Create a Small Business Website: From a Web Designer of 20+ years

As an entrepreneur with over two decades of experience in web design and internet marketing, I've seen web technologies and best practices rise and fall. It truly is a maze of choices to create a small business website.

Over the years, many people have asked me, “How do I begin building my website?“

After years of guiding individuals through that process, I built this site. This site aims to share all the knowledge I've learned in my years of online marketing to help you start your small business with the right foundation and grow it!

Yes, I will actually share the process I have fine-tuned over the years and make personal recommendations of web tools I use to this day. I truly hope to save you days, months, or even years of wasted time so you can spend more hours in your day on what truly matters to you.

7 steps to create a small business website

Here are the 7 evergreen steps that apply to building a small business website, an online business site, or an affiliate marketing site. Dive deeper into any step or skip around as you need.

I'll do my best to continue updating this information, as I'm still actively building websites and helping clients with online marketing.

1. Planning a Website Build

An entire book could be created about planning a website build, but that would be excessive. From my experience, here are the key things you need to decide, plan, and research from the start:

Hire out the site build or DIY?

First, you can hire out the build or do it yourself.

I will not gloss over the fact that building your own site takes time. Even if you build a first draft quickly, you'll continuously improve it after that.

If you are not a techy person or DIYer, then it may be best to hire someone to build it and save you valuable time. I'll go ahead and plug my web development business here 🙂

If you're reading this guide, I'm guessing you would like to build the site yourself. Keep reading…

What platform to build on?

Second, you have to determine what platform you will build on. You primarily have 3 options for how to build:

• Website builders – These are user-friendly platforms that allow you to create websites using pre-made templates and drag-and-drop tools. Examples are Wix, Squarespace, and Weebly.
• Content management systems (CMS) – These platforms provide more flexibility and control over your website’s content and design. Examples are WordPress, Joomla, and Drupal.
• Custom development – Building a website from scratch using programming languages and frameworks. Examples are HTML/CSS, JavaScript, PHP, and Ruby on Rails.

While these are all viable options to build a website, they all have pros and cons based on your long-term business plans and budget.

I primarily build my clients' websites with WordPress. In my experience, it offers the best balance of long-term flexibility and cost savings.

For the sake of this guide and to help you progress, I suggest you build your website with WordPress.

What is the goal of your site?

Third, what do you want people to learn about your business, and what action do you want them to take on your site?

Make sure you can answer the following questions:

• Audience – Who is your target audience? How old are they? What do they need from your business?
• Objectives – What do you want your website to achieve? Increase sales, build a community, provide information? What is the primary call to action you want to present to visitors? What should they do on your site?
• Differentiators – What makes your products or services better than your competitors? What is your unique offering in your business niche? How will your website promote these exclusive benefits of your service or product to users?

Research competitors

Finally, as a part of planning your website, you need to understand what your competitors are doing. This is a fairly simple process:

• Analyze their websites – Visit your top competitor's websites. See how they present their brand, what content they offer, and how easy it is to navigate.
• Note what works and what doesn't – Is their call to action clear? Does the design feel dated? Take notes on both their strengths and weaknesses, especially elements that directly impact user experience.

I admit that I have looked at competitors' offerings and thought that if it works for them, it should work for me. This often wasn't the case. It only made me blend in with the rest of the competition.

Remember, the goal is to learn, not copy.

Take advantage of your unique knowledge and experience. Explain and highlight your service or products in a creative way that makes your website stand out.

Learn more about Planning A Small Business Website Build.

2. How to Create Website Content

Content is still king, and it will be on your business site.

People need to understand what you are offering and why they should buy from you. This is a simple concept and very doable.

Let's break it down into bite-sized pieces. Here's how to craft website content that speaks volumes without overwhelming your visitors.

Just start writing

I have had this conversation with well over 100 people, and I always tell them to open a Google Doc or get out a piece of paper and start writing!

You first have to get the ideas out of your head, and you can organize them after that.

With those hundred-plus clients, I would estimate 60-70% got stuck during the content creation process, which took weeks, months, and, in some cases, over a year to complete.

What was the main reason for the delay?
Procrastination + Perfectionism.

Some felt it was too daunting to articulate their business offerings in writing, so they just kept putting it off. Then, others kept reworking their content for way too long, trying to get the wording right.

I once waded through a long conversation with a client weighing the pros and cons of a period vs. no period after a heading.

Real World Example

Here's the beauty of a website:
It's not a printed brochure. You can change the text 🙂

Allow me to offer a few suggestions to keep you from getting bogged down in the content creation phase.

Create a sitemap

Start with a basic sitemap. A sitemap is just a hierarchical structure of the site's pages – just a few key pages like “About Us,” “Services,” and a “Contact” page. This gives you a goal of pages to create content for.

Aim for 4 to 6 pages to get your new site launched.

Here's the most basic example of what I'm describing in a Googe Doc:

Remember, a minimum viable product (MVP) is all you need to launch your website and start attracting customers. You can always add more later.

Spend 30 minutes creating a sitemap and deciding the core pages your visitors need to understand your business and offerings.

Speak your audience's language (not tech talk)

In that same document, create a heading for a page titled “Services,” for example. Now, describe your offerings, but explain them so your audience can see how they are a solution for their needs.

Imagine your ideal customer sitting across from you:

• What questions would they have?
• What problems are they trying to solve?
• Are the features & benefits easy to understand?
• Am I using clear and concise language that resonates with them?

Consider a short explainer video of your product or service.

Pro Tip

These types of questions should be the basis for all your page content. Avoid using technical jargon that leaves users confused; keep it elementary-level for broader audiences.

Answer these well, and you will be on your way to valuable content that potential customers will connect with.

Break up the text by highlighting

The average human attention span is only 8 seconds, which is shorter than that of a goldfish.

Time

People skim online content.

After you've written your initial content, plan to break up your text with eye-catching visuals like headings, bullet points, images, infographics, and even short videos. This makes your content more engaging and easier to digest.

I usually call this a “highlighted format”, where you try and create visual anchor points throughout the length of the content.

Which format is easier to browse?

There will be more on this topic in the design and build sections of the website. Your end goal is to have a document that has your sitemap and content for each page.

Learn more about Creating Website Content For A Small Business.

3. Find a Domain Name & Web Hosting

To exist online, you need a domain name and web hosting.

Think of these as your website's physical address (domain name) and the land it sits on (web hosting). Though, much like when you look to buy a home, there are some key considerations when choosing a domain name and web hosting.

How to choose a domain name

A domain name is the unique web address that identifies your business website on the internet, such as “these24hours.com”.

• Keep it short and memorable – Aim for under 15 characters. Easy to spell and pronounce.
• Reflect your brand – Use your business name or a close variant. Try to avoid hyphens and numbers – I did not take my own advice on this site 🙂
• Think long-term – Choose a scalable name that won't limit future growth – keep it general.

Brainstorm, and see what's available. I commonly use domain search tools like Namecheap or Hover to quickly check availability and purchase domain names.

How to choose web hosting

Web hosting is a service that provides storage space and access for your website files on a server connected to the internet, allowing your site to be viewable online.

• Reliability is key – Look for 99.9% uptime guarantee. Check recent customer reviews.
• Consider growth – Ensure easy upgrades as your site grows. Check bandwidth and storage limits.
• Look for essential features – SSL certificate for security. One-click WordPress installation

I have used many of the big web hosts out there, and I will say that cheaper is not always the best option. If you're serious about your business, get a solid managed WordPress host that you can build on for many years to come.

I personally use Kinsta and WP Engine most frequently. Both have phenomenal customer support when the need arises.

You're creating a 24/7 storefront

A domain name typically costs $10 to $20 per year and basic web hosting ranges from $10 to $50 a month. Establishing your online presence/storefront that works around the clock for you is a small investment for the long-term payoff.

Setting up your domain and hosting in less than an hour is very feasible.

Learn more about Choosing A Domain Name & Web Hosting For A Small Business.

4. Design a Website

You have a plan, content, domain name, and hosting. Now, what will your site look like?

Designing your website is where your vision starts to take shape. It's not just about making things look pretty; it's about creating a user experience that guides visitors towards your business goals.

I totally get that some people are not designers. You still have options.

Let me offer a few different approaches to website design, from gathering inspiration to using different tools. These should work for people with a design eye and those who want nothing to do with design.

Gather inspiration

Before diving into the design process, it's crucial to gather inspiration. Here are some of my go-to's for web design inspiration:

• Browse Pinterest boards related to web design
• Explore Behance and Dribbble for cutting-edge designs
• Check out Awwwards for award-winning websites
• Use tools like Muzli for daily design inspiration
• Visit your competitor's websites to see industry standards

Create a Pinterest mood board with elements you like to help guide the asthetic of your design.

Pro Tip

Choose your design approach

There are several ways to approach website design. Choose the method that best fits your skills and resources:

• Use design software – Create your design using tools like Figma, Photoshop, or Canva. This is a more skilled approach that is not for beginners.
• Design directly in WordPress – Use page builders like Elementor or Beaver Builder to create whatever layout you like.
• Start with a pre-built template – Browse WordPress theme marketplaces like ThemeForest or use template libraries within page builders like Elementor.
• Content-first approach – Begin by adding your content to WordPress and using the Block Editor to structure it. Then, add further design elements around this.

Regardless of your chosen approach, you will still want to plan a few more design aspects to visualize where you are going.

Start with a wireframe

Before choosing colors and fonts, sketch out a basic layout of your pages. This doesn't have to be fancy – I prefer a pen and graph paper for this step. Above is an example of some wireframes I've created.

Focus on:

• Header and navigation placement
• Main content areas – are the most important elements on this page?
• Call-to-action locations. I often highlight these on the wireframe
• Global footer of the site

Incorporate your brand elements

Your website should be an extension of your brand identity. Make sure you include the following:

• Your logo in a prominent location
• Consistent use of brand colors and fonts
• Imagery that reflects your brand's personality

Whether you fully design your website in a program or on paper is a matter of your technical skills to build that design. For some, it may be easier to start with a prebuilt template and just fill in the content; that's totally fine.

In the next step, I'll show you a combination of tools that allows you to create any design you can imagine or even add a prebuilt template to it.

Learn more about Designing A Small Business Website.

5. Build a Website

It's time to bring your website to life. As we established earlier, there are infinite ways to build a website, but we need to focus on one option for this guide. We'll use WordPress as our foundation and Elementor as our page builder and design tool. I build the majority of my client sites with this combination, as it offers flexibility, ease of use, and professional results.

WordPress as your foundation

WordPress is the most popular, user-friendly content management system that powers over 40% of all websites, offering a wide range of customizable themes and plugins, making it an ideal choice for building your website regardless of your technical skill level.

• Install WordPress – Most hosts offer one-click installation. If not, follow your host's manual installation guide. Any of the hosts I mentioned above will have documentation for this as well.
• Choose a theme – Start with a simple, responsive theme. Lightweight themes are a great choice for a solid foundation to build on. Themes like Astra and the Hello theme by Elementor.
• Add essential plugins – Elementor is my go-to for design (more on this below). I'd also recommend Rank Math For search engine optimization.

I recommend using the fewest plugins possible to help the site load quickly. Also, keep your WordPress core, themes, and plugins updated for security and performance.

Designing with Elementor

Elementor is a powerful, user-friendly WordPress page builder that allows you to create professional-looking websites without coding skills. It offers drag-and-drop design capabilities, pre-built templates, and responsive layouts to help you quickly build and customize your site.

1. Install Elementor – In WordPress, go to Plugins > Add New, search for Elementor, and click “Install Now.” This gives you the free version of Elementor, though I highly recommend the Pro version for many more options. In fact, I use it on this site.
2. Create a new page – Click Pages > Add New, name your page, and choose “Edit with Elementor.” You are now in Elementor edit mode.
3. Start designing – Drag and drop elements onto your page. Use the site settings to customize colors, fonts, and more.

Elementor is used on more than 5 million sites. If you choose it, you're in good company!

You'll see videos of people creating a website in 10 minutes, but this only leaves you with a low quality site that you will just rebuild. Realistically, a basic website can be up and running in a day or two. However, it's just a starting point; making it an effective marketing tool will take longer.

Don't aim for perfection immediately – getting your site live is more important. You will refine and expand it over time.

Learn more about Building a Small Business Website.

6. Marketing a Website

If you've built a basic website that advertises your services, you are now ready to get your website out there! While I recommend SEO (the next step) for your long-term marketing strategy, you need to get noticed quickly to make real money.

Here's a blend of free and paid online marketing tactics that really work. I've used these with many of my clients over the years, and they consistently provide results.

Social media marketing

Social media marketing leverages platforms like TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn to connect with your audience. It's about building your brand, increasing sales, and driving website traffic through engaging and targeted content.

I always encourage my clients to be realistic about the platforms on which their audience engages. For example, If you sell business consulting services, you are likely better off starting on LinkedIn rather than TikTok.

• Content sharing – Ever heard of the 80/20 rule for social media? 80% informative and engaging content, 20% promotional. Keep it fresh and relevant to your audience's needs.
• Join the conversation – LinkedIn groups, Reddit threads, you name it. Engage, answer questions, and be the go-to person in your niche. It's not just about pushing your site; it's about building trust.
• Targeted ads – Did you know Facebook ads can reach as many as 2.14 billion people? That's a lot of potential eyes on your business. Use these paid marketing to hone in on your ideal audience.
• Boosting posts – Sometimes, a little paid boost can go a long way. It's perfect for getting key content noticed.

Influencer marketing

Influencer Marketing taps into the power of popular figures on social media to amplify your brand's message. It's about leveraging these individuals' trust and influence over their followers to promote your website or product. It's a quick way to get in front of your target audience. I've seen it work well for many businesses.

Don't think about the biggest influencers in your niche, but find the small ones that are just ahead of you, where you could mutually benefit one another:

• Collaborations – Trade services or content with influencers. It's a win-win. You get exposure, and they get content.
• Brand ambassadors – Your own customers can be your best promoters. People trust recommendations from friends and family up to 92% more than advertising.
• Sponsored content – Paying influencers can be worth it. Their engaged followers can become your website visitors.
• Affiliate programs – A commission for referrals is a great motivator. It's a performance-based win for you and the influencer.

Email marketing

Email Marketing involves sending emails to a group of people who have shown interest in your content or services. It's a highly effective way to communicate directly with potential customers, offering personalized content and promotions to drive traffic and conversions. It takes some time to start growing your subscriber list, but it's worth it.

• Newsletter magic – Give people a reason to sign up. Exclusive tips, discounts, the inside scoop. Remember, personalized emails deliver six times higher transaction rates.
• Tailored content – Send stuff they want to read based on their interests or actions on your site. It shows you're paying attention.
• Automation tools – Streamline your email game. Automation can increase conversion rates by 50%.
• Buying lists – Sometimes, it's about reaching more people. Just make sure they're the right people.

Traditional marketing

Traditional Marketing refers to more conventional methods such as print, broadcast, and direct mail. Despite the digital age, these channels remain powerful for reaching broader audiences and adding credibility to your marketing efforts.

• Network, network, network – Ever heard the saying, “It's not what you know, it's who you know”? It's true. Personal connections can lead to website traffic. My business success started here, and it has flourished ever since.
• PR – A well-placed news release can do wonders. It's about getting your name out there without a direct sales pitch.
• Print ads – Old school? Maybe. However, 82% of consumers trust print ads when making a purchase decision.
• Radio and TV – Big reach equals big potential. It's a classic for a reason, and it still works for many big and local brands.

If you're just getting started, go with the free options, but if you want to fast-track your marketing, you'll need to invest some money.

It's about understanding your audience and where they hang out. Experiment, measure, and tweak. Remember, what works for one site or industry might not work for another.

Learn more about Marketing A Small Business Website.

7. Optimize a Website

At this point, you have a website created and have begun marketing it. It's time to start optimizing it to increase conversions.

The goal is to fine-tune your content for humans first and then search engines. Don't mix up that order, or you will start to become less relevant to your audience. So, how do you optimize your site? Here are the key ways I help my clients optimize their sites:

On-page optimization

On-page optimization is the practice of improving individual web pages to rank higher in search engines by optimizing content, HTML source code, and other elements directly within the page.

• Content is king – Create high-quality, informative content and ensure you answer your audience's questions. Your content should provide solutions to their needs. Bonus: great content will keep people on your site longer.
• Structure matters – Use header tags (H1, H2, etc.) to organize content. Write compelling meta descriptions and title tags.

I highly recommend using a tool like Rank Math to guide your on-page optimization efforts. I use it on nearly all of my client sites.

Keyword optimization

Keyword optimization is the process of strategically incorporating relevant search terms into your site's content to improve its visibility and ranking in search engine results.

• Research well – Use tools like Google Keyword Planner or SEMrush to find keywords people are actually searching for. Focus on relevant, high-volume, low-competition keywords and create content around that topic.
• Integrate keywords naturally – Incorporate keywords into your content, headings, and meta tags in a human-readable way. Avoid keyword stuffing (flooding that keyword on your page) – it can lead to penalties from Google.

Performance optimization

Performance optimization involves improving your site's speed, responsiveness, and efficiency to enhance user experience and search engine rankings.

• Speed up your site – You can optimize images (compressing and resizing), leverage browser caching, and reduce server response time.
• Monitor and improve – Use Google PageSpeed Insights for recommendations. Consider upgrading to premium hosting for better performance

Even a 1-second delay in page load time can lead to a 7% loss in conversions. This can be a long-term improvement area, though a good web host like Kinsta can resolve most of this for you.

Site accessibility

Accessibility ensures your site is usable by people with various disabilities, making it more inclusive and often improving overall user experience.

• Make your site inclusive – Provide alt text for images, ensure sufficient color contrast, and make your site navigable via a keyboard.
• Follow WCAG guidelines – This improves user experience for all and typically positively impacts your overall organic search engine rank.

Use the WAVE Web Accessibility Evaluation Tool to check your site's accessibility.

Remember, optimization is an ongoing process. Make it a habit to review and refine your website regularly. Small, consistent improvements can lead to significant long-term gains in traffic and conversions.

Learn more about Optimizing A Small Business Website.

The Website is Built, Now What?

Even after you finish all of these steps, I recognize that there are still challenges to growing beyond the initial website.

I'm continually creating resources to help business owners at various stages of business growth.

Keep pushing forward, and don't forget to enjoy the journey of creating something truly yours.