What do you really need to include on a website? Between the tips and advice found online, examples of detailed websites and tools offering numerous functionalities, you can easily be led to believe that content quantity is what generates credibility. Yet an effective website is not necessarily one that reels off reams of information, but rather one that allows users to quickly get down to the essentials. In most cases, 5 pages are plenty.
This is especially true in Paris, where supply is both concentrated and varied. If information is not immediately clear, Internet users won’t waste time trying to make sense of it: they’ll simply move onto the next website. For independent business owners, tradespeople and retailers, a simple website is all it takes to stand out, as long as it is well structured. Adding page after page will not make a site more effective, on the contrary, it often makes it more complicated.
Understand, reassure, take action
When an Internet user visits a website, they do not read everything in order. They browse, compare, go back and forth. But the same reasoning applies: understand, gain reassurance, take action. A well-structured website simply accompanies the user on this journey. It is not a question of how many pages, but rather of providing the right information at the right time, making it legible and accessible, and contained within a few basic pages.
The homepage: straight to the point
The homepage should tell anyone not familiar with your business who you are and what you do. That may seem obvious, but it is also where things get tricky. Some homepages try to say everything all at once, at the risk of losing visitors. Whereas the most effective homepages get straight to the point.
Within the first few seconds, a user should be able to gain a clear idea of your activity. Not in detail, but enough to know if they’ve come to the right place. An intelligible sentence, a few coherent images, and easy access to other pages is generally sufficient.
Products and services: explain your offering straightforwardly
The “services” or “products” page of your website should not aim to impress, but rather clarify what exactly you offer. Visitors should be able to understand, in the space of a few lines, what services you provide, who they are for and how they operate; what customers can expect, in which instances they can call on you, and how to contact you or request a quotation.
In practice, content is most effective when it provides a clear and concise explanation. With no jargon or complicated phrasing, and using words that customers themselves use. If a website visitor needs to re-read a sentence to understand it, it needs to be simplified. The clearer it is, the easier the decision.
About: a more human touch
Visitors often want to know more about the person or team behind the business. That is the role of the “About” page. It provides background, retraces a journey, an approach, a way of working. But most of all it gives the business a human face. In many cases, it also creates an initial connection.
For small businesses, this page is often more important than you might think. It allows a bond of trust to be formed and sets the business apart, especially in a sector where several providers offer similar services.
Real-life examples: back your claims
Even if everything seems evident, some visitors may still have doubts. And that’s normal, given that it is all too easy to present yourself in the best light online. Substantiated evidence can help resolve any remaining doubts by demonstrating your real-life accomplishments, and not just what you claim to do. Depending on the business sector, this can take various forms: creations, photos, past projects, or customer testimonials or reviews. Whatever the chosen format, the goal is to give potential customers a realistic idea they can envisage for their own case.
This is often the decisive moment in the customer’s mind. Website visitors don’t just want to understand, they want to be able to trust your business and be sure that your offering is aligned with their needs.
Contacts: convert interest to action
Once won over, visitors need to be able to take the next step without extra hassle. That’s where the contact page comes in. It doesn’t need to be fancy. In fact, the simpler the better. Clearly visible information, a basic form, an email address or telephone number to reach the business at. In many cases, it is this smooth pathway right through to the final step that converts interest to action.
Which is why the email address used as the contact point is so important. And yet often underestimated. An email address linked to your domain name instantly sends a more professional image than a generic address registered with a mainstream Internet Service Provider or messaging service. It provides reassurance and demonstrates that your activity is structured and coherent, and removes any ambiguity as to your identity. The sort of detail that makes all the difference online when it comes to a user’s final decision.
Create your website today
A good place to start is by looking at what others have done. The website https://cute.paris/ for Parisian hair salon and colour specialist ‘Cute’, is a prime example. Visitors know where they are straight away thanks to the clear tagline and localisation. The site showcases photos of customers styled at the salon, and presents its expertise, the team, customer testimonials and CTAs to book an appointment. The salon’s practical information (address, opening times, contact details) are also easily accessible. The website is very visual-oriented, quick to browse, and allows visitors to picture themselves there.
Nowadays, setting up this type of website is much easier than it used to be. Tools like Wix, WordPress and IONOS provide pre-existing templates to work from, already structured around must-have sections, or use artificial intelligence to automatically generate an initial version of the website. All you need to do is adapt the content to your activity, replace the texts and images, and adjust the presentation. For many businesses, this provides a means of publishing a website quickly, with a professional-looking result.
A .paris TLD as a logical extension
Your website’s content is not the only thing that matters online. Its address is also important. For a business based in Paris, a .paris domain name instantly establishes their location. It provides Internet users with a clear point of reference when searching for local services, but also gives your online presence greater coherence.
Opting for a .paris is therefore another way to ensure clarity and legibility. While well-structured pages help explain what you do, an address adds an initial layer of information, often before visitors have even viewed the website. In a context where Internet users want to quickly compare different options to find the one best suited to them, clearly publicising your base in Paris can be what sways their choice.
