y00r

· 1 min read

What a small business website actually needs (and what it does not)

The short list that brings customers in: what you do, where and when, your prices, a phone number you can tap, real photos, and one clear next step. And the long list you can skip.

The short answer: a local business website has to answer five questions fast: what do you do, where are you, when are you open, what does it cost, and how do I reach you. Everything else is decoration.

The short list

  • What you do, in one plain sentence at the top. Not a slogan: the thing.
  • Where and when: your address with a map link, and your hours. Holiday hours too.
  • Prices, or at least starting prices. People who see a price call. People who don't, wonder.
  • A phone number you can tap, and an email that is not hiding behind a form.
  • Real photos of your place, your work, your people. Not stock smiles.
  • One next step: call, book, order or visit. One, big, obvious.

The long list you can skip

  • A carousel. Nobody waits for slide three.
  • A video that plays by itself, with sound.
  • Fifteen pages nobody reads. Five good ones beat fifteen.
  • A "news" page last updated years ago. Delete it, or keep it fresh.
  • A visitor counter. We love you. Please, no.

How to check yours

Open your site on your phone and try to answer the five questions in ten seconds. Whatever you could not find, your customers cannot find either.

Rather have it done? Paste your site at y00r.com: y00r rebuilds it with the short list up front, and you change anything by just saying it.

Fix my ugly

Questions, answered

How many pages does a small business website need?

Usually three to five: home, what you offer with prices, about, and contact. More only when each one answers a question customers really ask.

Should I put prices on my website?

Yes, at least starting prices. A visitor who sees a price knows whether to call; one who has to ask often just leaves.

What should be at the top of my homepage?

One plain sentence that says what you do and where, your phone number, and one clear button: call, book or order.

Rather have it done?

Paste your site and see it fixed in a few minutes, then change anything by chatting. Or run the free audit first: your grade, what it may cost you, and y00r's version beside it.

Read next

  1. Is your website ugly? The 60-second checkupSix checks anyone can do on a phone in a minute: does it fit the screen, is there a padlock, can you tap the phone number, what year the footer says, does it load fast, and what Google shows about you. Two or more fails: it is costing you customers.
  2. Slow and squished: why phones decide who calls youMost local searches happen on a phone, so your site is judged on one. Four phone problems send ready customers back to the search results: a desktop layout, a slow first view, a number you cannot tap, and buttons too small to hit.
  3. GEO: how to get your business named when people ask an AIWhen someone asks ChatGPT or Google's AI for "the best bakery near me", the answer comes from what those tools can read and trust. Seven things a local business can do so it is the one they name: plain facts on its site, real answers, the same details everywhere, reviews, mentions, and a monthly check.