Most small business websites have a traffic problem. Or so they think. In practice, most of them have a conversion problem first. Visitors arrive, can't quickly tell what's on offer or why it matters and leave.
Below are twenty things your website should do well before you spend a penny on ads. They're grouped into four areas: clarity, trust, conversion and basics. Run through them honestly. If you can tick fifteen, you're ahead of most of your competitors.
Clarity
If a stranger can't tell what you do in five seconds, nothing else matters.
- Your headline says what you actually do, not a slogan.
- Your subhead says who it's for and the outcome they get.
- There's a primary call to action above the fold.
- Your services or products are listed in plain English, not industry jargon.
- Every page has one obvious next step, not five competing ones.
Trust
People buy from businesses they believe. The site has to do this work in seconds.
- Real photos of you, your team or your work. No stock smiles.
- At least three specific testimonials with names and context.
- Logos, awards or recognisable clients if you have them.
- A real phone number and address that match your Google profile.
- A short About section with a face and a sentence on why you started.
Conversion
A site that doesn't make it easy to act is a brochure. Brochures don't grow businesses.
- Your contact form is short, with the fewest possible fields.
- There's a phone number or booking link visible on every page.
- Pricing or starting points are mentioned where possible.
- Each service page has its own dedicated call to action.
- The thank-you page sets expectations on what happens next.
The basics
Boring, but expensive to ignore.
- Loads in under three seconds on mobile.
- Looks right on a phone, not just a laptop.
- Uses HTTPS without browser warnings.
- Has clear page titles and meta descriptions for every page.
- Links to all your social and Google profiles, with consistent branding.
- Open your site in a private browser window on a phone.
- Pretend you've never heard of the business.
- Tick each item only if a stranger would tick it.
- Anything below 15 ticks: focus the next month on the website, not on traffic.
- Anything below 10 ticks: stop spending on ads completely until it's fixed.
Where to start if you're under fifteen
Don't try to fix everything. Pick the three highest-impact items and finish them this week. Almost always, those are the headline, the trust signals on the homepage and a clear primary call to action. Get those right and the rest is easier.
What to do next
Score your site against the twenty checks. Pick three to fix this week. Then pick three more next week. A working website is the cheapest marketing channel you have.
Turn this article into action.
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