If you’re a sole trader, your website doesn’t need to pretend you’re a fifty-person company.

It needs to make your business look credible, explain what you do and make it easy for potential customers to get in touch.

For many sole traders, that means a relatively simple website.

You may not need ten pages, an expensive content management system or a monthly marketing contract.

You need the right information presented properly.

Does a sole trader need a website?

Not every sole trader needs one.

There are successful sole traders who get most of their work through recommendations, social media, marketplaces or repeat customers.

But having your own website gives you something those platforms don’t.

A place online that belongs to your business.

If somebody is given your name by a friend, they can look you up.

If they find you on Google, they can learn more.

If they see you mentioned in a Facebook group, they have somewhere professional to go next.

It also gives you control over how the business is presented.

You’re not limited to a social media profile or somebody else’s directory page.

What should a sole trader website include?

Start with the basics.

A potential customer normally wants to know:

That’s enough to build a very useful website.

Everything else should earn its place.

Make it obvious what you do

You know your business.

A first-time visitor doesn’t.

Your website should make sense within a few seconds.

Instead of:

Welcome to J Smith Services

try:

Painter and Decorator in Upminster and East London

Or:

Bookkeeping for Small Businesses and Sole Traders

Or:

Garden Maintenance in Romford, Hornchurch and Upminster

The heading doesn’t need to be clever.

It needs to be clear.

That’s good for customers and good for search engines.

Put a real person behind the business

Being a sole trader isn’t something you need to disguise.

In many cases, it’s an advantage.

Customers know who they’re dealing with.

I’d normally include your name, a short introduction and ideally a genuine photograph.

It doesn’t need to become your life story.

A few sentences are enough.

For example:

I’m James, a painter and decorator based in Upminster. I work with homeowners and small businesses across East London and Essex, covering everything from single rooms to complete property redecoration.

That’s considerably more believable than trying to make James sound like the managing director of an international decorating group.

Small businesses can be personal.

Use that.

Do you need an About page?

Maybe.

If your background, qualifications or experience are important to the buying decision, an About page can be useful.

But a sole trader doesn’t automatically need one.

A strong introduction on the main page can often do the same job.

The same applies to many traditional website pages.

Don’t start with:

“Every business website must have five pages.”

Start with:

“What information does the customer need?”

Then organise that information properly.

Can a sole trader use a one-page website?

Yes.

In fact, sole traders are one of the clearest examples of businesses that can often start with one page.

A good one-page website might include:

  1. Main service and location
  2. Short introduction
  3. Services
  4. Areas covered
  5. Why choose you
  6. Reviews
  7. Previous work
  8. Frequently asked questions
  9. Contact details

That’s a complete small business website.

The customer doesn’t particularly care whether clicking “Services” loads a new page or moves them to the service section.

They care whether the information is useful.

When does a sole trader need more pages?

A larger website starts making sense when there is more to explain.

For example, if you’re an electrician offering:

those services may eventually deserve individual pages.

Partly because there’s more to say.

Partly because people search for them separately.

Likewise, a photographer covering weddings, corporate photography and family photography may want each service presented separately.

One page isn’t a philosophy.

It’s simply an efficient starting point when one page is enough.

What should the website look like?

Professional, but not over-designed.

You don’t need moving backgrounds, elaborate animations or something that looks like it belongs to a Silicon Valley technology company.

For most sole traders I’d prioritise:

The design should support the business rather than compete with it.

A potential customer should remember what you do, not how impressive the scrolling animation was.

Mobile matters more than most people think

I design small business websites with a simple assumption:

A large proportion of the people who matter may never see the desktop version.

They’ll find you on their phone.

They may be standing on a train.

Sitting in a van.

Looking for a service from their sofa.

Following a link somebody sent through WhatsApp.

The important information therefore needs to work on a small screen.

Phone numbers should be tappable.

Buttons should be large enough to use.

Text should be readable.

Forms shouldn’t feel like filling in a mortgage application.

The mobile version isn’t a reduced version of the real website.

It is the real website.

What should you use for photographs?

Wherever possible, use your own.

If you’re a gardener, show gardens.

If you’re a decorator, show finished rooms.

If you’re a cleaner, show the type of work you do.

If you’re a consultant, a good photograph of you is probably more useful than a generic stock photograph of six people pointing at a laptop.

Stock photography has its place, but local businesses usually have better material available than they realise.

Your own work is evidence.

Use it.

Reviews are particularly useful for sole traders

When the business is one person, trust in that person matters.

A handful of genuine reviews can do a lot of work.

Where possible, make the source of the review clear.

If it’s from Google, say it’s from Google.

If you’ve received permission to use a customer’s full name or company name, that can make the review more credible.

Don’t invent reviews.

Don’t rewrite them until every customer mysteriously sounds like a marketing copywriter.

Real language usually feels more convincing anyway.

Should a sole trader show prices?

It depends on what you sell.

If you provide a straightforward service with predictable pricing, showing prices can be useful.

It saves you answering the same question repeatedly and helps customers decide whether you’re right for them.

If every project is different, you can explain the process instead.

For example:

Send me a few details about the job and I’ll come back to you with a quote.

That’s still useful information.

The customer now understands what happens next.

What contact details should you include?

Give people realistic ways to reach you.

That may include:

You don’t need all four simply because they exist.

Use the methods you’re actually prepared to answer.

If you prefer phone calls, make the number obvious.

If you’re usually working and can’t answer immediately, a short enquiry form might make more sense.

The website should fit how your business really operates.

What about a domain and business email?

I’d strongly prefer a sole trader to have their own domain.

Something like:

yourbusiness.co.uk

And ideally an email address using that domain.

For example:

hello@yourbusiness.co.uk

rather than relying entirely on a free personal email address.

It is a small detail, but it helps the business look established and gives you more control over your online identity.

Does a sole trader need WordPress?

No.

WordPress is a good platform, but it isn’t a requirement for running a proper business website.

The question is whether you actually need a content management system.

If you plan to:

then it may make sense.

If your website changes twice a year when your phone number or price changes, giving you a complicated admin system may solve a problem you don’t have.

The platform should fit the job.

Not the other way round.

What about SEO?

A sole trader website can absolutely appear in search.

But SEO starts with being specific.

Explain:

If you’re a tree surgeon in East London, say that naturally.

If you’re a wedding photographer in Essex, make that clear.

You don’t need to repeat the same keyword in every paragraph.

Write for a customer first.

Then make sure the important search terms appear naturally in the page title, headings and relevant sections.

If you eventually want to target several separate services or locations, expanding the website can make sense.

Do you need a Google Business Profile?

For many local sole traders, it’s extremely useful.

Particularly when customers search locally.

Your website and Google Business Profile can support each other.

The website gives you room to properly explain the business.

Your Google profile helps people discover you through Google Search and Maps.

Keep the important information consistent, particularly your business name, contact details, services and genuine operating area.

This depends on what the website does and how the business operates.

At a basic level, you should think about things such as:

Don’t copy a giant privacy policy from another website and assume the job is finished.

Likewise, don’t install every tracking script available and then forget about it.

Keep the setup appropriate to the site.

For specific legal or data protection requirements, use current official UK guidance or professional advice rather than relying on a generic website template.

How much should a sole trader website cost?

There isn’t one correct number.

You can build it yourself.

You can pay for a straightforward professional site.

You can commission something much larger.

The sensible budget depends on what the business needs.

I would be wary of assuming that spending more automatically produces a more effective website.

For a new sole trader with one core service, one operating area and a limited budget, simplicity can be an advantage.

You can always expand later.

What does Ratiom offer?

My current entry-level offer is deliberately aimed at businesses like this.

A professional one-page website for £100.

It’s suitable for many sole traders, side businesses and micro-businesses that simply need to get online properly.

No elaborate package.

No pretending you need fifteen pages.

No automatic upsell halfway through the job.

If the business genuinely needs something larger, I’ll explain why before we start.

You can read more about the website offer or contact me directly.

What would I prioritise if I were starting today?

I’d keep it very simple.

Get a proper domain.

Use a professional email address.

Build one strong website page.

Explain exactly what you do.

Show your face.

Show your work.

Add genuine reviews.

Make it excellent on mobile.

Make contacting you easy.

Then get back to running the business.

You can add more later when there is a good reason.

Frequently asked questions

Does a sole trader need a website in the UK?

Not every sole trader needs one, but having your own website gives customers somewhere reliable to learn about the business and gives you more control than relying entirely on social media or third-party directories.

Can a sole trader have a one-page website?

Yes. A one-page website can work very well where the business has a straightforward service offering. It can include services, areas covered, reviews, previous work, information about the owner and contact details.

How much does a sole trader website cost?

It depends on what you need. Costs range from DIY website builders through to professionally designed custom sites. Start by deciding what the website needs to achieve rather than choosing the number of pages first.

Does a sole trader website need WordPress?

No. WordPress makes sense when you need its content management features or specific functionality. A business that rarely changes its website may be better served by a simpler setup.

Should I put my home address on my website?

That depends on your business and the legal information you’re required to display. If you work from home and don’t receive customers there, check the current UK rules relevant to your business before publishing a private residential address unnecessarily.

Can I expand a one-page website later?

Yes. Starting small doesn’t mean staying small. Additional service pages, location pages, case studies, ecommerce or other functionality can be added when the business reaches the point where they’re useful.

About the author: Gary O’Toole is the founder of Ratiom and has worked in web design, development and digital marketing for more than 20 years. Ratiom works with small businesses in East London and across the UK.

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