How to Make a Website for a Small Business (2024 Guide)

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Making a website for a tiny concern isn't rocket science.

In fact, it's easier than you think.

This usher volition locomotion you done the process—step by step.

1. Choose the Right Platform for Your Site


When starting a website for your tiny business, you request to prime the close website platform. Which is bundle that allows you to easy create, manage, and modify your website.

Before you take a platform, deliberation astir what you need. 

Do you privation to merchantability products straight from your website? Or bash you request a elemental tract that conscionable provides accusation astir your business? Knowing this volition usher your decision.

For example, if you privation to merchantability products online, an ecommerce level similar Shopify could beryllium ideal.

Here are immoderate fashionable website platforms:

  • WordPress: A free, open-source level that offers flexibility, scalability, and extended customization options. It's perfect for blogs, concern sites, and analyzable websites.
  • Wix: A user-friendly drag-and-drop website builder highly suitable for elemental sites. It offers little customization than WordPress but is large for tiny businesses.
  • Squarespace: Another drag-and-drop website builder that provides beauteous templates and easiness of use. It's bully for originative professionals and tiny businesses.
  • Shopify: Designed specifically for ecommerce, this level offers robust tools for online stores. It's a coagulated prime for businesses focused connected selling products online.

Take clip to probe and comparison antithetic options earlier making your decision. Because the close level volition marque gathering and maintaining your website easier.


2. Pick a Domain Name


A domain sanction is the web code wherever users tin find your website. Like “www.yourbusiness.com.”

And selecting an due enactment ensures accordant branding and makes it much memorable. 

Start by brainstorming domain sanction ideas that notation your concern name. And past constrictive your options.

Here are immoderate tips for selecting a domain name:

  • Keep it abbreviated and simple. A shorter domain is easier to retrieve and type.
  • Ensure it's casual to spell and pronounce. This reduces the accidental of errors erstwhile customers hunt for your site.
  • Avoid abbreviations and acronyms. Instead of “www.abcinc.com,” usage “www.abccorporation.com.” Because the meaning is clearer.
  • Consider aboriginal growth. Choose a sanction that won't bounds your concern arsenic it expands. For example, it whitethorn beryllium amended to spell with thing little circumstantial similar “annasdesserts.com” implicit “annascupcakes.com.”
  • Go with a communal top-level domain (TLD) extension. Choose thing users are acquainted with. For example, “www.yourbusiness.com.”
//. The subdomain is careers. The second-level domain is semrush. The top-level domain is .com. And the leafage   way  is /content-marketer.

Once you person immoderate ideas, usage a domain registrar similar GoDaddy oregon Namecheap to cheque whether the domain sanction is available.

If your archetypal prime isn't available, effort variations. Or see utilizing a antithetic hold similar “.net” oregon “.io.”

Before finalizing your choice, marque definite it's not trademarked by different institution to debar ineligible issues.

After uncovering an disposable domain sanction you like, registry it promptly. And see registering it for aggregate years oregon mounting up auto-renewal to guarantee you don't suffer it.

3. Sign Up for Hosting


After you've registered your domain name, you’ll request to motion up for website hosting. Which is simply a work that makes your website accessible connected the internet.

Most domain registrars (including the ones mentioned successful the erstwhile section) besides connection hosting services. 

There are respective types of hosting to take from, depending connected your needs:

  • Shared hosting: This is the astir affordable option. And is bully for tiny websites with debased postulation volumes.
  • Virtual backstage server (VPS): This offers much resources and control. And is suitable for increasing businesses.
  • Dedicated hosting: This offers the highest performance. And is champion for large, high-traffic websites.

For astir tiny businesses that are starting out, shared hosting is usually sufficient. 

Many hosting providers connection casual installation to rapidly get you up and running. And they person dedicated enactment teams if you request immoderate help.

4. Create Your Site

Next, it's clip to bring your website to life. And depending connected the level you’re using, the process volition vary. 

As an example, we’ll amusement you however you tin plan a website successful Wix.

First, spell to the Wix tract and travel the prompts to make your account.

Then prime the ellipse to bespeak the tract is for your business. And click “Continue.”

wix setup screen

In the adjacent screen, prime “Continue with Wix.”

wix setup screen

You tin usage the AI diagnostic to velocity things up. Otherwise, prime “Set up without Chat.”

wix setup screen

Next, you’ll spell done a fewer screens detailing accusation astir your business. 

When you’re done with those steps, click “Finish.” 

final wix setup screen

When you get to your dashboard, click the “Design Site” enactment adjacent the top.

Design Site fastener  highlighted

Next, click “Pick a Template” nether “Customize a Template.”

Customize a Template enactment    highlighted

On the adjacent screen, you’ll spot a wide scope of templates for your specified manufacture to take from.

Wix website templates for ecommerce industry

You tin take the template that fits your needs and past customize it. To bash so, hover implicit the template and click “Edit.”

hovering implicit    a website template shows the Edit button

This volition unfastened that template successful an easy-to-use editor.

Editor allows you to adhd  elements, adhd  sections, entree  pages, and more

Click connected immoderate constituent to edit it. You tin alteration text, adhd your logo, regenerate images, adhd caller sections, and more.

Don’t get excessively caught up successful the details conscionable yet. Because you’ll walk much clip going done idiosyncratic pages later. 

Once you’re done with the plan basics, spell backmost to your dashboard. And implicit the remainder of the setup.

list of steps to decorativeness  setup for your tiny  business

5. Add the Plugins, Extensions, oregon Apps You Need

Plugins, extensions, and apps are tools that tin assistance you adhd caller features to your site. Without requiring extended coding knowledge.

For example, Wix has a dedicated app marketplace wherever you tin find and instal assorted apps to heighten your website's functionality. 

wix's app marketplace  highlights apical  picks specified  arsenic  WhatsApp, QR codes, and more

If you tally an online store, you mightiness privation to take options related to shipping and delivery. To streamline those processes. 

When adding immoderate of these tools, support these tips successful mind:

  • Only adhd what you need. Too galore further tools tin dilatory down your site.
  • Regularly update your plugins, extensions, and/or apps to support information and performance
  • Read reviews and cheque ratings earlier installing immoderate caller plugin, extension, oregon app

6. Set Up Your Main Pages

Your main pages are those that signifier the halfway operation of your website and supply indispensable accusation to your visitors. So, they merit a batch of attention.

Every tiny concern website should typically person the pursuing cardinal pages:

  • Homepage: Serves arsenic the main landing leafage that offers an overview of your business
  • About us: Tells your company's communicative and introduces you
  • Products/services: Provides accusation astir what you offer
  • Contact us: Provides your concern interaction accusation and connection channels

The template that you've chosen should already see these main pages. But you'll request to customize them with your ain content. Here's however to bash that:

Click connected the “Pages” icon successful the near sidebar. And prime the leafage you privation to customize.

navigation to merchandise  pages

That leafage volition unfastened up wrong the Wix editor. 

product leafage   template

Now, regenerate the placeholder substance with your ain information. And update the images to bespeak your business.

Use Semrush's AI Writing Assistant to assistance you make compelling contented for your pages. 

Open the instrumentality and spell to “All Tools” > “More Tools.” Then, prime the “Sentence Expander” option.

navigation to Sentence Expander

Write a condemnation oregon 2 describing your concern successful the fixed box. And click "Generate."

Business statement  entered into "Content to expand" field.

You’ll spot expanded contented sections that you tin usage connected your pages.

7. Optimize Your Site for SEO

Search motor optimization (SEO) is the signifier of optimizing your website to fertile higher successful hunt engines’ integrated (unpaid) hunt results. Which tin pb to much postulation and perchance much customers for your business.

There are a batch of tactics progressive successful SEO. 

We won't screen each of them here, but instrumentality a look astatine our SEO checklist for a much broad overview of SEO champion practices.

For now, present are immoderate elemental steps you tin instrumentality to commencement optimizing your site:

  • Add applicable keywords to your leafage titles, headings, and content. Don't overuse them—keep it natural.
  • Write unsocial and descriptive title tags and meta descriptions for each page. These tin look successful hunt results and entice searchers to click.
  • Add alt text to your images to assistance hunt engines and visitors utilizing surface readers recognize what they're about
  • Regularly people quality content

If you request assistance uncovering applicable keywords for your business, usage Semrush's Keyword Magic Tool.

Open the tool, participate a wide word related to your business, and click "Search."

"fitness centers" entered into Keyword Magic Tool

You'll spot a database of related keywords, on with their hunt volumes (how often they're searched each month) and keyword trouble (how hard it is to fertile for them). 

Keyword database  shows hunt  presumption     related to the concern  specified  arsenic  "fitness centers adjacent   me," "fitness centers with pools adjacent   me," and "local fittingness  centers adjacent   me"

Since your website is new, prime mostly keywords that person little keyword trouble scores. Anything beneath 30 is apt a bully choice.

Pay attraction to hunt intent (Intent)—the crushed driving a searcher’s query—as well. Because it helps you find which keywords to usage connected definite pages.

For example, your merchandise oregon work pages should beryllium centered astir commercialized (C) and transactional (T) keywords. Which some bespeak the searcher is adjacent to making a purchase.

Once you’ve identified applicable terms, incorporated them into the important pages you already acceptable up wherever it makes consciousness to. And prevention others to usage for aboriginal pages. 

8. Add More Content to Your Site

Consider adding much contented to your site, particularly done blog posts. Because blog posts are large for providing answers to your people audience’s questions.

Over time, that tin assistance turn your business. Especially if those articles are focused connected immoderate of the keywords you identified earlier. 

If you request much ideas, usage the Topic Research instrumentality to find fashionable topics successful your niche. 

Open the tool, participate a wide word related to your business, and click the “Get contented ideas” button.

"exercise" entered into taxable   probe   tool

The instrumentality volition past make tons of taxable ideas.

topic paper  ideas see  "high humor  pressure," "strength training," and "mental health"

Choose immoderate taxable that seems peculiarly appealing. And commencement penning your archetypal blog post. 

Most Wix templates volition person a dedicated blog conception already acceptable up. 

You’ll conscionable request to spell successful and adhd caller posts. Here’s what that process mightiness look like:

choose Pages enactment    successful  Wix, past    Blog Pages, and Post.

9. Review and Publish Your Site

At this point, you've done astir of the enactment to make your tiny concern website. 

Before you marque it live, instrumentality immoderate clip to reappraisal everything carefully. 

We urge that you:

  • Go done each leafage and cheque for immoderate errors oregon things you privation to change
  • Make definite each the accusation is close and up to date
  • Test each the links to guarantee they enactment properly
  • View your tract connected antithetic devices similar phones to marque definite it looks bully connected each screens (You tin bash this close wrong your dashboard.)

Once you're blessed with however everything looks, it's clip to people your site. 

In astir website builders, there's a "Publish" oregon "Go Live" button. Click this fastener to marque your tract disposable to the public.

Grow Your New Website

Even though you've launched your website, this is conscionable the beginning.

You’ll privation to absorption connected increasing your online presence. And Semrush offers a scope of tools to assistance you bash this effectively—whether you privation to amended your SEO, tally paid advertizing campaigns, oregon analyse your competitors’ strategies.

Sign up today.