Website or Google Business Profile: where do you start?
If you have neither yet, start with your Google Business Profile. It is free, usually visible within days, and makes sure local customers find you on Google Maps and in ordinary search results.
A website follows once you have a few reviews and know which services actually take off. For businesses that already have customers and want to grow, the order flips. First a good website, then the profile as reinforcement.
What is a Google Business Profile exactly?
That is the free card with business information that appears when someone Googles your company name or a service nearby. Opening hours, address, phone number, photos, reviews, and a short description. For local businesses often the first thing a customer sees.
Important to know: this has nothing to do with a website. You can have a profile without a site, and a site without a profile. They work independently, but do reinforce each other.
When do you only need a profile?
If you are still figuring out which services stick, or are not yet sure you can hold onto regular customers, a profile is enough for now. You are visible on Google Maps, people can call you, and reviews stack up without any effort from you.
For businesses that rely purely on referrals and Maps, like a small café or a specialized mechanic, a profile is sometimes all you need. A website adds little.
When do you need a website?
As soon as customers want to compare your services, read more about how you work, or only reach out once they know exactly what you do, a profile alone is not enough anymore. A website tells the story, shows work, and makes sure you are taken seriously.
Also important: on Google Business Profile you do not decide how your business is presented. Google picks the layout, you fill in fields. A website is where you have control over impression, story and message.
What returns the most per euro?
For a local business without online presence: the profile. Zero cost, quick result, usually the first extra Maps customers within weeks.
For a business that is already locally known but wants to grow: the website. It pulls customers from a wider region, gives control over how you come across, and makes sure you are found on what you make, not just where you are.
How much does both cost at Sjems?
A proper setup of your Google Business Profile is €149 ex VAT. Categories, photos, opening hours, a review strategy, and visible on Maps.
A website starts at €995 ex VAT for a onepager, or €1495 for an extensive site. Combining both gives the best base. Profile for local, site for story and growth.
Practical experience at DCT B.V., a supplier of welding tables and clamping tools for the steel industry. Daily conversations with business owners about their websites, what works and what does not. Complemented by hands-on experience building websites for small businesses through Sjems.