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Most small business websites need five pages: home, services, about, contact and a privacy policy. That's enough to explain what you do, show you're real, and make it easy for customers to get in touch. Everything else, like a blog, FAQ or portfolio, can wait until you have a reason to add it.
Fewer pages also means a faster launch. You can publish a clear five-page site in a weekend and grow it later. An unfinished fifteen-page site helps nobody.
The short answer
Page | Why you need it | Must include |
|---|---|---|
Home | Tells visitors in seconds if they're in the right place | What you do, who it's for, where, and one clear next step |
Services | Helps customers decide if you can solve their problem | Each service, who it's for, and prices or "from" prices |
About | Shows there's a real, trustworthy person or team | Your story, a photo, experience or qualifications |
Contact | Turns interest into an enquiry | Phone, email or form, your area or address, opening hours |
Privacy policy | Explains what you do with visitors' data | What you collect, why, and how to contact you about it |
If you only sell one service, you can put services on the home page and launch with four pages.
1. Home page
Your home page has one job: show visitors they're in the right place and tell them what to do next. Visitors decide quickly whether to stay, so the top of the page matters most.
Put these at the top, before anyone scrolls:
- A headline that says what you do and for whom. "Family dental care in Leeds" beats "Welcome to our website".
- One sentence of detail. Your area, your speciality, or what makes you different.
- One main button. "Book a call", "Get a quote" or "See our services". Pick the action you want most.
Further down, add:
- A short summary of your main services, each linking to the services page
- Proof that you're good at what you do: reviews, client logos, photos of your work
- How it works, in three simple steps, if your process isn't obvious
- The same main button again at the bottom
Keep it short. A home page is a signpost, not the whole story.
2. Services page
This is often the page that wins the customer. It answers the question every visitor has: "Can you help with my problem, and what will it cost?"
For each service, write:
- What it is, in plain words your customers use. "Boiler repair", not "heating system remediation".
- Who it's for, so the right people recognise themselves.
- What's included, and what isn't.
- A price or a "from" price. Even a range builds trust and filters out enquiries that were never going to fit your budget.
- A button to book or ask for a quote.
With three or more substantial services, consider a separate page for each later. Each page can then target its own search, like "wedding photographer in Bristol". Start with one page and split it when it gets long.
3. About page
People buy from people. The about page shows there's a real, qualified person or team behind the business.
Include:
- Who you are and why you started. Two or three short paragraphs are enough.
- A real photo of you or your team. Skip stock photos here; they work against you.
- Experience, qualifications or memberships that matter to your customers, such as years in business, certifications or trade bodies.
- What you care about in how you work, in one or two sentences.
End with a link to your services or contact page. Visitors who read about you are often close to getting in touch.
4. Contact page
Make getting in touch effortless. Every extra step loses enquiries.
- Offer the ways your customers actually use. Phone for trades and urgent jobs, a form or email for considered purchases, a booking link for appointments.
- Keep forms short. Name, email or phone, and a message are usually enough. Ask for more only if you need it to reply.
- Say when you'll reply, for example "We reply within one working day".
- Show your area or address and opening hours. If customers visit you, add a map.
Then test it. Send yourself a message through the form and check that it arrives. A broken contact form is the most expensive bug a small business website can have.
5. Privacy policy
If your site collects personal information, such as a contact form, newsletter signup or analytics, most countries expect you to explain what you collect and why. In the EU and UK, the GDPR requires you to tell people this when you collect their data.
A small business privacy policy usually covers:
- What information you collect (for example, name and email from your contact form)
- Why you collect it and how long you keep it
- Which services process it (your website builder, email provider, analytics)
- How people can ask to see or delete their information
- How to contact you
Link it from your site's footer. Rules differ by country, so check what applies where you and your customers are. If you handle sensitive data, get proper advice.
Pages you can add later
Add these when you have a reason, not because other sites have them.
Page | Add it when |
|---|---|
FAQ | You answer the same questions by phone or email every week |
Portfolio or case studies | Your work is visual, or results are your best selling point |
Reviews or testimonials | You have enough real reviews to fill a page. Until then, put the best few on the home page |
Blog | You can publish useful articles regularly and want to grow search traffic |
Pricing | Your prices are fixed and comparing them helps customers decide |
Separate service pages | One service page gets long, or each service has its own customers and searches |
Online booking or shop | You take appointments or sell products online |
Never add empty pages, or pages that say "coming soon". They make the business look unfinished.
Before you publish: a quick checklist
- Every page says what you do in words your customers use
- Each page has one clear next step, usually contact or book
- Your phone number and email are correct everywhere
- The contact form sends to an inbox you check
- Every page works on a phone
- Photos are your own wherever possible
- Each page has its own title and description for search results
- The privacy policy is linked in the footer
How a template helps
Writing five pages from scratch is the slow part. A template gives you the page structure and layout, so you only fill in your own words and photos.
Our free website templates give you a finished design and layout to customise. Check each template's page for what's included. Our step-by-step guide shows you how to make one yours with AI prompts and publish it. To plan your budget first, see what a small business website costs.
