What should every small business website have?

A headline that names the visitor's problem, a clear statement of who it is for, one obvious next step repeated down the page, real proof from real clients, contact details that are easy to find, and pages that load in under three seconds on mobile.

How often should I review my website?

Run this checklist twice a year, and any time your offer, pricing or main service changes. Most sites drift out of date in their message long before they look dated.

Guides / How to buy a small business website

Guides / Website checklist

Guide · Checklist

Small business website checklist: 14 things every site needs

Q: How many pages does a small business website need?

Five is usually enough to start: home, services, proof or case studies, about, and contact. Add pages only when there is a distinct question a visitor is asking that no existing page answers.

Q: How do I know which fix matters most?

Work top down. Message problems cost you more visitors than technical ones, so fix the headline and the next step before touching speed, plugins or design details.

Not a list of features. Fourteen checks that decide whether a visitor understands you, believes you, and knows what to do next — in the order they matter.

By Richerd Ho, web conversion strategist · 256 small business projects since 2006 · Updated August 2026 · 7 min read

A laptop and phone showing a small business homepage wireframe beside a printed website audit sheet reading message, trust, action, foundation — Four questions, in order: do they understand you, do they believe you, do they know what to do, and can they even see it clearly.

How to use this

Open your homepage on your phone and work down the list. Mark each item pass or fail honestly — the ones you hesitate on are usually fails.

The order matters more than the count. The first group costs you more visitors than the last group ever will, so do not start with speed and plugins while your headline is still unclear.

Message — do they understand you?

Five seconds. Four checks. This group decides everything after it.

Your headline names their problem, not your job title

"Chartered accountant in Melaka" describes you. "Know exactly what you owe before the deadline" describes their day. One gets read, the other gets skimmed.

A visitor can tell within five seconds whether it is for them

Name the audience out loud somewhere near the top. Trying to sound right for everyone is why most homepages sound right for nobody.

No industry language a customer would not use

"Holistic solutions", "synergy", "end-to-end" — read your first paragraph aloud to someone outside your trade. Whatever makes them pause, cut.

Your services are described as outcomes, not deliverables

People buy the result. List what changes for them, then mention what you hand over.

Trust — do they believe you?

Understanding you is not the same as trusting you. This group closes that gap.

Real proof from real people, with names and faces

A named testimonial with a photo and a job title beats five anonymous stars. Specific words about a specific result beat "great service".

At least one piece of proof above the fold

A number, a client name, a years-in-business line. Something that says other people already trusted you, before they scroll.

A human on the about page

Small businesses win on being a person, not an entity. A real photo and a plain account of why you do this outperforms corporate language every time.

Action — do they know what to do?

Where most small business sites quietly lose the enquiry they had already earned.

One primary action, repeated

Pick the single thing you want most and ask for it at the top, the middle and the end. Five equal buttons is the same as none.

The ask is small enough to say yes to

"Book a 60-minute consultation" is a big first step for a stranger. Offer something lighter first and let the relationship earn the bigger ask.

Contact details visible without hunting

Phone, email or WhatsApp in the header and footer. A form buried at the bottom of one page is not a contact strategy.

Foundations — can they even see it?

Last on the list, not because it does not matter, but because it cannot rescue an unclear message.

Main content appears in under three seconds on mobile data

Test on a phone, not your desktop. See the speed guide for the five usual culprits.

Every page has its own title and description

Written for a human deciding whether to click, not stuffed with keywords. Duplicated titles across pages waste your best SEO asset.

Tap targets and text are comfortable on a phone

Buttons big enough for a thumb, body text no smaller than 16px. Most of your visitors are one-handed and in a hurry.

You can see what visitors actually do

Analytics installed, form submissions tracked, phone clicks counted. Without this you are redesigning on opinion.

A homepage under a magnifying glass beside a handwritten checklist reading message, trust, action, foundation and a website performance report — Three ticked, one to go. Work the groups in order — the foundations only pay off once the message, trust and action are right.

If you only fix three

Items 01, 08 and 05 — the headline, the single repeated action, and real proof. In fifteen years of reviews, those three account for most of the difference between a site that brings enquiries and one that sits quiet.

If several items failed and you are not sure which one is costing you most, that is exactly what the seven reasons sites don't convert covers next.

Common questions

How many pages does a small business website need?

Five is usually enough to start: home, services, proof, about, contact. Add a page only when there is a real question no existing page answers.

How do I know which fix matters most?

Work top down. Message problems cost more visitors than technical ones, so fix the headline and the next step before touching plugins or design details.