Simple website ideas for small businesses

A simple website is often the right website. Most small businesses need a site that says what they do, where, how to get in touch and why to trust them, and nothing else. Below are eight simple shapes a small business site can take, what goes on each one, and who each fits, so you can pick one and stop worrying about building something big.

Why simple sites work so well

A customer who lands on your site wants one or two answers. Can you do the job? How do I reach you? Every extra page, pop-up or paragraph sits between them and that answer. A small site is also easier to keep right. When your hours change, there is one place to change them, not five.

Simple does not mean thin. A one-page site with good photos, clear prices or a clear service list and a working phone button can do more for you than a twenty-page site nobody updates.

Idea 1: the one-page site

Everything on a single page that scrolls: headline, services, a few photos, reviews, area or address, contact. The menu at the top jumps to each section.

Who it suits: one-person businesses, new businesses, trades with a short list of services, anyone who wants a site live this week.

What to put on it: a one-line headline ("Dog grooming in Plano, by appointment"), three to six services with a sentence each, six to ten photos, two or three short reviews, your phone number and a form. If you later find yourself writing long sections, that is the sign to split it into pages. More on that choice in whether one page is enough.

Idea 2: the five-page classic

Home, Services, About, Gallery, Contact. Nothing clever, which is exactly why it works: visitors know where everything is before they click.

Who it suits: most established trades and service businesses.

Tip: make the home page do most of the work. Plenty of visitors never click past it, so give it your phone number, your main services, your area and some proof.

For a café, bakery, food truck or small restaurant, the whole job is: what can I get, when are you open, where are you. A page with the menu written as text (not a photo of the paper menu), today's hours, the address with a directions link, and a few photos of the food.

Tip: write the menu as real text on the page. A PDF or a photo of a menu is hard to read on a phone and has to be replaced every time a price changes.

Idea 4: the portfolio site

Mostly pictures, with a short line for each project. Good for photographers, florists, woodworkers, tattoo artists, landscapers, cake makers, interior painters.

What makes it work: group the photos by type of job ("Weddings", "Kitchens", "Gardens"), write one sentence under each saying what it was and where, and put a "Request a quote" button after every group, not only at the end.

Idea 5: the quote request site

For businesses where every job is different and priced after a look: roofers, movers, fence builders, remodelers. The site is built around one form that asks the questions you would ask on the phone.

What to ask on the form: name, phone or email, town, what they need, roughly when, and an optional photo upload. Keep it short. Every extra question loses a few people. Then say what happens next: "We reply within one working day with a time to come and look."

Idea 6: the booking site

For salons, barbers, massage therapists, tutors, trainers, dog groomers. The main button is "Book now" and it opens your booking tool, whatever you already use. Around it: your services with lengths and prices, your cancellation policy, your address and parking, and photos of the space.

Tip: if your booking tool already has its own page, the website does not have to repeat the calendar. It has to explain enough that people feel ready to book, then send them there. Adding online booking goes through the options.

Idea 7: the price list site

Some customers just want to know what it costs. Dry cleaners, tailors, pet sitters, cleaners, small engine repair, lawn care with set packages. A clear price table, what is included, and how to order or book.

Tip: if prices vary, give a "from" price and say what changes it. "Lawn mowing from $40 a visit for a typical city lot; larger yards quoted." People trust ranges more than silence.

Idea 8: the "who we are" site for a small practice

Accountants, therapists, lawyers, financial planners, tutors. Visitors want to know who they will deal with. A page about the person or people, the services in plain words, how a first meeting works, what it costs or how fees work, and how to book a first call.

How to choose between them

Ask yourself one question: what do you want a visitor to do?

Call you: one-page or five-page site, with the phone number everywhere.
Come in: menu and hours site, with the address and directions up top.
Ask for a price: quote request site.
Book a time: booking site.
See your work first: portfolio site.
Know what it costs: price list site.

Pick the one that matches, and borrow pieces from others if you need them. A bakery might be a menu and hours site with a small portfolio of custom cakes. A painter might be a portfolio site with a quote form.

What to leave off a simple site

A blog, unless you will write in it at least every couple of months.
A news page that last changed two years ago.
Social media feeds embedded in the page. Link to your profiles instead.
Pages that exist "because websites have them", such as a Mission page with nothing specific to say.
Anything that needs regular updating that you know you will not do.

Your next step this week

Pick the one shape above that matches what you want visitors to do.
Write the headline: what you do, and where.
List your services or menu items, with prices if you are willing to show them.
Collect ten good photos from your phone.
Decide how you want people to reach you: call, form, text or booking.

If you would rather not build it yourself, you can see a first website for your business made from your business name and town, then decide whether the simple shape it takes is the one you want.