Two very different types of websites. Both can make money. But they work in completely different ways, suit different goals, and require different amounts of ongoing involvement. Here's the clear breakdown.
What Is a Business Website?
A business website represents a single business -- yours. Its job is to attract potential customers, explain what you do, build trust, and convert visitors into enquiries or purchases.
For a tradesman, this means ranking on Google for searches like 'plumber Portsmouth' and turning those clicks into phone calls. For a service business, it's ranking for searches potential clients make and getting them to fill in a contact form or book a call.
The business website makes money indirectly -- by generating leads and customers for the underlying business. It doesn't have its own revenue model. The revenue comes from the work the website leads to.
What Is a Directory Website?
A directory website doesn't represent your business. It represents an area or a niche -- and it lists multiple businesses within that area or niche. Other businesses pay to be listed on it.
Think: 'Waterlooville business directory,' 'Portsmouth trades,' 'Hampshire restaurants.' The directory ranks on Google for local searches. Local businesses want to appear on it. They pay £100-200/year for a listing. Listings renew automatically. You collect the revenue.
The directory makes money directly. It has its own revenue model, independent of any service you personally deliver.
How Each One Makes Money
Business Website
- Ranks on Google for your service + location searches
- Visitors become enquiries
- Enquiries become jobs or clients
- Revenue comes from the work you do, not the website itself
- Scale is limited by your personal capacity
Directory Website
- Ranks on Google for local category searches
- Local businesses want to be on it
- They pay a recurring annual listing fee
- Revenue comes directly from the directory
- Scale is limited by the number of businesses in your area -- which is much higher than your personal capacity
One tradesman's website leads to jobs for that tradesman. One directory leads to income from 20, 50, 100 local businesses. Different ceiling entirely.
Time Investment: The Real Difference
Business Website
Once built and ranking, a business website is relatively low maintenance -- maybe a few updates a year if you're using a system like ours. The ongoing work is in doing the actual jobs it brings in.
Directory Website
Once built and launched, the main ongoing work is handling new listing enquiries (largely automated), supporting existing listings at renewal time, and maintaining the site. This is substantially less than running a trade or service business.
Income Potential
Business Website (Tradesman Example)
A plumber ranking well on Google might get 20-40 enquiries per month from their website. Convert 30% and you have 6-12 extra jobs per month. At £200-400 average job value, that's £1,200-4,800 in additional monthly revenue from Google.
Not bad -- but you're still personally doing every one of those jobs.
Directory Website
50 local businesses at £149/year = £7,450/year. 100 businesses = £14,900/year. Growing year on year as you add more listings and the directory gains more authority on Google.
You're not doing any of the work those businesses do. You're just providing a platform.
Who Is Each One Right For?
A Business Website Is Right For You If...
- You offer a service and want more customers or clients
- You want to grow your existing trade or business
- You're comfortable with the revenue ceiling of your personal capacity
- You want more enquiries, not a new income stream
A Directory Website Is Right For You If...
- You want a recurring income stream separate from your main trade
- You want income that doesn't depend on your personal time
- You're interested in building a local media/platform asset
- You want something that grows year on year without proportionally more work
Can You Have Both?
Yes -- and plenty of our clients do. A business website to grow their trade, a local directory as a second income stream. They're not in competition. They target different audiences and generate different types of revenue.
If you're a tradesman, the business website is usually the priority -- it directly grows your income. The directory is the medium-term play: build it while the trade runs, let it grow, and eventually it provides meaningful income that doesn't depend on your hours.
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