What You Need Before Building a Website: A First-Timer's List

What you need to build a website is a short list: your exact business name, a two or three sentence description of what you do and for whom, your main services, your contact details, a handful of your own photos and a domain name idea. A logo helps but is optional, and no technical skills are required.

• Domain owners must keep their contact details accurate and answer their registrar within 15 days (ICANN).
• Google Business Profile names must match the real-world name, and service areas should not extend farther than about 2 hours of driving (Google Business Profile Help).
• Google Search supports 7 image formats and prefers descriptive file names to camera defaults such as IMG00023.JPG (Google Search Central).
• On AI Web Maker, building and previewing cost nothing; going live is $119 a year of hosting, with the domain paid separately.

What business details do you need before you start?

You need your business name exactly as customers should see it and a two or three sentence description of what you do, for whom and where. These two items shape the whole site.

Write the name out the way it appears on your signage, invoices and social profiles. Consistency matters because customers and search engines compare your site with your other listings, and Google's Business Profile guidelines ask for the real-world name without taglines or extra keywords. Decide now whether you include words such as "Ltd" so the site and your listings match.

The description is the most valuable thing you bring. Think of it as your answer when someone at an event asks what you do. "We repair washing machines and fridges for homeowners in Austin, usually the same week" gives a builder your service, customers, area and promise in one go, while "we provide quality services" gives it nothing.

Add one more line: the single action you want a visitor to take. Calling, booking, requesting a quote or buying online each lead to a different homepage, so knowing yours in advance means it appears consistently on every page. If you are unsure, pick the action that most often turns an enquiry into paid work today.

Do you need a logo and brand colours?

No, a logo and brand colours are helpful but optional for a first website. You can launch without them and add them later without rebuilding anything.

If you already have a logo, find the best version you can, ideally a file with a transparent background and a version that works on a dark background. A blurry logo copied from a social profile looks worse than no logo at all. Note the colours you already use on your van, shopfront or cards so the site matches what customers have seen.

If you have no logo yet, do not let that delay the website. A clean text version of your business name works well in the header, and the builder can suggest colours that suit your type of business. Many owners add a proper logo months later once the business has settled its identity.

What matters more than either is consistency. Use the same name, colours and tone across the website, your Google profile and your social pages. Customers trust businesses that look the same everywhere they meet them.

What photos should you gather?

Gather four to six clear photos of your own work, premises, products or team. Real photos build more trust than stock images, and they need not be professional.

Smartphone photos taken in good light against a tidy background are enough for day one. A plumber might choose a finished bathroom, a van with the business name and a photo of the team, while a bakery might choose its counter, a few bestsellers and the shopfront. Pick images that show customers what they will actually get.

Before uploading, rename each file with a short description, such as fitted-kitchen-oak-worktop.jpg, rather than the camera's default name. Google uses file names, nearby text and alt text to understand images, and it supports common formats including JPEG, PNG and WebP. Keep the originals somewhere safe so you can swap better versions in later.

Think about the description you will give each image as well. The W3C's images tutorial explains that the right text alternative depends on what an image is for, so a photo showing your finished work needs a description while a decorative background does not. If you have no photos yet, the builder can fill gaps with stock images until you take your own.

How should you list your services?

List your three to six main services, each with one sentence on what it includes and who it is for. The builder turns this list into your services page and menu.

Specific services are far more useful than broad categories. "Boiler servicing", "emergency leak repairs" and "bathroom fitting" each give a visitor and a search engine something clear to match, while "plumbing" alone does not. Order them by what you most want to sell, not alphabetically.

Note anything that sets each service apart, such as response times, guarantees, qualifications or the brands you work with. These are the details a builder cannot guess and the ones customers use to choose between businesses. If you list prices, make sure you are happy to honour them, because a visitor who reads a price will hold you to it.

Finally, note where you work. A list of towns or districts you cover helps visitors know at once whether you serve them, and it should match the service area on your Google profile. Google suggests a service area of no more than about two hours of driving for most businesses.

Do you need a domain name first?

You need a domain idea before you start, but you do not have to buy it until you publish. You can build and preview the whole site first.

A good domain is short, easy to spell aloud and close to your business name. Write down two or three options in case your first choice is taken, and consider adding your town or main service if needed. Avoid hyphens and numbers, which are easy to mishear over the phone.

If you already own a domain, find the login for the registrar where you bought it, because you will need it to connect the domain to your site. If you are buying one, remember that as the registrant you must keep your contact details accurate and respond to your registrar within 15 days, according to ICANN. On AI Web Maker, the domain is paid separately from the $119 yearly hosting.

Which contact details and accounts should be ready?

Have your phone number, business email, address or service area, opening hours and social profile links in one note. Copying from a single list prevents typos and pauses.

Use contact details you control and answer. A business email at your own domain looks more established than a personal address, and a local phone number reassures nearby customers. If customers visit you, include your full address; if you travel to them, list your service area instead.

Check your opening hours against what your Google profile and signage say. Mismatched hours send customers to a closed door, and they are easy to fix before the site goes live. Add links to any social profiles you actively use, and leave out any you have abandoned.

Questions first-timers ask before building

Do I need any technical skills?

No, the builder handles the code, layout and mobile design. What you need is knowledge of your own business. If you can write an email and attach a photo, you can build a site.

What if I do not have any photos yet?

You can start with stock images and replace them as soon as you can take your own. Real photos of your work build more trust, so make taking them a priority in your first week. A smartphone in good light is enough.

Should I write my own website copy in advance?

No, a two or three sentence description and a list of services are enough for the builder to draft the pages. You will then edit the draft to make it accurate and sound like you. Writing full pages in advance usually duplicates work.

How long does preparation take?

Most owners can gather everything on this list in under an hour. Photos and the domain decision usually take the longest. Once the list is ready, the build itself is quick.

Do I need to pay before I start?

No, building and previewing on AI Web Maker cost nothing. You pay $119 a year for hosting when you go live, the domain is bought separately and optional AI work uses credits of about $0.65 each. You can judge the full site before spending anything.

Your ten-minute build, once you are ready

With this list prepared, the build itself takes about ten minutes. Most of the remaining time goes on reading and adjusting the draft.

You describe the business, the builder generates your pages, and you correct facts, swap in your photos and connect the domain before publishing. The wider guide to your first time using an AI website builder explains each stage of that session and what to expect after launch. When your list is ready, start the build on AI Web Maker and keep your note open beside you so every detail goes in correctly.