We’re explaining every web page your website should (and could) contain

Many ask: “What website pages should my website have?” Every website starts with a homepage, but what other pages does your website need?

Read on as we answer this question and go through the pages a website must contain, pages that are great-to-have and then some optional pages. If you’re short on time, just scroll down to find the bonus website page checklist.

Though there is a standard set of pages that most websites contain, your website should be shaped by your target audience, what you want them to learn and the action you want them to take. Do you want them to read an article? Learn about a new feature? Sign up for a newsletter? Buy a product?

If you’re unsure how to answer these questions, use search engines to find insights. Search query reports and competitor websites give you an idea of what site visitors are hoping to find. This is the first step of optimizing your site, and we explain how it works at length in our Search Engine Optimization (SEO) guide.

Once you’re clear on what relevant website content to add, you can jot down the web pages and landing pages your website needs to deliver this content.

In this article, we’ll divide website structure into:

• Must-have pages
• Great-to-have pages
• Optional pages

Let’s start with the eight pages that are a must on every small business website.

Homepage

Your homepage is the grand entree. Though not every visitor will enter via the main entrance (e.g. because of search results or ads), most people will see this website page first.

Most homepages include:

• Introduction
• Explanation of the product of service
• CTA
• Any other content that sparks curiosity and strengthens your message

Visitors decide in seconds whether a webpage is relevant or not. Make sure to catch the visitor’s attention immediately, tell a compelling story and focus on their needs. A clear call to action lets the reader know what action to take.

To create the right content, ask: “If a visitor only sees this page, what do I want them to do?” Visit the shop? Book a call? Sign up for the newsletter? Read blogs?

This example from crwnmag talks directly to their target audience, clearly tells what the magazine is about, has a distinctive “Order now” CTA, shows examples and inspires.

About page

This year especially showed us the importance of supporting your local businesses and communities. If you’re a small business, your personal story will humanize your brand and connect with readers.

Use your About page to inform people about your business and its history. Add in some fun facts, team pictures, company values or USPs. Whatever makes you stand out from competitors and resonates with readers.

Take an example of illustration agency Handsome Frank—their story is funny, informative and personal.

Contact page

Your contact information page is where website visitors can get in touch with you. Add your company’s mailing address, telephone number, email address, live chat, social media links and business hours—whatever is relevant. 

An integrated contact form with CAPTCHA can prevent spam bots from contacting you.

Wedding photographer Alea Lovely shows what options your contact form can have to gather necessary information upfront. By asking things like the number of guests, budget and expectations, she can better filter the right clients and decide on the service fee to ask for.

Product page (if you offer products)

For e-commerce, this page is the shop section where items can be placed in a basket. For SaaS or other B2B products that require further steps, this is where features are explained and signups, demos, trials, etc. are collected.

A product page includes:

• E-commerce: A product overview page that links to individual products. Each individual product page has a summary, price, size, information, delivery time, etc.
• SaaS: A feature page that explains the product and leads the visitor to the registration page
• Product categories (if you’re selling different items)

The page below from illustrator Alja Horvat shows a print product page with the relevant information.

Focus on the benefits, not just the features. If your product is better shown with a video, add it! You can also link to a size guide or recommend similar or “Shop the look” products. Whatever information helps customers make a better decision is worth adding to the product page.

Service page (if you offer services)

The service page describes all your services. Though that sounds easy, the trick is to organize it in a way that’s clear, compact and easy to digest for the reader. If you offer a lot of services, think about how to structure the page. You might need one main page that contains links to specific services.

This services page by educator, author and speaker Monique Melton is a great example of how you can structure your page and aesthetically present your services.

Blog page

A blog page is an overview where all your blog articles are collected. Though this section isn’t mandatory, we do highly recommend having a blog page—both for creative and marketing purposes. 

Creatively, blog articles are great for talking about topics that motivate or inspire you. You can also show behind-the-scenes or highlight customer successes. Let it be a place to tell your stories.

For marketing purposes, writing about specific topics and using relevant keywords help your website rank on search engines. Furthermore, by sharing your knowledge you can position yourself as a thought leader in your field of expertise. 

Don’t forget to add a CTA in your blog posts (e.g. signup for the newsletter or download the eBook).

We love this blog overview from plan-tracking tool Tability. Apart from the interesting blogs, the artsy headers are unique and differentiate them from their competitors.

Privacy Policy page

With the GDPR in full force, you definitely need a Privacy Policy page (see ours here and read why you need this page in this article). 

This page lets visitors know how you handle their personal information and data. It includes information on cookies, emails, advertising and more.

You can also add an additional Security Statement. See here what that looks like.

Terms of Service page

Your Terms and Conditions page is kind of like the Privacy Policy, except on this page you tell users what conditions to agree to when using your website. Check MailerLite’s ToS page and MailerCheck’s Terms of Use for inspiration.

Testimonials or reviews page

Testimonials are great for building credibility. You can praise your product all you want, but it’s much more trustworthy when customers give their honest feedback. 

Reviews can come in the form of written text, videos, star ratings, links to reviews, magazine articles and interviews.

Personal care manufacturer Native transparently shows the (majorly) great but also bad reviews. By clicking the blue “Write a review” button, the review form unfolds. This makes it easy for people to add their review to the testimonials page.

FAQ page

Do you notice that customers keep asking similar questions? A Q&A page with Frequently Asked Question can provide answers before people contact you (aka fewer support requests). 

Answer each question honestly and when writing the copy, keep in mind that FAQs can take doubts away and convince readers to take action.

Sitemap page

Sitemaps are a great way to help search engine bots better discover your content, understand your website structure and find newly added pages more quickly. The sitemap lists all the website pages and blogs on your website.

Page not found page

This 404-page tells readers that the URL they inserted doesn’t exist (anymore). Normally it links back to the homepage.

You can be witty with your copy or add a GIF (like Mixcloud) to make the 404-page more engaging.

These optional website pages are not a must but can make your website even more informative, engaging and complete.

1. Search results page
2. News page with updates about your company (see our what’s new page)
3. Career or jobs page with open vacancies
4. Partner or expert page (see ours here)
5. Other disclosure pages for advertisers or affiliates

To recap, these are the 17 pages that every website should or could contain—some are a must, others are great to have, and a handful of pages are optional.