
- A unique title and description per page. Lead with the service and place: "Boiler Repair in Sacramento | Rivera Plumbing". Keep titles under about 60 characters and give each page a description that makes someone want to click.
- LocalBusiness structured data. This is a small block of code in the page that states your name, address, phone, opening hours and website in a format search engines read. Google's LocalBusiness documentation requires name and address, recommends phone, hours and geo-coordinates, and does not guarantee any special display. It also reserves review markup for sites that review other businesses, so testimonials about yourself won't earn stars.
- A sitemap and robots.txt. The sitemap lists every page you want found, and robots.txt must not block them. Open
/sitemap.xmland/robots.txton your domain to confirm both exist. More on ranking an AI-made site in SEO for AI-built websites.
Legal pages: privacy, cookies, terms, imprint where required
This section is practical orientation, not legal advice; the rules depend on your country and what your site does.
- A privacy policy, and cookie consent where needed. Do you need a privacy policy? If the site collects personal data, and a contact form, booking or newsletter sign-up does, then in many countries yes: data protection laws such as the UK and EU GDPR require you to tell people what you collect, why, how long you keep it and what rights they have. Cookies are a separate question. The UK regulator's cookie guidance requires consent before non-essential cookies, such as analytics or advertising tags, while cookies strictly necessary for a service the visitor asked for, like a login session, are exempt. An AI builder can draft these pages from what your site actually does, but read the draft against your real practices before publishing.
- Terms and legally required business details. If you sell online or take bookings, publish your refund, cancellation and delivery terms. Some countries also require company details on the site: UK limited companies must show their registered number, registered office and place of registration, and businesses based in Germany need an Impressum with name, address, email and register details under section 5 of the Digitale-Dienste-Gesetz (DDG).
After launch: Google Business Profile, Search Console, updates
- A Google Business Profile that matches the site. You can add or claim your Business Profile at no charge and, once verified, appear on Search and Maps. Use the same name, address, phone and hours as your website, choose the right category and link to your site.
- Search Console and an update routine. Verify your domain in Google Search Console (usually with a TXT record at your DNS provider) and submit your sitemap. Then book 20 minutes a month: check hours and prices, add a few new photos, reply to reviews and send one test message through your form to confirm it still arrives.
How to get all of this in one prompt
With an AI app builder you can describe most of the 25 items in one message and get a hosted site back, instead of assembling pages and add-ons yourself. Here is a brief you can adapt for WisyLink; replace every detail with your own:
Build a website for Rivera Plumbing, a licensed plumber in Sacramento serving Sacramento, Elk Grove and Folsom. Address: [street, city, zip]. Headline: emergency plumbing and water heater repair, same-day service. Pages: home, services (drain cleaning from $150, water heater repair from $250, repiping by quote), about (family business since 2011, license number and insurance stated), reviews (I'll paste five real reviews), gallery (use the attached photos), FAQs (payment methods, areas covered, weekend work) and contact. Put a tap-to-call button for (916) 555-0182 in the header. Add a quote form with name, phone, zip code, job type and up to three photos; save requests in a private admin area and email them to me. Show opening hours Mon to Sat 7 am to 7 pm, emergency line 24/7, and our service area. Give every page a unique title and description, add LocalBusiness structured data with our address, phone and hours, and include a privacy policy page that matches what the forms collect. Clean, trustworthy look in navy and white.
A few notes from building sites this way. Wisy may ask one short question before it builds, and on the free Community plan it keeps the first build to a focused first version, so you may add the gallery or FAQs in follow-up messages. The emailed form copies need your own email (SMTP) account under Integrations; until you add it, requests still save to the admin area. Paste real reviews rather than letting anything be invented, check every price and license number, and test the form from your phone. You can connect yourbusiness.com on any plan; compare plans in the pricing section to keep the site live past the free 30 days. For a broader walk-through, see how to build a website with AI, and if a phone is your only device, you can build it from your phone.
Ready to tick the list off? Start free on Community with no card, describe your business in one message and get a live link to check against this checklist.
F.A.Q.
Frequently asked questions
How many pages does a small business website need?
Start with as few as cover the questions customers ask before buying, usually five: home, services, about, contact and privacy. Add pages when they earn their place: one per service you want to rank for, a gallery when photos sell the work, a booking page when you sell time. A ten-page site with thin pages performs worse than five pages that each answer something specific, so grow it from real questions.
Do I need a privacy policy on my website?
If you collect any personal data, assume yes. Contact forms, bookings, newsletters, accounts and analytics all collect it. Write it about your actual site: which forms exist, what each collects, which services process the data (your email provider, payment provider, analytics), how long you keep it and how people can ask for deletion. A generic template that mentions things you don't do, or misses things you do, helps nobody.
Is a one-page website enough for a small business?
It can be, for a single service in a single area, such as a mobile dog groomer or a wedding photographer. Use clear sections with anchor links, keep contact details visible as people scroll, and still publish the privacy policy separately. Move to multiple pages when you offer distinct services that people search for separately, because one page can only target one main topic well.
Should I show prices on my website?
Usually yes, even if only as "from" prices or typical ranges. Prices answer the question every visitor has, filter out people with a very different budget and make your inquiries more serious. If jobs vary too much for a range, explain what drives the cost and offer a quick quote form. Review prices every few months; an outdated price creates an awkward first phone call.
How often should I update my website?
Check facts monthly and refresh content quarterly. Monthly: opening hours, holiday closures, prices, and one test submission of every form. Quarterly: new photos of recent work, fresh reviews, and FAQs from questions you keep hearing. Update immediately whenever your phone number, address or services change, and change your Google Business Profile at the same time so the two never disagree.
Does a small business website need a blog?
No. A blog helps only if you will publish useful posts regularly, such as a garden center's seasonal planting guides or an accountant's tax deadline reminders. An abandoned blog with a last post from two years ago signals a business that may not be active. If you won't write often, put the effort into detailed service pages and FAQs, which do most of the work for local searches.