A website is a fluid tool that can and should be adapted to fit the needs of each business or user who requires one. However, there are certain elements that should almost always be present. No matter your focus, if you are a small business, your web presence should contain these design elements, which will ensure that your website is functional, appealing, and successful as an advertising tool.

1. A clear site layout. There are fewer things more frustrating than loading up a webpage and realizing that you cannot find the information that you want. So, when designing a website, you need to include obvious links that are intuitively connected to the content behind them. If a customer is looking for your product info, they should be access this within a few clicks, and without pressing the back button after heading down the wrong path.
2. Accessible contact or ordering information. Often, customers will visit a website in order to get in contact with the business, whether to place an order, report a problem, or ask questions about the service. If your contact information is difficult to access or absent, your customers will be frustrated or discouraged. This is particularly important for a small business, where contacting customers can create loyal purchasers of your brand.
3. Aesthetic Appeal. First impressions are important. When your customer opens up your website, you do not want them to get the impression that your website was designed in 1995 and hasn’t been touched since. A fresh layout using elements of the modern web is an important tool in appearing reliable and current.
4. When visitors to your website look around, they should get an immediate impression of your business, and the values which it espouses. This is the best kind of advertising, you have an opportunity to show off your brand to someone who, by visiting your page, has expressed interest in your product. You have an opportunity to create a lasting impression and to convince them of the message that you wish to convey.
5. The importance of SEO cannot be overstated. In the modern era, consumers are used to finding what they want in a few clicks. If you are not showing up when people look for your keywords on search engines, then good luck expanding your sales. It does not matter how functional your website is or how good your product is, you need to get people to your page for any of that to matter.