How to make a simple website for a cafe or small shop
Most people visiting a cafe or shop website want the same few things: where you are, when you are open and what you sell. A small site that answers those well beats a big one that hides them.
In short
Put your name, what you sell, where you are, when you are open and how to order or get in touch on the first screen. Add a few posts for specials or new stock, keep hours current, and start at your free Mini Casa address before deciding on a domain.
You will need
- Your opening hours and address
- A short description of what you sell
- Links to your menu, shop, booking or map
- One or two photos you have the right to publish
A website for a cafe, bakery or small shop does not need ten pages. Most visitors arrive with a single question, usually asked on a phone while standing on a pavement: are you open, where are you and do you have the thing I want? A small website that answers those quickly does more for a local business than a large one that buries them under an "about our journey" page.
This guide covers what to put on the page, in what order, and how to keep it accurate without it becoming another job.
The five things customers look for
Almost every visitor to a local business website is looking for one of these:
- What you are. "Neighborhood bakery: sourdough, buns and coffee."
- Where you are. A street address and a link to a map.
- When you are open. Your regular hours, plus any changes this week.
- How to buy. A menu, an order link, a booking page or "walk in".
- How to reach you. A phone number, email or contact link.
Put all five on the first screen if you can. Everything else, such as your story, your suppliers or your team, is lovely but secondary. Visitors who want it will scroll.
Keep your hours honest
Out-of-date hours are the most common problem on small business websites, and the most annoying for customers. Someone who walks across town to find you closed will not trust your website again.
Two habits help. First, write your regular hours somewhere that is easy to edit. Second, use a pinned post for anything temporary: "Closed Monday for a family wedding" or "Open late on Friday for the street fair". When it passes, unpin or remove it. On Mini Casa, posts can be pinned to the front of your page, which is exactly the right place for this kind of notice.
Show what you sell, not everything you sell
A full menu or catalogue is useful, but it does not have to live on your main page. Link to it instead. On the page itself, show three or four things people love: your morning bun, the seasonal bouquet, the Friday pizza. A photo and a sentence each. That tells a new visitor what kind of place you are far better than a long price list.
If your menu changes often, link to wherever you already keep it current rather than copying it. One source of truth is easier to maintain.
Make the next step obvious
Decide what you most want a visitor to do and put that link first: order online, book a table, see today's menu or get directions. Use a label that says what happens: "Order for pickup" is clearer than "Shop". If people mostly just walk in, your main link might simply be directions.
A link-in-bio style page works well for many small businesses, because it puts your most important links in one tidy place you can also share from your social profiles.
Stay in touch with regulars
A signup form lets regulars hear about new seasonal menus or a market stall. Keep the promise small and specific, such as "one email when the summer menu starts". Mini Casa's newsletter signup collects confirmed subscribers and is currently in preview. Sending letters from Mini Casa is not available yet, so you export confirmed subscribers to the mailing tool you send from.
Write like you talk at the counter
The tone of your site should match the tone of your shop. If your staff chat with regulars by name, your website can be friendly and a little playful. If you are a quiet tea room, a calmer voice suits better. Either way, plain words win. "We bake from six and sell out by noon most days" says more than "artisanal baked goods crafted daily".
Write one short paragraph about you, if you like: who runs the place, how long you have been on the street or what you care about. Keep it to a few sentences. Customers like knowing there are real people behind the counter, but they came for the hours and the buns.
Photos that help
One good photo of the shop front helps people recognize you from the street. One or two of your best products help them decide to visit. That is enough. Use photos you took or have permission to use, and write a short description for each so everyone can follow along.
Choose a scene that feels like your shop
An illustrated casa can say "warm and friendly" before a visitor reads a word. Afterglow Bakery is a rounded oven cottage with a smoking chimney and a fresh loaf, made for bakeries. Sunday Market is a striped market house tended by an orange, good for grocers and market stalls. Petal Counter is a small shop under a planted terrace, a natural fit for florists. Midnight Pizzeria has a sleepy chef and warm windows for anywhere that does late slices.
All four are free. The small business page shows more ideas, including a few premium designs.
Start free, add a domain later
You can publish at your free Mini Casa address today and share it straight away. If you already own a domain for your business, connecting it is an optional step on a paid plan, shown on the pricing page. Custom domains are currently in preview. Starting free means you can get the page right first and connect the domain once you are happy.
Step by step
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Step 1: Write your five essentials
Write down what you are, your address, your opening hours, how people buy from you and how to reach you. These go on the first screen.
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Step 2: Choose a scene and add your essentials
Pick a free casa that feels like your shop, then add your name, a one-line description and the five essentials. Put your most important link first.
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Step 3: Add three favorites
Add a post for each of three things customers love, with a photo you have the right to use and a sentence about it. Link to your full menu or shop rather than copying it.
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Step 4: Pin this week's notice
If anything is different this week, such as hours or a special, add it as a pinned post. Remove it when it passes.
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Step 5: Publish and share
Publish at your free Mini Casa address, check it on a phone, then put the address in your social profiles, on your receipts and in your shop window.
Start from this casa
Afterglow Bakery
Afterglow Bakery is a rounded oven cottage, a smoking chimney and a little tiled doorstep, with a fresh loaf, wheat sheaves and a steaming cup.
Sunday Market
A striped little market house on a cobbled tile, tended by an orange who saves the sweetest fruit for visitors.
Petal Counter
Petal Counter is a small shop beneath a planted rooftop terrace and a timber pergola, with a fresh flower, a small vase and a pair of scissors.
Questions people ask
What should a small business website include?
Start with five things: what you are, where you are, when you are open, how to buy and how to reach you. Put them on the first screen. Your story, team and suppliers can come further down.
Do I need my own domain for a small business website?
Not to start. You can publish at your free Mini Casa address and share it today. Connecting a domain you own is an optional step on a paid plan, and custom domains are currently in preview.
How do I keep opening hours up to date?
Keep your regular hours in one easy-to-edit place, and use a pinned post for temporary changes like holidays or late openings. Remove the pinned notice once the date passes.