Small Business Website Design

Your website is often the first thing a customer checks before they call you, and the last thing they check before they choose someone else. Small business website design here means a site that loads quickly on a phone, makes it obvious what you do and where you work, and makes it easy to get in touch. Nothing more complicated than it needs to be.

This is for contractors, trades, clinics, shops, consultants and service businesses across Canada who need a professional site without paying agency prices or gambling on a marketplace freelancer. You work with me from the first call to launch day and after.

What's included

• A clear plan. Which pages you need, what each one should say, and what you want visitors to do.
• Custom design. Built around your business, your photos and your brand, not a template everyone else is using.
• Mobile-first build. Most of your visitors are on phones, so the site is designed for them first.
• Contact, quote or booking forms that send to your inbox and are protected from spam.
• Search basics done properly. Page titles, descriptions, headings, a sitemap, Google Business Profile tips and Search Console setup.
• Accessibility to WCAG AA so everyone can use the site and you meet Ontario requirements if they apply to you.
• Privacy policy, cookie consent and email consent set up for Canadian rules.
• Training so you can update text, photos and hours yourself.

What a small business website costs

Most small business websites fall between $4,000 and $10,000 CAD, plus GST/HST. A five-page site for a single-service business sits at the low end. A site with a dozen service pages, a project gallery, booking tools or English and French versions sits toward the top. Online stores and custom features can go higher, and you'll know that before we start.

Try the website cost calculator for a rough number based on what you need, or read the guide to website costs in Canada to see what drives the price up or down.

What moves the price

• Number of pages and how much writing they need.
• Whether you have good photos or need help sourcing them.
• Features like online booking, payments or a member area.
• A French version of the site.
• Moving content from an existing site.

Built for Canadian rules

A small business site in Canada has more to get right than a template site from a US builder assumes. Larger Ontario organizations must meet accessibility standards. Visitors from Quebec bring privacy and French-language requirements. Any form that signs people up for emails has to collect consent properly under the anti-spam law. I build these in from the start so you don't find out about them from a complaint letter.

How it works

1. Short call. We talk about your business, your customers and what the site needs to do. You get a fixed quote within a few days.
2. Plan. A page list and content outline, with clear notes on what I need from you.
3. Design. You review the home page and a key inner page, with up to two rounds of changes.
4. Build. The full site is built on a private preview address you can click through.
5. Review and launch. You check everything, I test forms, speed and accessibility, and the site goes live.
6. Training and handover. A walkthrough of how to make your own updates, plus a written guide.

What to have ready

You don't need everything sorted before the first call, but these make a project faster and cheaper:

• Your logo and any brand colours or fonts you already use.
• A list of the services you want to be found for, in order of importance.
• Real photos of your work, your team or your space. Stock photos are a last resort.
• A few customer reviews you have permission to use.
• Access to your domain registrar, current website and Google Business Profile, if you have them.

If some of this is missing, that's normal. I'll help you fill the gaps, and the plan will show what's needed and by when.

How long it takes

A starter site usually takes 3 to 5 weeks. A standard business site with more pages takes 5 to 8 weeks. The schedule depends most on how quickly content and feedback come back, so I'll give you a clear list of what I need and when.

Which platform?

I build small business sites on WordPress, Shopify or a modern Next.js and headless CMS setup, depending on what you need to edit and how much you want to spend on upkeep. A plumbing contractor like WC Plumbing needs something different from a glass and glazing company like Hammertown Glass, and both differ from an online store like TeamGear.ca. You can see those projects on the work page.

After launch

A website needs updates, backups and the occasional change. You can handle that yourself, or put the site on a monthly care plan and have me look after it.