How to Build a Small Business Website on a Budget

A good website is non-negotiable for any small business in this day and age. Both physical and online traffic is driven by customers coming across businesses online. 

The statistics are clear-cut. 97% of consumers conduct online research before engaging with a business. A website can portray professionalism, build trust, and act as a hub of information. It’s a marketing tool that positively impacts a business’s profits.

You might be thinking “That sounds great, but it’s not in the budget right now…”

Some of the estimates for a small business website can be astronomical. Before you leave creating a website for your small business on the back burner, what if we told you there was a more affordable way? Creating and maintaining a website doesn’t have to be expensive. The final cost depends on the route you take. You can get started with a small budget.

Typical Small Business Website Prices

So, how much does a website for a small business cost? Well, it depends…

The average website cost for a small business varies widely. Some invest thousands in the set-up and pay hundreds for maintenance. Others never hit the $200 mark. Simply put, you have two options: either you can hire someone to do it all for you or you can get stuck in and DIY it with a website builder. All the set-up and maintenance can be done in-house without any expert guidance. 

There are pros and cons to both. Focusing on budget alone, DIY is your best option. Here’s an approximate price comparison showing you why. 

Hiring a website designer or developer to create your site for you costs around $6000 for set-up and then around $1000 for maintenance a year. That’s a significant chunk of any small business’s marketing budget.

The cost of building a website for a small business is massively reduced when you use a DIY website builder. There are no set-up costs, just the yearly fee for your domain name. Instead, you pay a monthly subscription (typically no more than $50 and usually much cheaper). 

4 Tips for Building a Small Business Website on a Budget

A little apprehensive about DIY-ing it? Here are our top tips for creating your own website. 

1. Secure a Good Domain Name 

There’s a lot riding on your domain name. If it’s not recognizable or easy for people to type, your traffic-building efforts will be even harder. So, don’t overthink it. Find a short, easy-to-spell, SEO-friendly, and on-brand website address. 

And as you choose your domain name, keep in mind that your website will cater to two types of people—completely new leads who discover you through search results and previous customers who want to check in with the business. Choosing a domain name that’s easy to remember will help win the hearts of both of these groups. 

You can purchase your domain name on an annual subscription. Popular domain name registration sites include GoDaddy and Google Domains. The annual fee for a domain name doesn’t usually hit the $20 mark. Take a look and see what domain names are available for your business. 

2. Choose the Right Website Builder

The easiest way to DIY your website is to find a user-friendly website builder. Avoid coding and build your site using blocks and drag-and-drop functions. There are various cheap website builders for small businesses. Your best option depends on the needs of your business and what you find easy to use. 

Shopify (starting at $29 a month) is designed for eCommerce businesses. A lot of experts like the customizability of WordPress sites—but this one does require more technical skills. Squarespace (starting as low as $16 a month) has a very easy-to-use cloud-based interface. Play around and find out what clicks for you. 

3. Make the Most Out of Templates and Themes

For affordable small business website design, use the templates and themes within your website builder. These are life savers for helping you to create a sleek site without having to pay for a designer. And remember: Colors are easily changeable, so aesthetically you’re looking for a design that fits with your brand’s style and will attract your ideal client. 

Try searching for templates specifically designed for the type of business you have. For example, an eCommerce site has different requirements than a service-based business’s website. If you want to go the extra mile, another option for inexpensive website design for small businesses is buying templates within your website builder or from designers. You can even search Etsy for options under $200 if none of the existing templates within your website builder speak to you. Just make sure the template you choose has all the pages you need.

4. Keep it Simple

When creating a website it’s easy to go down the rabbit hole and start planning to add all sorts of fancy effects and features. When creating a website on a budget, just focus on what matters most. Get the core pages spot-on. 

This includes your home page. Make a good first impression and ensure navigation is simple. Then there’s your FAQ page. It makes it quick and easy for prospects to find information. Your services page should convey what you do really clearly. Finally, don’t forget about your contact page. How can leads take the next step with you?

Your website copy should be informative and take visitors on a journey, keeping them on the site and interacting with your business for as long as possible. This will help your SEO in conjunction with keywords that your ideal client is using to find businesses like yours. There are plenty of free SEO tools to help you find the right keywords for your business and audience. 

Above all, your website should be a useful resource. You can add the fancy features as your website grows, but make sure your site is educational and helpful from day one. With the right domain name, website builder, template, and focus, you’ll massively reduce the cost of creating a website for a small business.

Make Sure You Have a Marketing Plan

“If you build it they will come” doesn’t apply to websites, unfortunately. As you go through the process of setting up your website, start thinking about how you will funnel traffic to it. 

You’re not investing in a website for it to just sit there doing nothing. For it to add value to your business, you need to integrate it into your marketing plan and actively direct leads to it. What can you do to get people clicking? You can attract traffic through SEO-friendly blogs, social media, email newsletters, or webinars. You can also install chat features like Podium’s Webchat to make sure getting in contact with your business is quick and easy. 

When building a business on a budget, you can create and maintain a website by just paying for your domain name and the monthly fee for your website builder. This means you can easily get small business website costs to under $200 a year.

Your website is an opportunity to grow your business. The reason we invest in websites in the first place is to make more money. Now you’ve got the budget sorted, to find out how to make the most of your website, check out our guide Websites 2.0.