Small Business Website Consultation Questions

1. What job should the website do?

Start with the business action.

Do you want customers to call, book, request a quote, visit your location, read a menu, fill out an intake form, or send a message? Pick the main action before you talk about colors or layouts.

Write one sentence:

"This website needs to help [customer] take [action]."

Examples:

• This website needs to help homeowners request an estimate.
• This website needs to help patients book a consultation.
• This website needs to help local customers check hours, location, and menu.
• This website needs to help clients compare services and call the office.

That sentence shapes the whole build. A quote-request site needs trust, service details, service areas, and a clear form path. A booking site needs strong appointment prompts and a scheduling embed. A restaurant site needs menu, hours, address, and ordering links above the fold.

If the call starts with design taste, bring it back to the business action.

2. Which pages do you need?

Most small businesses do not need a huge site. They need the right few pages.

Before the consultation, write your best page list. Mark anything uncertain.

A focused Launch site often fits:

Grow fits up to 7 pages and adds Sanity CMS for businesses that want to edit services, hours, photos, announcements, or posts.

Custom scope starts when the site needs 8+ pages, several CMS content types, blog/news setup, custom forms, or API integrations.

Ask the builder: "Which package does this page list fit, and what would move it into custom?"

3. Who will write the copy?

Copy slows more website projects than design.

Patchwork Sites designs and codes the site. You provide the words. Rough notes are fine, and Patchwork can help organize them, but your business supplies the real details.

Before the consultation, sort your content into three groups:

Ask: "What copy do you need from me before build week?"

Then ask: "If my copy is rough, can you structure it, or do I need a copywriter?"

Do not hide missing copy. A site can launch with clear rough notes. It cannot launch well when the builder learns on day four that the service list never existed.

4. What photos and brand assets do you have?

Photos change the quote less than custom features, but they change the work.

Bring a quick asset list:

• Logo files.
• Brand colors, if you have them.
• Team photos.
• Location photos.
• Service or product photos.
• Before-and-after photos, if your industry allows them.
• Any style examples you like.

Patchwork includes stock imagery. Stock can make a site feel complete when you do not have custom photos. Real photos build more trust for local services, healthcare, restaurants, salons, contractors, and fitness businesses.

Ask: "Can we use stock imagery at launch and replace it later?"

Ask: "Which photos would make the biggest difference if I can provide a few?"

Custom photography is not part of the standard Patchwork package. If you need a shoot, plan it as a separate task.

5. Do you need to edit the site yourself?

This question often decides the package.

A no-CMS website can work when your content will stay stable and you want a tight build. Patchwork can launch the site, hand over the GitHub repo, and keep the scope lean. That fits Launch for many local businesses.

A CMS makes sense when your team wants to update content after launch. Patchwork uses Sanity on Grow and Custom projects because it gives you a real editing setup without locking the site inside a proprietary builder.

Ask yourself:

• Will services change often?
• Will hours change by season?
• Will staff need to update photos?
• Will you post announcements or blog updates?
• Do you want Patchwork to handle edits through hosting and support instead?

Ask the builder: "If I choose no CMS now, what happens when I need updates later?"

A CMS sounds useful. It earns its keep when someone will use it.

6. What booking, form, or lead tool do you use?

A simple booking link is different from a custom workflow.

Patchwork packages include booking embeds. If you use a tool like Calendly, Square, Acuity, Vagaro, Jobber, Housecall Pro, Toast, or another booking platform, bring the link or embed details to the consultation.

Then explain what should happen after a lead comes in.

Simple examples:

• Customer books through Calendly.
• Customer calls the office.
• Customer fills out a basic contact form.
• Customer clicks to an ordering platform.

Custom examples:

• The form routes leads by location.
• The form sends data into a CRM.
• The site takes payment.
• The site checks availability from another system.
• The workflow triggers internal emails or API calls.

Ask: "Does this fit the package, or does it need a custom quote?"

That one question protects your budget. Custom forms and API integrations can be worth it, but they should enter the quote on purpose.

7. What domain, hosting, and ownership details matter?

Do not wait until launch week to find the domain login.

Before the consultation, check who controls the domain. Look for accounts at GoDaddy, Namecheap, Squarespace, Wix, Google Domains legacy transfers, Cloudflare, or wherever the business bought the domain.

Ask these questions:

• Who owns the domain account?
• Who can update DNS records?
• Where will you host the site?
• What happens if I leave later?
• Do I get the code repository?

Patchwork builds on a modern stack, deploys through Vercel, and hands over the GitHub repo. That matters because you should own the site files. You should not have to stay with a builder because the website lives inside a black box.

For Grow and Custom clients who want ongoing help, Patchwork hosting and support runs $49-$99 per month. Ask what support includes, how edits get requested, and what happens if you want another developer to maintain the site later.

8. What does the revision process include?

A clear revision process keeps a budget site from turning into a loose project.

Patchwork packages include one revision round. That means you should collect feedback in one organized pass instead of sending scattered notes across several days.

Ask:

• How will I review the site?
• How should I send feedback?
• What counts as a revision?
• What happens if I change the page list after the preview?
• What happens if I ask for new features after build starts?

Good feedback sounds like this:

• "Change the primary CTA from Call Now to Book Online."
• "Use this service order: repairs, installations, maintenance."
• "Replace the stock hero photo with this team photo."
• "Add Saturday hours to the contact page."

Weak feedback sounds like this:

• "Make it pop."
• "Can we try a few directions?"
• "I am not sure, but something feels off."

Skip design language. Bring specific business notes.

9. What timeline can you support?

Patchwork can launch standard sites in 5-7 days when the scope and materials are ready. Your timeline depends on how fast you can answer questions, provide content, review the preview, and handle domain access.

Ask:

• What do you need from me before the build starts?
• When will I see the preview?
• How fast do you need feedback?
• What would delay launch?
• Who needs to approve the site on my side?

If three partners need to review every line, say that during the consultation. If your office manager controls the booking tool, include that person before build week. If the domain login sits with an old vendor, start that conversation now.

A fast website build still needs quick client decisions.

10. Which package fits the real scope?

End the consultation by asking for a package fit.

Use this simple guide:

Then ask the direct question:

"Based on what I told you, what is the most affordable option that still solves the problem?"

That is the whole point of a good consultation. You should leave with a clear path, not a bigger mystery.

A simple prep checklist

Before your call, gather:

• Main customer action.
• Draft page list.
• Copy status.
• Photo and logo status.
• CMS needs.
• Booking or form tool.
• Domain access.
• Launch timing.
• Decision makers.
• Budget boundary.

If you have those notes, the consultation can move fast. Patchwork can tell you whether Launch, Grow, or Custom fits, and you can avoid paying for scope you do not need.

A sharp website call should end with a clear next step: pick a tier, get a custom quote, or fix the missing pieces before build week.