Do I need a website as a sole trader?
You do not legally need a website to trade as a sole trader, but you will lose work without one. Most customers now check that a business exists online before they call, and a Facebook page alone often reads as a hobby, not a business.
What a website does that a social page does not
A social page is rented space. You do not control it, you cannot choose your own address, and a customer who searches your trade and your town may never see it.
Your own website gives you three things:
- A fixed address to put on your van, your invoices, and your Google listing.
- A place a stranger can check in ten seconds and decide you are real.
- Words that match what people search, so you show up for "plumber in [town]" rather than for your business name, which nobody knows yet.
For trades and local services, that last point is most of the value. Customers search the problem and the place, not the company.
When you can put it off
Be honest about your situation. A website can wait a little if:
- Every job comes from repeat customers or word of mouth and you are already fully booked.
- You take work only through a platform that handles all your enquiries.
- You are testing whether the trade is for you at all.
Even then, "a little" is the word. The moment a customer says "I looked for you online and could not find you", the website has already paid for itself.
What a website does not need
Sole traders often avoid a website because they picture an expensive agency project. It does not need to be that.
- It does not need ten pages. Five good ones beat ten thin ones.
- It does not need an online shop unless you sell online.
- It does not need a big design budget. It needs to load fast, read clearly, and say what you do and where.
- It does not need you to write anything clever. Plain answers work better.
The cheapest version that still works
A done-for-you site from Sorted Online is written and published for you. You get your own domain, a website that describes your trade and your area, and email forwarding on that domain so your address is you@yourbusiness.co.uk instead of a free mailbox. It is £15 a month by UK Direct Debit, with nothing to pay at sign-up.
See what a small business website costs for how that compares with an agency quote, or read what to put on a small business website if you plan to build one yourself.
The short version
Get a website before a customer needs one, not after. Keep it small, make it load fast, and put your phone number where a thumb can reach it.
Start your website — it takes a few minutes.