What to Have Ready Before You Build Your Website (Simple Checklist)

Why Gathering This First Saves You Hours

The slowest part of building a website usually isn't the building itself, it's stopping mid-build to go find a photo, write a description, or look up your own business hours. Gather everything below first, and the actual building step becomes fast.

The Checklist

• Business name and tagline — your exact business name and a one-sentence description of what you do
• Contact information — phone number, email address, and physical address if you have one
• Business hours — if customers visit or call during set hours
• 5 to 10 photos — your space, your work, your products, or your team. Clear phone photos are fine
• List of services or products — even a simple bullet list works as a starting point
• Pricing information — if you're comfortable showing it, or at least a starting range
• Trust signals — reviews, testimonials, certifications, awards, or years in business
• Social media links — if you have active accounts you want linked from your site
• A logo — optional. Most templates look fine with just your business name in clean text if you don't have one yet

What You Don't Need Yet

Don't let these hold you up — they can wait until after launch:

• A perfectly designed logo — text works fine to start
• Professional photography — real phone photos beat generic stock images
• Every page you'll ever want — start with the essentials and add more later
• Perfect copywriting — clear and honest beats polished and delayed

A Quick Tip on Photos

If you only do one thing from this list well, make it photos. Generic stock photography is one of the fastest ways to make a small business site feel impersonal. Real photos, even simple ones, build more trust with visitors than a polished stock image ever will.

Frequently Asked Questions