Get a domain name in your business's name. Then get a site that shows photos of finished jobs, your reviews, the work you take on and the areas you cover, with an easy way to ask for a quote. You can build it yourself, pay a freelancer or agency, or use a service like ours. Whichever you choose, make sure you own the domain and the site.
1. Start with your Google Business Profile
When someone hears about you from a neighbour or sees your board outside a job, they'll often search for your name. Your Google Business Profile is the box that shows up beside the results and on Maps, with your rating, reviews, photos and phone number. It's free to set up through Google.
If you haven't claimed yours, do that first. It's where a lot of customers leave reviews, and your website can show those reviews and link back to it. Keep your business name, phone number and hours exactly the same on your profile and your website.
2. Get a domain in your name
Your domain is your address online, like ashgroveandpike.co.uk. For a UK business, .co.uk is the usual choice, and .uk or .com are fine too. Keep it short, easy to say over the phone and close to your business name.
Register it in your own name or your company's name, with a login you control. If someone else registers it for you and then disappears, getting it back can be hard work. The same goes for the website itself: ask who owns it before you pay anyone.
3. Decide what the site is for
Builders sell bigger jobs than most trades, and people take longer to decide. Someone planning an extension will look harder and often compare two or three firms. Your site needs to do three things:
- Show the standard of your finished work.
- Explain how a job with you runs, so it feels less of a leap.
- Make it easy to ask for a quote, with the details you need.
4. What to put on it
- Photos of finished jobsYour own work, with what the job was and roughly where. Before and after shots if you have them. Group them by type, like extensions, loft conversions, renovations and kitchens.
- Your rating and reviewsNear the top, in your customers' own words. In a survey commissioned by BigChange in 2023, about 4 in 10 people named good online reviews as a reason for hiring a tradesperson.
- The work you take on, and what you don'tSaves you calls about jobs you don't want, and tells the right customers they're in the right place.
- How a job runsThe visit, the quote, drawings and building control if they're needed, the start date, the build and the handover. People about to spend a lot want to know what happens next.
- A quote form that asks the right questionsType of job, rough size, postcode, timing, and whether they have drawings or planning permission yet. You get better enquiries and fewer wasted visits.
- Memberships and guarantees, linkedIf you're a member of the Federation of Master Builders, registered with TrustMark (the government-endorsed quality scheme for work in and around the home) or offer an insurance-backed warranty, say so and link to your entry where you can.
- The areas you coverName the towns and areas, so people know you'll come to them.
- Your business detailsIf you trade as a limited company, the law says your website must show your registered company name, the part of the UK it's registered in, its company number and its registered office address.
Sources: TrustMark, About us. The Company, Limited Liability Partnership and Business (Names and Trading Disclosures) Regulations 2015, Part 6. Electrical Contracting News, survey commissioned by BigChange, September 2023.
5. Get the photos right
For a builder, photos do most of the selling. A few tips:
- Take them at every job, not just the big ones. Morning or late-afternoon light is kinder than midday sun.
- Stand back for the finished shot, then take a couple of close-ups of the details you're proud of.
- Take the "before" shot from the same spot as the "after".
- Phone photos are fine if they're sharp and level. Check with the homeowner before you show their house.
6. Make it work properly on a phone
Lots of the people checking you out will be on a phone. Big photo galleries can make a site slow, so the photos need to be sized properly for phones. Your number should be tappable everywhere, and the quote form short enough to fill in with a thumb. Test it yourself on your own phone with wifi off.
Our example builder site is photo-heavy and still built to load quickly on a phone. You can read how we built it.
7. The ways to get it built
There's no single right answer. It comes down to your time, your budget and how much you want to be involved.
| Option | What it's like | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| DIY website builder | You pick a template and fill it in, and pay a monthly subscription. Good if you enjoy it and have evenings free. | Your time. Big photos can slow a template down. Moving away later can be awkward. |
| Trade directory profile only | A profile page on a directory site. Can bring in leads from people browsing the directory. | You sit next to other builders, and you don't own the page. |
| Freelancer or agency | Someone builds it for you. Price and quality vary a lot, and it suits a bigger or more custom site. | Ask who owns the domain and the site, what the monthly fee covers and what happens if you leave. |
| Avenia Studio (us) | We build a draft from your Google profile and your current site. You see it before you pay anything. | It's a focused site for trades, not a big custom build with dozens of pages. |
8. What it costs
The costs come in three parts: the domain, which is cheap and paid yearly; hosting, which is where the site lives and is usually paid monthly or yearly; and building it, which is either your time or someone's fee. If you go to a freelancer or agency, get a written quote that says what's included and what it costs every month after the site goes live.
With us, the draft is free. If you want it live, it's £549 one-off, and the whole site is yours. You buy the domain in your own name and pay for it directly, so it's always yours too. Hosting, with 2 small changes each month, is £49 a month. It's optional, with no minimum term. Don't want it? You get all the files, and we'll help you move the site once. No VAT is added. The prices you see are what you pay.
9. After it goes live
- Ask for a Google review at handover, while the customer is happiest.
- Add your best finished jobs as you go.
- Keep your number, hours and areas right on both your site and your Google profile.
- Every few months, look at your site on your phone the way a customer would.
Questions builders ask
How much does a website for a builder cost?
It depends on who builds it. With a DIY website builder you pay a monthly subscription and do the work yourself. Freelancers and agencies quote per job, so get it in writing. With Avenia Studio, the draft is free, then £549 one-off if you want it live, with optional hosting and small changes at £49 a month.
Do I need a website if most of my work comes from word of mouth?
Word of mouth is often what gets you looked up. Someone planning an extension will usually check you out before they ring, and a site with your finished jobs and reviews is what they find.
What photos should a builder put on their website?
Your own finished jobs, with what the job was and roughly where. Before and after shots work well. Phone photos are fine if they're sharp and taken in good light.
Should a builder put prices on their website?
Many builders don't, because every job is different. Some give a rough starting point for common jobs to filter enquiries. Either is fine, as long as anything you show is current.
Will a website get me more work?
Nobody can promise that, and it's worth being wary of anyone who does. What a good site does is make it easier for people who already have your name to trust you and ask for a quote.
Want to see it in practice? Read how we built the example builder site, or see what we build for builders.