Essential Pages Every Starter Website Must Have (And How to Build Them)

So, you’ve chosen your brand colours, picked the perfect fonts, and your homepage is starting to look fantastic. But a website is like a house—a welcoming front door is essential, but if there are no rooms inside, visitors have nowhere to go.

A professional website is more than just a single page. It’s a structured collection of pages that work together to build trust, answer questions, and guide your visitors towards taking action. If you’re missing these core pages, your site can feel incomplete, leaving potential customers confused and likely to click away.

For a busy marketing manager or a consultant guiding a new business, knowing what pages to build is the first step towards creating a truly effective online presence. This is your blueprint for the five essential pages every starter website needs, with simple tips on what to include and how to build them in HubSpot.

1. The Homepage: Your Digital Front Door

Your homepage is your most important digital real estate. You have just a few seconds to grab a visitor’s attention and convince them they’re in the right place. It must quickly and clearly answer three questions:

1. What do you do?
2. Who do you do it for?
3. What should I do next?
   
   

What to include:

• A Crystal-Clear Headline: Don't be vague. State the problem you solve and the success you deliver. (e.g., "Effortless Accounting Software for Small Business Owners").
• A Primary Call to Action (CTA): Place a bold, unmissable button "above the fold" (before the user has to scroll) that directs visitors to the single most important action you want them to take, like "Book a Demo" or "Start Your Free Trial."
• Social Proof: Build instant credibility by showing logos of companies you've worked with or a powerful one-line testimonial.
• A Summary of Services: Briefly outline your key offerings with links to dedicated pages where visitors can learn more.
  
  

How to build it in HubSpot: Your theme will come with a pre-built Homepage template. Use it! Simply go through and replace the placeholder content with your own clear, concise copy and branded imagery.

2. The About Us Page: The Human Connection

In a digital world, people crave human connection. Your About Us page is where you tell your story, introduce your team, and explain why you do what you do. It’s often the last page someone visits right before they decide to get in touch, as they want to know who they’ll be working with.

What to include:

• Your Mission: What is the driving purpose behind your business?
• A Brief Company Story: How did you get started? What journey led you here?
• Photos of Your Team: Use real photos of your team members, even if it’s just a team of one! Real faces build real trust. Avoid stock photos at all costs.
• Your Core Values: What principles guide your work?
  
  

How to build it in HubSpot: The classic layout for an About Us page is highly effective. Use a two-column module to place a photo of your founder or team next to a short, engaging biography.

3. The Services/Products Page: The Offer

This is where the business happens. Visitors need to understand exactly what you sell, but more importantly, what problem it solves for them. Focus on the benefits, not just the features.

What to include:

• A Clear Name for Each Service: Avoid internal jargon.
• A Benefit-Focused Description: Instead of saying "Our software has a reporting feature," say "Get instant clarity on your performance with our one-click reporting."
• Who It's For: Clearly state the ideal customer for each service.
• A Clear CTA for Each Offering: Each service should have its own logical next step, like "Learn More," "See Pricing," or "Get a Quote."
  
  

How to build it in HubSpot: If you have multiple services, create a main "Services" landing page that links out to individual pages for each one. On the page, use modules like "Cards," "Tabs," or "Accordions" to present information in a clean, organised way that doesn't overwhelm the reader.

4. The Contact Page: The Open Door

If a potential customer wants to talk to you, don’t make them work for it. A dedicated, easy-to-find Contact page removes friction and signals that you are accessible and ready to help.

What to include:

• A Simple Contact Form: Keep it short. Name, Email, and Message is often all you need to start a conversation.
• Your Business Email and Phone Number.
• Your Physical Address: If you have a physical location, embed a Google Map.
• Links to Your Business Social Media Profiles.

How to build it in HubSpot: This is one of the easiest pages to build. Simply drag the "Form" module onto your page, and from the dropdown menu, select the contact form you’ve already created in your HubSpot marketing tools.

5. The Blog: The Growth Engine

Your blog is not just a nice-to-have; it is the single most powerful tool on your website for generating long-term, sustainable growth. It is where you demonstrate your expertise, build authority in your industry, and attract your ideal customers through search engines.

What to include:

• Genuinely Helpful Content: Write articles that answer your customers' biggest questions. Every post should solve a problem.
• Organisation by Topic: Group your articles into "Topic Clusters" (like the one this article is part of!) to show expertise and help both users and search engines navigate your content.
• A Consistent Publishing Schedule: Aim for quality and consistency, whether that's once a week or once a month.
  
  

How to build it in HubSpot: The blog is a core feature of HubSpot. Set up your main blog listing page in your theme settings, and then simply click "Create > Blog Post" to start writing. HubSpot handles the formatting and organisation for you.

Build the Foundation for Success

These five pages are the non-negotiable foundation of any professional website. By creating them thoughtfully, you provide a clear, logical, and trustworthy experience for your visitors, turning your website from a simple brochure into a powerful tool for business growth.

For a complete guide to branding and customising your site, check out our full pillar page: A Practical Guide to Branding and Customising Your HubSpot Starter Website.