5 min read By Erwan Goossens
The 10 essentials of a website for tradespeople and shops
A good website for a tradesperson or a shop doesn’t need to be complicated. It has to reassure, be found on Google and make contact easy: here are the 10 essentials.
A good website for a tradesperson or a shop should let a customer understand within seconds what you do, where you work and how to contact you, and then give them confidence. No need for complicated effects: ten elements make the difference between a website that makes the phone ring and a website that sleeps.
1. Visible, clickable contact details
Your phone number should be visible at the top of every page and clickable on smartphones: one tap, and the call starts. The same goes for your email address and, if you use it, WhatsApp. Add your address (or your service area if you work at customers’ premises) and your opening hours.
Avoid: a phone number that only appears in an image, a form as the only way to get in touch, contact details that differ from one page to another.
2. What you do, said simply
Visitors should understand your trade from the very first screen: “Electrician in Mons: repairs, renovation, compliance work”. Then describe your services, with one page per important service. It helps your customers, and Google, which better understands which searches you should appear for.
Write the way you talk to your customers, without jargon. A clear sentence beats a vague slogan.
3. Your service area
“Working in Mons, Quaregnon, Saint-Ghislain, La Louvière and the surrounding area”: this simple information avoids pointless calls and helps you appear in local searches. Mention the municipalities you actually serve, without creating dozens of near-identical pages for each town: Google considers such pages low-quality content.
4. Real photos of your work
Nothing reassures more than a finished job, a shop window, a team at work or a “before and after”. Stock photos are easy to spot and prove nothing. Photos taken with a good smartphone, well framed and in good light, often do a better job.
Remember to make them lighter before putting them online, and to give them alternative text that describes what they show.
5. Genuine customer reviews
Reviews are among the first things your prospects look at. Showcase real reviews from your customers, with their permission, and invite satisfied customers to leave a review on your Google profile.
Never publish fake reviews: it is a prohibited commercial practice, and it destroys trust as soon as it is discovered.
6. A simple quote request
A short form is enough: name, phone or email, type of work, message and, if useful, a photo. The longer the form, the more requests you risk losing. State your response time clearly, for example “reply within 24 working hours”, and stick to it.
7. A website that works perfectly on smartphones
Your customers often look for you on their phone, sometimes in an emergency. The website must be readable without zooming, with buttons big enough to tap with a finger and a simple menu. Test it yourself: if you have to squint or aim at links, so do your customers.
8. Fast loading
A website that takes several seconds to appear loses visitors, especially on mobile. Optimised images, light code and good hosting make the difference. To understand what is at stake, read why your website’s speed affects your sales and your SEO.
9. A Google Business Profile linked to your website
For local searches (“bakery Mons”, “electrician near me”), a Google Business Profile is essential: it shows your opening hours, phone number, reviews and a link to your website. Create it for free, fill it in carefully, and make sure your name, address and phone number are exactly the same as on your website.
10. Legal notices and GDPR compliance
In Belgium, a business website must make it possible to identify the business: name, address, company number (BCE/KBO), VAT number where applicable and email address. Add a privacy policy as soon as you collect data, for example with a contact form, and ask for consent before any non-essential cookie. Our article GDPR and cookies: what your website must comply with in Belgium explains it all.
Extras that make a difference
- Your accreditations, labels and insurance, if your trade requires them: they reassure straight away.
- An “About” page with your story and your photo: people trust a person, not a logo.
- A FAQ that answers recurring questions: timeframes, guarantees, service area, payment.
- Online appointment booking, if your business lends itself to it: that is the idea behind a booking website.
Test your current website
Take your smartphone, open your website as a new customer would, and answer these six questions honestly:
- Do I understand what the business does in less than five seconds, without scrolling?
- Can I find the phone number straight away, and does the call start with a single tap?
- Do I know whether the business works in my municipality?
- Can I see real photos of completed work and real customer reviews?
- Does the page appear quickly, without elements moving while it loads?
- Can I request a quote in less than a minute?
If you answered “no” to two questions or more, your website is probably costing you enquiries. The good news: most of these points can be fixed without rebuilding everything, and a redesign gives you a sound foundation when the website is too old.
Frequently asked questions
I already have a Facebook page: do I need a website?
Yes. A Facebook page does not belong to you: the platform decides what is shown and to whom, and not all your customers are there. Your website remains your main shop window, the one you control; social networks point to it.
How many pages does a tradesperson’s website need?
Five or six pages are often enough: home, services (or one page per main service), work, about and contact. That is the format of a showcase website.
How much does a website for a tradesperson cost?
At Novexa Digital, a tailor-made showcase website starts at €1,190 excl. VAT. All the details are in our article how much a website costs in Belgium.
See an example
Our demo website for a fictitious plumber and electrician illustrates several of these elements: services, service areas, certifications and a quote request with photos. You can browse it from the demos page. And if you would like a website like this for your business, request a free quotation.
