🖥️ PAGE 3 — Do You Really Need a Website?
Let’s Decide Before You Spend the Money
One of the first things new business owners often hear is:
“You need a website.”
But do you?
The better question is:
WHAT DO YOU NEED A WEBSITE TO DO FOR YOUR BUSINESS?
Because simply having a website doesn't automatically bring customers, create sales or make a business successful.
A website is a tool.
Before you spend money building one, let's determine whether you need that tool—and what kind of website would actually make sense for your business.
🤔 DOES EVERY BUSINESS NEED A WEBSITE?
No.
At least, not necessarily when you're first getting started.
Some businesses may begin successfully using:
📱 Social media
🛍️ Online marketplaces
📞 Phone or text
📅 A booking platform
🔗 A simple link page
📍 A business listing
or another online platform.
If you're just testing a business idea, you may not need to immediately spend money building a large website.
BUT...
As your business grows, having your own website can become extremely valuable.
Why?
Because it gives your business a central online location.
🏠 THINK OF YOUR WEBSITE AS YOUR ONLINE HOME
You may have:
Facebook.
Instagram.
TikTok.
Etsy.
Amazon.
eBay.
A booking platform.
Google.
Email.
Those can all be useful.
But your website can become the place that connects everything together.
Instead of telling someone:
“Go to my Facebook, then click this link, then look for this post...”
you can simply say:
“Go to my website.”
From there, customers can find what they need.
🎯 FIRST QUESTION: WHAT SHOULD MY WEBSITE DO?
Before you build anything, complete this sentence:
I NEED MY WEBSITE TO ____________________.
Maybe you need it to:
🛍️ Sell products
📅 Book appointments
📋 Explain your services
💳 Accept payments
📞 Generate leads
📧 Collect email addresses
📂 Provide member resources
🎓 Sell digital products or courses
📝 Publish a blog
📸 Display your work
📍 Provide business information
✈️ Collect travel requests
🏠 Showcase properties
🔗 Organize all your business links
or simply:
MAKE MY BUSINESS EASIER TO FIND AND UNDERSTAND.
You may need several of these.
That's okay.
But you should know the purpose before you build the website.
💰 DON'T START WITH:
“HOW MUCH DOES A WEBSITE COST?”
Start with:
“WHAT DO I NEED?”
A simple informational website and a large online store are two completely different projects.
For example:
BUSINESS A
Needs:
Home
About
Services
Contact
That's a relatively simple website.
BUSINESS B
Needs:
500 products
Online payments
Shipping
Inventory tracking
Customer accounts
Discount codes
Returns
Email marketing
Product filtering
That's an entirely different website.
The price should reflect what you're actually building.
🟢 YOU MAY NOT NEED A FULL WEBSITE YET IF...
You are:
✔️ Still deciding whether you're actually going into business
✔️ Testing a product or service
✔️ Not ready to accept customers
✔️ Selling successfully through a marketplace
✔️ Using a booking system that currently handles everything you need
✔️ Operating primarily through referrals and simply need contact information online
In those situations, you may be able to start smaller.
START WITH WHAT YOU NEED TODAY.
Then grow.
🟡 YOU MAY BE READY FOR A WEBSITE IF...
Customers constantly ask:
“Do you have a website?”
or:
✔️ You want one place for all your business information
✔️ You need to sell products online
✔️ You need online booking
✔️ You need forms
✔️ You need customers to make payments
✔️ You want to publish useful information
✔️ You need a professional home for your brand
✔️ You want customers to find you through search engines
✔️ You're tired of explaining everything through messages
✔️ You're sending customers to five different places
✔️ Your business has outgrown the way you're currently operating
That's when a website may start solving real problems.
📱 “I HAVE FACEBOOK. WHY DO I NEED A WEBSITE?”
Facebook can be great for business.
So can Instagram.
So can TikTok.
But remember:
YOU DON'T OWN THOSE PLATFORMS.
You're using their platform under their rules.
They can change:
Algorithms.
Features.
Policies.
Fees.
Advertising options.
Account requirements.
Visibility.
A post that reached thousands of people yesterday may reach very few tomorrow.
An account can also be restricted, suspended or compromised.
Your social-media audience is valuable—but don't make one social platform the only doorway into your business.
📱 SOCIAL MEDIA + WEBSITE CAN WORK TOGETHER
This doesn't have to be:
WEBSITE OR SOCIAL MEDIA.
It can be:
WEBSITE AND SOCIAL MEDIA.
For example:
Someone sees your TikTok.
⬇️
They visit your website.
⬇️
They join your email list.
⬇️
They make a purchase.
⬇️
They become a repeat customer.
Social media can help people discover you.
Your website can help them do business with you.
🛍️ “I SELL ON A MARKETPLACE. DO I STILL NEED A WEBSITE?”
Maybe.
Marketplaces can be excellent places to sell because customers are already shopping there.
Examples might include:
Amazon
Etsy
eBay
and other selling platforms.
A marketplace can provide:
✔️ Existing traffic
✔️ Customer trust
✔️ Payment processing
✔️ Selling tools
✔️ Order management
But you're also operating inside someone else's marketplace.
That means you're subject to their:
Policies.
Fees.
Rules.
Account requirements.
Search algorithms.
Seller standards.
A marketplace can be part of your business without being your entire business.
🚨 DON'T BUILD YOUR BUSINESS ON ONE PLATFORM ONLY
Imagine your entire business depends on one social-media account or marketplace.
Then one day:
Your account is suspended.
Your reach disappears.
The platform changes its rules.
Your selling privileges are restricted.
Your account gets hacked.
Or the platform simply isn't popular anymore.
What happens to your customers?
Give customers another way to find you.
That could include:
🌐 Your website
📧 Your email list
📞 Your business phone
🔗 Other established channels
This is about reducing dependency—not abandoning platforms that are working for you.
🛒 WHAT IF I SELL PRODUCTS?
If you want customers to:
Browse products
Add items to a cart
Pay online
Choose shipping
Track orders
Use discount codes
Create customer accounts
then you probably need an e-commerce website or selling platform designed for those functions.
That's different from a basic informational website.
📅 WHAT IF I PROVIDE SERVICES?
You may need a website that allows customers to:
Review your services
See pricing
Read policies
Book appointments
Pay deposits
Complete forms
Contact you
Read FAQs
View your work
Your website may not need hundreds of pages.
It needs the RIGHT pages.
📋 WHAT IF I DON'T SELL ANYTHING ONLINE?
You can still benefit from a website.
An informational website might simply provide:
🏠 Home
👤 About
📋 Services
📸 Portfolio
❓ FAQ
📞 Contact
📍 Location/service area
The customer learns about your business and then contacts you.
That's perfectly fine.
Every website doesn't need a shopping cart.
💻 DIFFERENT TYPES OF WEBSITES
Let's simplify this.
📄 INFORMATIONAL WEBSITE
Primarily provides information.
Good for:
Consultants
Service businesses
Organizations
Professionals
Local businesses
🛍️ E-COMMERCE WEBSITE
Designed to sell products online.
May include:
Products
Collections/categories
Cart
Checkout
Payments
Shipping
Inventory
📅 BOOKING WEBSITE
Designed around appointments or reservations.
May include:
Calendar
Availability
Services
Deposits
Policies
Forms
📸 PORTFOLIO WEBSITE
Shows examples of your work.
Useful for:
Photographers
Designers
Artists
Contractors
Event professionals
Beauty professionals
📝 BLOG/CONTENT WEBSITE
Primarily publishes articles or educational content.
🔐 MEMBERSHIP WEBSITE
Provides content or services to registered or paying members.
🔗 SIMPLE LANDING PAGE
May only have one page designed to get the visitor to take one specific action.
🤯 YOUR WEBSITE MAY BE MORE THAN ONE TYPE
That's normal.
You might have:
An informational website
Online store
Blog
Membership
all on the same website.
Don't worry about putting your website into a perfect category.
Focus on what you need it to accomplish.
🧩 WHAT ABOUT A WEBSITE BUILDER?
A website builder gives you tools to create a website without manually coding everything yourself.
Depending on the platform, you may use:
Templates
Drag-and-drop sections
Themes
Apps
Plugins
Built-in payment systems
Booking tools
Forms
and other features.
This has made DIY website building much more accessible to small-business owners.
But “easy to build” doesn't mean “impossible to mess up.” 😳
Planning still matters.
That's why we're going to plan the website on Page 4 BEFORE we start building anything.
🛍️ WHAT ABOUT SHOPIFY?
Shopify is designed heavily around commerce.
If your main goal is selling products online, Shopify may be worth considering.
It can handle things such as:
Products
Inventory
Payments
Shipping
Discounts
Customer accounts
Orders
Collections
and more.
But if your business only needs a simple informational website, you may not need all of those features.
CHOOSE THE PLATFORM BASED ON THE BUSINESS.
Don't choose the business around the platform.
🌐 WHAT ABOUT THE BOSS WEBSITES?
If you decide you need a website but don't want to build everything yourself, you can also explore the website services available through:
THE BOSS WEBSITES
Website needs can vary greatly depending on whether you're creating a simple business site, an online store or something more customized.
Before paying anyone to build your website, know what you need the website to accomplish.
That makes it much easier to explain what you're looking for—and understand what you're paying for.
🌐 EXPLORE WEBSITE OPTIONS
Link that button to:
🚨 DON'T GIVE A WEBSITE DESIGNER COMPLETE CONTROL OF YOUR BUSINESS
Hiring someone to build your website doesn't mean they should own everything.
Ideally, YOU should know:
✔️ Where your domain is registered
✔️ Who owns the domain account
✔️ What platform your website uses
✔️ How the website is paid for
✔️ Who has administrator access
✔️ Where your business email is hosted
✔️ What apps/services you're paying for
✔️ How to contact the providers
If the person who built your website disappeared tomorrow:
Could you still access your business?
If the answer is no, fix that.
💳 WATCH THE MONTHLY FEES
A website may involve more than one cost.
Depending on your setup, you might pay for:
🌐 Domain registration
🖥️ Website platform/hosting
📧 Business email
🧩 Apps/plugins
📅 Booking software
📧 Email marketing
🔒 Security features
🎨 Premium themes
💳 Payment processing
and other services.
$9.99 HERE + $14.99 THERE + $29.99 SOMEWHERE ELSE ADDS UP.
Know what you're paying for.
🧾 CREATE A WEBSITE EXPENSE LIST
Write down every recurring website-related expense.
Domain: $________
Website/Hosting: $________
Business Email: $________
Apps: $________
Booking: $________
Email Marketing: $________
Other: $________
TOTAL MONTHLY COST:
$________________
TOTAL ANNUAL COST:
$________________
Now ask:
Is my business actually using everything I'm paying for?
🚫 DON'T BUY FEATURES JUST BECAUSE THEY SOUND IMPRESSIVE
Your website doesn't automatically need:
Animations.
Popups everywhere.
Ten apps.
A complicated homepage.
Twenty pages.
A chatbot.
A membership.
A blog.
A customer portal.
A mobile app.
or every new feature somebody shows you.
WHAT DOES YOUR CUSTOMER NEED?
That's the question.
📱 YOUR WEBSITE MUST WORK ON A PHONE
This is extremely important.
Many customers will visit your website from a phone.
Your website may look beautiful on your computer but terrible on a smaller screen.
Always check:
📱 Text size
📱 Buttons
📱 Menus
📱 Photos
📱 Forms
📱 Checkout
📱 Booking
📱 Contact information
📱 Page speed
DON'T ONLY DESIGN FOR YOUR LAPTOP.
👀 THE CUSTOMER SHOULD KNOW WHAT YOU DO
Imagine someone lands on your homepage for the first time.
Within a few seconds, can they figure out:
WHO ARE YOU?
WHAT DO YOU DO?
WHAT DO YOU WANT THEM TO DO NEXT?
If not, your website may be too confusing.
A beautiful website that confuses the customer isn't doing its job.
👉 EVERY IMPORTANT PAGE NEEDS A NEXT STEP
What do you want the visitor to do?
Examples:
SHOP NOW
BOOK AN APPOINTMENT
GET A QUOTE
CALL US
CONTACT US
JOIN NOW
LEARN MORE
VIEW SERVICES
REQUEST INFORMATION
These are called Calls to Action, often shortened to CTA.
Don't make customers guess what to do next.
📝 DO I NEED A BLOG?
Maybe.
A blog can be useful for:
Educating customers
Answering common questions
Sharing expertise
Creating content
Supporting search visibility
Driving people to relevant products/services
But:
DON'T START A BLOG BECAUSE SOMEONE SAID YOU “HAVE TO.”
If you're never going to use it, you may not need it right now.
🔍 WILL A WEBSITE AUTOMATICALLY PUT ME ON GOOGLE?
No.
Building a website doesn't mean customers will immediately find it through search.
Search visibility can involve:
Website structure
Useful content
Keywords
Page titles
Descriptions
Business information
Technical setup
Competition
Time
and many other factors.
We're going to cover the basics on:
🔍 PAGE 10 — GOOGLE, SEO & GETTING FOUND ONLINE
💰 HOW MUCH SHOULD I SPEND ON A WEBSITE?
There isn't one correct number.
A website can range from a relatively inexpensive DIY project to thousands—or much more—for custom professional development.
Instead of asking:
“What's a normal website price?”
ask:
“WHAT EXACTLY AM I GETTING FOR THAT PRICE?”
Request a clear explanation of what's included.
📋 QUESTIONS TO ASK BEFORE PAYING SOMEONE TO BUILD YOUR WEBSITE
Ask:
☐ What platform will you use?
☐ Will I own/control my domain?
☐ Will I receive administrator access?
☐ How many pages are included?
☐ Is mobile setup included?
☐ Are products included? How many?
☐ Is e-commerce included?
☐ Is booking included?
☐ Are forms included?
☐ Are policies included?
☐ Is SEO setup included? What does that mean specifically?
☐ Who provides the wording/content?
☐ Who provides the photos?
☐ Are revisions included?
☐ How many revisions?
☐ What happens after the website launches?
☐ Is ongoing maintenance required?
☐ What recurring fees will I pay?
☐ Who do I pay those fees to?
☐ Can I make basic updates myself?
☐ What happens if I stop working with you?
GET THE DETAILS BEFORE YOU PAY.
🚩 WEBSITE RED FLAGS
Be cautious if someone:
🚩 Refuses to tell you what platform they're using
🚩 Registers your domain in their own name without clearly explaining the arrangement
🚩 Won't give you appropriate access to your website
🚩 Can't explain recurring charges
🚩 Promises you'll be “#1 on Google” without explaining what they mean
🚩 Pressures you to buy features you don't understand
🚩 Makes it difficult for you to leave or transfer services
🚩 Doesn't explain what happens after launch
YOU DON'T HAVE TO BECOME A WEB DESIGNER.
But you should understand what you're buying.
📝 DO I NEED A WEBSITE? WORKSHEET
What does my business sell or provide?
How do customers currently find me?
How do customers currently buy/book/contact me?
What problems am I trying to solve?
I need customers to:
☐ Learn about my business
☐ Buy products
☐ Book appointments
☐ Pay online
☐ Contact me
☐ Request a quote
☐ Complete a form
☐ Join an email list
☐ Access member content
☐ Read educational content
☐ View my work
☐ Find my location
☐ Other: ______________________
🟢 MY WEBSITE DECISION
Choose one:
🟢 YES — I'M READY FOR A WEBSITE
I know what I need it to do.
🟡 MAYBE — I NEED TO PLAN FIRST
That's perfectly fine.
🔴 NOT YET
My current setup is working and I don't need to add this expense right now.
“NOT YET” IS A BUSINESS DECISION TOO.
You can always revisit it later.
⭐ MRS. GWEN'S WEBSITE RULES
1. Don't build a website just because somebody says you need one.
Know its purpose.
2. Start with what your business needs.
You can add more later.
3. Your website doesn't replace social media.
Use them together when appropriate.
4. Don't depend entirely on one outside platform.
Give customers another way to find you.
5. Keep control of your domain and important accounts.
6. Know every recurring fee.
7. Design for mobile too.
8. Make it easy to understand what you do.
9. Tell customers what to do next.
10. Don't pay for features you don't understand or need.
❤️ ONE LAST THING
Don't compare your first website to a company that's been in business for 20 years.
You may start with:
HOME
ABOUT
SERVICES
CONTACT
That's a website.
Later you might add:
Products.
Booking.
A blog.
Memberships.
Downloads.
Email marketing.
More automation.
YOUR WEBSITE CAN GROW WITH YOUR BUSINESS.
Don't let the desire to build everything stop you from building what you actually need.
➡️ NEXT: PLANNING YOUR WEBSITE BEFORE YOU BUILD IT
You've decided whether a website makes sense.
Now we're going to plan it before you start clicking buttons.
On the next page, we'll determine:
What pages you need.
What goes on each page.
What your menu should look like.
What information you need to gather.
What photos you need.
What customers should be able to do.
And what you should have ready before you—or anyone you hire—starts building.
← PAGE 2: CREATING A PROFESSIONAL BUSINESS EMAIL
🏠 ONLINE BUSINESS HOME
PAGE 4: PLANNING YOUR WEBSITE BEFORE YOU BUILD IT →
⚠️ IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER
This information is provided for general educational purposes only. Website platforms, features, pricing, policies and technology can change.
The right website setup depends on your individual business, budget and needs. Always review current pricing, contracts, ownership terms and recurring charges before purchasing website services.