How Long Does It Take to Build a Small Business Website?

Typical timelines

These are rough guides. Your project may be faster or slower.

Our process, day by day

Here's how a Starter site goes from first call to live in 7 working days.

• ✓Day 0: You get in touch. We reply within one working day.
• ✓Day 1: A 15-minute call about your business. You get a fixed quote in writing.
• ✓Days 1–2: You pay a 50% deposit and send your logo, photos and list of services.
• ✓Days 2–5: We design and build the site and send you a private link.
• ✓Days 5–6: You ask for changes. We make them, usually the same day.
• ✓Day 7: You pay the balance. The site goes live and we connect Google.

What slows a website down

In our experience, these are the most common causes of delay on any web project:

• ✓Waiting for text. Writing about your own business is harder than it sounds.
• ✓Waiting for photos.
• ✓Domain access. If an old provider holds your domain, getting it back can take days.
• ✓Too many decision makers. Changes from three people, one after another, add weeks.
• ✓Scope creep. Adding a shop or booking system halfway through.
• ✓Long gaps between rounds of feedback.

How to speed it up

Small steps before you start save the most time.

• ✓Write a rough list of your services and the towns you cover before the first call.
• ✓Pick 10 to 20 photos from your phone in advance.
• ✓Find your domain login, or the name of whoever registered it.
• ✓Have one person give feedback, all in one go.
• ✓Agree the pages up front and add extras after launch.

What happens after launch

Going live isn't the end. Google can take a few days to a few weeks to show new pages. We submit your sitemap to Google Search Console to help it along.

In the first month, ask your customers for Google reviews, add a few more photos to your Google Business Profile, and check your enquiries are reaching you. After that, a small update every month or two keeps the site fresh.

Who does what during the build

On our side: the design, the build, the page titles and descriptions, the contact form, mobile testing, the sitemap and the Google Business Profile set-up. On your side: answering the first call, sending your logo and photos, checking the text is accurate, and giving one round of clear feedback. If both sides stick to that, a Starter site really can go live in a week.

Planning around busy seasons

Timing matters. A café or tourism business wants the new site live before Easter or the summer, not in the middle of it. A gift shop needs it well before November. Trades often want it ready for spring, when enquiries pick up.

Work back from the date you need it. Leave a week or two of slack for photos, text and Google to catch up. Starting six to eight weeks before your busy season is a safe rule for most small businesses, even if the build itself only takes a week or two.

Why some projects take months

When a website takes three or four months, it's rarely because the build is hard. More often the project has no fixed scope, no deadline and no one person making decisions. Every round of feedback adds a week, and new ideas keep getting added.

Large agency projects also have more steps: discovery workshops, wireframes, design sign-off, development, testing and content entry. Each step has its own review. For a large business, that process makes sense. For a five-page trade site, it's usually more than you need.

What to prepare before the first call

Having these ready can cut days off the timeline.

• ✓Your business name, phone, email and address (or the towns you cover)
• ✓Your logo, or a note that you need one
• ✓A list of services, with the ones you want more of marked
• ✓Three websites you like the look of, from any business
• ✓10 to 20 photos of your work, premises or team
• ✓Your domain details, if you already own one
• ✓Your Google Business Profile login, if you have one

Redesigns can be faster, or slower

If you already have a website, a redesign can be quicker because the text and photos exist. But moving a domain from an old provider, keeping your Google history and setting up redirects from old page addresses all take care.

We handle the redirects so pages that already rank on Google keep their place. Allow a day or two extra for the domain move if your old provider is slow to respond.

Can a website be built in a day?

A very basic one-page site can be. But a proper small business site with several pages, your own text, a quote form and Google set-up takes more than a day to do well. Rushing usually means mistakes in the details that matter: your phone number, your hours, your service areas.

7 working days gives enough time to get those right, without leaving you waiting months.

Frequently asked questions