Small Business Web Design Guide: Top Tips 2022

In today's world, where almost all consumers are connected to the Internet, small businesses need to have an online presence. Not only should their website look good, but it needs to be engaging with excellent functionality and design. Let's explore why. 

In recent years, we've seen a tremendous increase in online sales. Shoppers are browsing the internet for the top products and services. Therefore, small business website design should be a top priority for any small business owner. 

This is the first reference point for potential customers. It's where the business owner sets the stage and shows viewers who they are and why their products are the best around. First impressions matter and having a strong website design improves the chances of viewers converting into paying customers.  

How can you create an engaging small business website design and thrive online? Check out these 15 tips from experts to make your business stand out.

As a website owner, this will be your most crucial decision when designing your website. It can make or break your reputation so be sure to choose a user-friendly name that aligns with your brand. Research is critical here.

Your domain name will be your customers' first impression of your brand. We recommend you secure a domain name that follows these criteria: 

• Easy to remember
• Short and to the point
• Industry-specific

If you're in the food industry, you want your name to be significant to food. Using the right keywords will help search engines and potential clients better understand your site and what you offer. Likewise, if you think you'll want to expand in the future, choose a flexible domain name that's more general. 

Here are some other things to look out for when choosing a domain name: 

• Spelling and pronunciation: You don't want to confuse your audience with your domain name. If people can say and spell your business name easily, they're more likely to remember it.
• Choose your extension wisely: Make sure to pick a popular and commonly used extension like .com, .co.uk, or .net.
• Check the domain history: Make sure the domain doesn't have a horrible history or a bad connection. A great tool to use when conducting your research is Wayback Machine. Ideally, your domain name should be your company's name, but that isn't always possible as it depends on whether the domain name is available for purchase. If it's not, you'll need to get creative.

Click here to see if the domain name you want is available.

The next step to building a successful website is choosing a web hosting platform. Here are the top benefits you'll receive from a quality web host: 

• Secure server. A good web host platform will fight off online threats, hackers, and cyberattacks.
• Data storage. Your site data and clients personal information needs to be kept safe at all times. A web host provider handles this.
• Speed. If your website takes forever to load, you're going to lose customer interest. Positive customer experiences are key to a successful business, so choose a web host platform that offers fast loading times.

Since not all hosts are created the same, you need to pick the one that best suits your company's needs. At Kitching Ltd, we offer reliable web hosting at unbeatable prices. Get in touch with us to learn more about the hosting platform right for you.

When working on your small business website design, you need to optimise your layout to serve your intended clients and meet their needs. The design needs to be easy to navigate and have a strong online presence. 

This is where a professional team of web designers come into play. They'll be able to create a beautiful website that your customers will enjoy browsing. Great web design takes customers to where you want them to go. If you want them to book a service with you, a well-thought-out design can make this happen. 

Moreover, you want to make use of white space when creating a solid small business website design. This includes: 

• Keeping the site simple
• Not providing too much information
• Highlighting important information
• Having a clear call to action
• Easily identifying clickable links

Brand consistency also comes into play when your design is of a good standard. Customers will recognise your logo, branding, and colours, ensuring they are in the right place. Many searches today happen on mobile, making mobile-friendly web design essential for small businesses. 

Google is currently pushing a mobile-first approach, so you must get your mobile design spot on to stay relevant and be easily found online. Today small business website mobile design should be as good or even better than desktop design.

We know small business owners generally don't have time for online marketing and web design. As day-to-day operations take up most of their time, they need help setting up a website that will market them in the correct light. Thankfully small business web design companies have perfected this service and continue to help owners connect to their clients. And at a great price point too.

WordPress, Sqarespace, and Wix. These are all examples of content management systems (CMS). When small business website design is complete, it's easy for business owners to forget to maintain it. This approach has many issues, the biggest one being that Google ranks websites better when they constantly add helpful content. 

The solution? Implementing a content management system. This makes it possible for anyone on your team to add content without needing specialised technical knowledge.

Another advantage of using a CMS system is that you don't need any coding knowledge to use it, and many users can collaborate simultaneously. CMS platforms also have built-in SEO extensions and features, helping you rank better in online searches.

Now, there are reasons to ditch the CMS and work alongside a team of web designers. Here are the main disadvantages of content management systems: 

• There's a much larger security risk associated with CMS
• Depending on your comfort with computers, there may be a large learning curve
• Business owners need to set aside time for updating and maintenance on their website

Consistency is a critical factor in web design regarding functionality and visual elements. Consistency ensures that your website looks orderly and works harmoniously across all its elements, such as footers, headers, sidebars, and navigation bars. Your users have a more positive experience with it in place.

Just because you know where the content on your website is doesn't mean everyone else knows where it is. When you get your consistency right, it makes for a friendly website that is easily navigated. Clients notice when you design your website with them in mind, and you will be rewarded with return visits for this.

Here are some questions you should answer when looking for consistency in your website:

• Are all your logos the same or from the same family?
• Are your spacings between elements consistent?
• Does your website have the same colours throughout your website?
• Are all text link colours the same?
• Do your headings all have the same fonts and sizes?

It's essential to strive for consistency. You must design your website with the user in mind, as we'll see in the next tip.

User experience, or UX, is providing your clients with a service quickly and efficiently when needed. Clients don't have the time to scroll through useless copy, videos, or images to find a solution. As a result, your business and marketing efforts will suffer when your clients don't have a positive user experience.

Small business website design should create a meaningful and relevant experience for their clients. This is done by following the guidelines:

• Boost your page loading speed: Faster loading speed equals better customer retention.
• Build a visual experience: Using images makes your website more appealing.
• Add a search function: Visitors must be able to find what they are looking for with ease and confidence.
• Incorporate a good call to action: Make it clear what you want your users to do next.

A clear idea of the page structure and how it can benefit the users is an essential step in the web design process. Maybe your website looks beautiful and clean, but it isn't easy to know where to start. So, do UX right, and consider your customers' needs first!

The About Us page is a critical page on your website. It allows visitors to get to know your company. Also, this page answers questions visitors may have about who you are, what you do, and what you stand for.    

Often, the focus is on your services and products, but small business web designers should not miss the chance to capitalise on a strong About Us page. This is where you can connect with your visitors and show them why you are the right company to do business with.

The Internet is anonymous, and customers want to know who is behind a website before they part with their hard-earned money. They want to be assured their money is safe and that they receive the products and services. A good About Us page should help you bring this message across successfully.

Information on your About Us page should include:

• Remember to show off the personality of your small business.
• Focus on answering the five Ws: Who, What, Where, When, and Why.
• Make sure the content relates to your customer.
• Include a Call to Action so that they can take the next step.
• Inspire trust.

Read our blog "How to Write an Awesome About Us page".

As we mentioned earlier, adding a call to action leads your clients to where you want them to go. Your clients must know where they are going once they click the CTA. Make the next step easy, and your clients will follow. You can say your CTA is similar to a signpost.

For example, if your client goes to your products page and there isn't a clear CTA, chances are they'll leave.  

When designing your CTA's, be sure to design them well, make them highly visible, and list the clear benefits.

Here are some examples of compelling CTA's, but you can always create your own, so it fits your website:

• Buy Now
• Add to Cart
• Add to Wish List
• Checkout
• Contact Us
• Sign Up
• Free Trial

Every visitor responds differently to CTAs. Therefore, we recommend that you test their effectiveness and update as necessary.

You can have the best product/service in the world, but your small business website will never succeed if you don't know how to convey its message to potential clients. Your copy (text on your website) is just as important as good design because combining these two will ensure high conversion rates.

Good copy also helps your rank better on search engines because it improves your SEO (Search Engine Optimisation). For example, small business websites with high-quality copy and that frequently added good copy to their websites will rank higher.

Good copy also builds a better relationship with your visitors, ensuring return business, growth, and trust.

A solid contact form can be the backbone of lead generation for your small business. As many fake websites are out there, by adding your contact details, you are showing that you're a real business with an address. 

Excellent read: "Why It's Important to Have a Real Address on Your Website".

Your business name, street address, phone number, and email contact address should be displayed on every website page. Many visitors will be arriving through internal pages via search engines. Place those essential details at the top or bottom of the page or along one of the margins.

Pro Tip: If you are operating your small business from home, be sure to rent a PO Box if you don't feel safe sharing this information.

Not complying with data privacy can lead to fines, prohibition, and even lawsuits. Adding a data privacy policy to your website is essential because this legal document details how a website visitors' data may be used.  

You need to explain which data your website orders and collects and what you plan to do with that data.

Usually, this document will be situated in your footer, so it is easy for visitors to review it. Also, the laws regarding privacy policies are country-specific, so make sure yours comply in your country.

Social media is deeply ingrained in people's lives today. Currently, there are ± 53 million active social media users in the UK, 77.9% of the population, spending an average of 110 minutes on social media daily.  

As your clients move through your website pages, they need to access your social media pages whenever they want too quickly. We recommend you add these buttons to your footer and contact us page.

The most popular small business social media platforms are:

• Facebook
• Twitter
• LinkedIn
• Instagram

These buttons on your website allow your visitors to easily share your company and its information with their social media networks. This will add value to your marketing efforts, allowing you to reach new audiences and generate more leads.

Small business owners only have a few seconds to win or lose a potential customer. Therefore, ensuring the first impression is excellent goes a long way. If the business sells online, the product photos, images, and descriptions should be sharp and to the point. How you showcase your products will determine if your customers buy or not.

The goal of your product page is to receive orders. Here are some guidelines of what your product page must accomplish:

• Clearly explain what is for sale: Your product page should show your visitors what you are selling, explain the product, and what the cost will be.
• Build trust: Buying online might feel foreign to some of your potential clients, so answering their doubts will increase sales.
• Make the customer connect to the page: You want to create an experience for your customers, so use good copy and media.
• Stick to the point: Don't overload your product page with information. Instead, you want your customers to feel relaxed and welcomed.

As we have mentioned, your website's ranking on Google will determine your site's performance. When you index your website correctly, search engines can see the most important pages and present them to potential clients. It can even send them directly to what they are looking for from your business.

Google will use little snippets of codes (bots or spiders) to crawl through all your pages, helping them better understand your website and its contents. This is also why SEO is so important if you want your page to rank highly.

Thankfully most small business web design companies will take care of this process for you. Get in touch with our team of web designers to learn more.

As one can see, many parts need to come together for small business website design. That is why we recommend you start your journey with a professional team that knows the ins and outs, provides support, and keeps your small business performing at its best online.

As a small business, your customers must be able to find you online. With these top tips and selecting the right small business website designers, you are sure to succeed.