Website content planning worksheet

This website content planning worksheet starts from a simple idea: most of the work in a good website is not design. It is knowing what to say. Answer the prompts below in your own words; short answers are fine, and plain language works better than polished marketing copy. Print the page or copy the prompts into a document. When you are done, you will have almost everything a small business website needs, and you will know what our launch checklist means by "gather your details".

The basics

• Business name, exactly as customers say it:
• What you do, in one sentence a customer would understand:
• The town or area you are based in:
• Phone number for the website:
• Email address for the website:
• How you prefer customers to contact you (call, text or email):

Your services

List the jobs you want more of, then answer these for each one:

• What is it called, in the customer's words?
• Who usually needs it, and when?
• What should a customer know before they call (for example, whether you give a price before you start)?
• Is there a photo of this work you are proud of?

Where and when

• Towns, neighborhoods or counties you serve:
• Places you do not serve, if customers often ask:
• Your regular hours:
• How you handle evenings, weekends, holidays and emergencies:
• If customers visit you: your address, parking and accessibility notes:

Why customers choose you

Only include what is true and what you could show if asked.

• How long you have been in business:
• Licences and insurance you hold:
• What you do differently (for example, tidy work sites, clear prices or the same person from quote to finish):
• Links to reviews customers left for you on Google or other review sites:

Common questions

Write down the questions customers ask on the phone, and your usual answers. These often become the most useful part of a website.

• Question:
• Your answer:
• Question:
• Your answer:
• Question:
• Your answer:

Your look

• Colors you already use (on your van, cards or uniforms), and any you never want:
• Websites you like the look of, even from other industries, and what you like about them:
• The feeling you want customers to have: dependable, friendly, premium or something else:

Photos

• Your logo, in the best quality you have:
• Three to six photos of your own work:
• A photo of you, your team or your vehicle (optional, but customers like to know who is coming):

How to use your answers

Read your answers back and circle the three things a new customer most needs to know. Those belong on the first screen of your home page. Everything else finds a place further down or on its own page. Keep the worksheet: when something changes, such as your hours or a new service, update it here first and then on your website.

Want to see how these answers turn into a website? Explore our example websites, or read what to include on a small business website.