Websites are by web designers created for businesses of all types and of all sizes. From the global giants that are household names across the world to the local dog groomer who makes the dogs in a small town of fewer than five thousand inhabitants look their best, there is a web design that suits them all.

Websites for large corporations often have no other purpose than to provide company information and to promote brand awareness of the business. Websites of smaller businesses will also include information, but many are also designed to either generate local sales or leads that the business can follow up with.

These points signify that there are specific web design features that are more suitable to some websites than others based upon the size and the needs of the business. Given that the majority of people reading this are more likely to own or manage a small or local business than they are to be a CEO of a multinational giant, we thought it best if we focus on websites for small, local businesses.

There will be many ways in which a local businesses website can be enhanced, however, there are five fundamental criteria that they must follow. This is because the visitors to their website will have different objectives than if those same visitors were to visit the website of a global company like Dell or Audi. Read on, and we will outline what those five fundamental criteria are.

Website Must Speak To Its Local Audience: If a business is local and its target market is based locally then its web design should do everything it can to emphasise those local credentials. This will include using images of local people, sites, and locations, and telling everyone about the achievements of the locally based staff as much as possible to paint the business as the premium local choice.

Certain Pages Should Be Included: Most websites have pages which they should include but these are especially the case for local business websites. First, is the “About Us” page. This gives you another great opportunity to confirm your local identity and to provide visitors with some background to the business, its owners, its staff, and its success as a local company. In addition, a “Contact Us” page with an email address, or telephone number, or both, is recommended.

Everything Within The Website Should Work Properly: Almost all local businesses have local completion and anything you can do to get an edge over your competitors is to be welcomed. One way to do so is to ensure that your website has been designed by professionals and that it performs and functions as close to 100% as possible.

Social Proof Is Essential: What better way to attract new local customers and clients than to present on your website your current happy customers and clients. This can be in the form of text reviews, but even better are reviews with images and best of all video testimonials from local people who buy your products or use your services.

Calls To Action Should Be Unambiguous: If you want your website to perform you must ensure that visitors to it know what is expected of them on each page. By that we mean whether you want them to telephone you, enter their email, or fill in a call-back form, it must be made crystal clear within each call to action on your website.