Practical guide — 2025

most common website

Which website type suits your small business? Clear examples, SEO strategies and action steps to get visible, convert customers and grow.

This guide explains the most common website types — when to use each, how they impact SEO and conversions, and practical checklists you can implement today.

Find Your Website Type See a Live Demo

Common site types covered

60s

Launch fast with Congero

Unlimited

Updates via text included

Local SEO

Built into every site

In this guide

Types at a glance Brochure / Business sites E‑commerce Service & booking sites Portfolio & creatives Blog & content sites Membership/subscription Landing pages for ads SEO & content strategies How to choose Cost & timeline FAQs

Most common website types — quick overview

Small businesses typically use one (or a hybrid) of the following site types. Each has strengths and a specific role in SEO, lead generation and customer engagement.

Brochure / Business site
Simple, trust-building pages (home, services, about, contact)
E‑commerce
Product catalog, shopping cart and checkout
Service & Booking
Online scheduling, quotes, and local SEO
Portfolio / Creative
Photo galleries, case studies, project pages
Blog & Content
Authority building and organic traffic
Membership / Subscription
Locked content, recurring revenue and community
Landing Page
Single-purpose pages for ads, promotions and A/B testing

Brochure / Business Website

The classic small-business website. Focused on credibility and contact capture: home, services, about, testimonials and contact details.

Why it works

Provides trust signals for local customers
Supports local SEO with service & suburb pages
Easy to maintain and update

Actionable checklist (do this today)

Service pages: Create one page per service + target suburbs (H1, H2s, meta)
NAP consistency: Ensure Name, Address, Phone identical across site & Google Business Profile
Contact CTA: Make phone and booking visible top-right and on mobile
Local schema: Add LocalBusiness schema and opening hours

Tip: For trades and local services, pages targeting "[service] near me" and "[service] in suburb" are high-value — give each suburb a short tailored section rather than a single generic paragraph.

E‑commerce Websites

Designed to sell products. SEO strategy blends category SEO, product schema and conversion optimisation.

Must-have features

Fast product pages, image optimisation
Structured data (Product, Offer, Review)
Clear shipping & returns info
One-click checkout and mobile wallet support

SEO & CRO tips

Use long-tail keywords for product variants
Implement canonical tags for similar SKUs
Display reviews and FAQ on product pages
A/B test product page CTAs and images

Quick wins

Compress product images to <200KB
Add schema to price and availability
Offer free shipping threshold to increase AOV

Service & Booking Websites

Services with appointments — salons, plumbers, consultants — need booking flows plus strong local SEO.

Key conversions

Phone call / WhatsApp click-to-call
Online booking form (mobile-first)
Request a quote with address + photos

Local SEO checklist

Dedicated service pages for suburbs
Google Business Profile optimised (photos, attributes)
Customer reviews visible on site and encouraged
Schema: Service, LocalBusiness & Review

Pro tip: Add click-to-call and a persistent "book now" button on mobile. For emergency services, a prominent phone number increases conversions massively.

Portfolio & Creative Sites

Photographers, designers and trades use portfolios to showcase work and convert visitors into clients.

Design focus

High-quality visual grid, lazy-loading images
Case studies with before/after and outcomes
Strong narrative: process, results, testimonials

SEO & discovery

Optimise alt text and file names for images
Create project pages targeting specific services
Use structured data for CreativeWork / ImageObject

Blog & Content Websites

Best for building organic traffic and authority. Content is the long-term engine for SEO.

Content strategy

Answer real customer questions (use People Also Ask)
Cluster content around core services
Internal linking to service pages to convert traffic

SEO basics

Use descriptive URLs, headings and meta tags
Schema: Article, BreadcrumbList
Optimise featured snippets (short answer boxes)

Content cadence

Publish predictable, helpful posts (1–4/month)
Promote via local channels & social for initial traffic
Repurpose posts into videos and FAQs

Membership & Subscription Sites

Used by coaches, trainers and creators to generate recurring revenue and exclusive content.

Conversion levers

Free trial or sample content
Tiered pricing and clear benefits
Member dashboard and recurring billing

Retention tips

Regular new content and scheduled updates
Community features (comments, groups)
Email onboarding sequence to reduce churn

Landing Pages for Ads & Promotions

Single-purpose pages focused on conversion. Ideal for paid campaigns and special offers.

Best practices

One clear CTA, above the fold
Minimal distractions — no global nav when testing
Social proof and a risk-reducing guarantee
Use UTM parameters and unique tracking for each campaign

Quick test: Run two variations with different headlines and measure conversion lift over 1,000 visitors for statistically meaningful results.

SEO & Content Strategies by Site Type

The core SEO principles are the same across site types: fast pages, mobile-first design, clear structure and useful content. Below are targeted tactics.

Technical SEO (apply to all sites)

Speed: Aim for <2.5s on mobile; enable caching and compress images.
Mobile: Test real devices — navigation and CTAs must be thumb-friendly.
Structured data: Add schema for Organization, LocalBusiness, Product, Article as appropriate.
Secure: HTTPS and HSTS — browsers and Google expect this.

Content & on-page SEO

Titles & meta: Unique title and meta descriptions for each page; include primary keyword and location when relevant.
Headings: Use H1 for the page topic and H2s for supporting sections — make them descriptive.
Internal linking: Link blog posts to service pages to pass topical authority and convert traffic.
FAQ schema: Add FAQs to answers often asked by customers — increases chance of rich results.

Local SEO (for trades & services)

Optimise Google Business Profile with accurate hours, categories and photos.
Encourage and reply to reviews — both on GMB and on your site.
Create suburb-specific landing pages with unique copy and local terms.

Pro actionable step: Pick one service page and rewrite it with target keyword, two supporting H2s, an FAQ and LocalBusiness schema. Monitor ranking over 4–8 weeks.

How to choose the right website for your business

Answer three quick questions to decide:

What is your main goal? (Sell products → E‑commerce, Get bookings → Service site, Build authority → Blog)
Who is your audience? (Local customers → focus on local SEO, National → content + product SEO)
How much time & budget? (If you need fast, low-effort results choose a professional subscription service with unlimited updates.)

Fast & low effort

Choose a professional subscription (launch in 60s, updates via text).

High control

DIY platforms give control but cost time. Plan 40+ hours to do it well.

Custom features

Custom builds if you need bespoke integrations — expect higher cost & maintenance.

Cost & Timeline — realistic expectations

Typical options

Professional subscription: All-in-one, predictable fees, often includes domain, hosting & updates — Congero: live in 60s, $49/mo, unlimited updates.
DIY platforms: $10–50/mo but expect 40–100 hours of setup and learning.
Custom agency build: $3,000–$15,000 upfront + maintenance — best for complex needs.

Timeline (typical)

Landing page for ad — 1–3 days
Brochure site (5–8 pages) — 24 hours to 1 week
E‑commerce basic store — 1–3 weeks
Custom platform — 6–12 weeks

Note: Speed to market matters. You can iterate content and pages after launch — choose a workflow that makes updates easy (Congero offers unlimited text‑in updates so you don’t waste time or money).

Frequently Asked Questions

Which site type improves local SEO fastest?

Brochure/service sites with well-structured service + suburb pages and an optimised Google Business Profile produce quick local ranking wins.

Can one site be multi-purpose?

Yes. Start with a primary goal (e.g., bookings) and add supporting sections (blog for SEO, portfolio for trust). Keep landing pages separate for paid campaigns to reduce distractions.

How do I track conversions?

Install Google Analytics / GA4, use Google Tag Manager for events (form submit, click-to-call), and set up conversion goals. Use UTM tags on marketing links to measure channel ROI.

What's the single best SEO action for a small business?

Create and optimise service pages for specific local queries (e.g., "emergency plumber [Suburb]"). Combine with Google Business Profile optimisation and a steady stream of reviews.

Choose the right website and start getting found

If you want a fast, SEO-ready website with unlimited updates and local optimisation built-in, Congero helps small businesses launch a professional site in minutes — no technical work required.

Try a Free Demo Learn About Our Services

Congero builds mobile-optimised websites in 60 seconds, includes domain, hosting, SSL, local SEO and unlimited text-in updates for a flat monthly fee of $49. No lock-in contracts.