What is a brochure website? Plus brochure website examples.

In this guide, we walk you through the key features, pros and cons of brochure-style websites and provide a few brochure website examples for inspiration.

Here’s what we’ll cover:

• What is a brochure website?
• What kinds of businesses suit a brochure site?
• Brochure website essentials
• Best practices in brochure website design
• Benefits of a brochure-style website
• Limitations of a brochure website
• Brochure website examples for design inspiration

What is a brochure website?

A brochure website is a simple, static website designed to showcase your business — much like a printed brochure would. It’s not built for online selling and doesn’t feature any complex functionality. Instead, it’s designed to tell potential customers who you are, what you do and how to get in touch.

Most brochure sites have between 5 and 10 pages. They focus on clear messaging, strong visuals and a straightforward user journey. You can think of it as a digital shop window — open 24/7. A place for people to pop by and get a feel for your brand and a look at your products or services.

What kinds of businesses suit a brochure site?

Brochure sites make a great small business website. They’re a good fit for:

• Service providers — like law firms, accountants, architects, consultants and coaches
• Trades and local services — like plumbers, hairdressers, gardeners and cleaners
• Hospitality and leisure businesses — think restaurants, spas and event venues
• Creativity and portfolio-based businesses — like web design agencies, artists, photographers and interior designers
• Education and childcare providers — schools, nurseries, training providers and nurseries
• Community groups — including small charities, youth clubs and sports clubs
• Bricks-and-mortar businesses with no need for e-commerce — like furniture stores, florists or independent boutiques

Basically, if you’re not planning to sell online and just want to create an information hub for your business, a brochure site could be just what you need.

Brochure website essentials

So what does a brochure-style website tend to include? At a minimum, you’ll want to include the following as part of your brochure web design:

A handful of pages.

Home, About, Services/Products, Contact and Blog are the usual suspects. Depending on your business, you may want pages for a portfolio, case studies, a restaurant menu or a list of store locations.

A contact form.

This is the main conversion point for a brochure site — so you need a contact form that is easy to find and fill in.

Clear calls to action (CTAs).

Good brochure website design guides users to take action. It does this with the help of clear, persuasive and attention-grabbing calls to action.

Distinctive branding.

First impressions matter. Website branding helps you stand out from the competition and stick in the minds of website visitors.

Trust signals.

Testimonials, reviews, client logos, case studies and security badges — these trust signals persuade potential customers that you’re a reliable and trustworthy company.

Marketing tools.

The best brochure websites support your marketing efforts. They incorporate email marketing sign-up forms, social media links and the option to add downloadable resources.

Best practices in brochure website design

Beyond the basics, there are a couple of things that make your brochure-style website stand out from the crowd and impress customers. Weave the following brochure web design best practices into your build and your website will work harder for your business.

Opt for professional website content

When we talk about website content, we’re referring to stuff like photographs, text, videos and graphics. It can be tempting to try and DIY these elements of your website design. It’s definitely the cheaper option. But it’s rarely a good idea.

DIY web content makes your website look amateurish while professional photos, quality web copy and top-notch website video show your customers that you mean business. They make your brand look polished and professional.

Go bespoke

Ever get a sense of déjà vu as you browse the internet these days? That’s because lots of small businesses use off-the-shelf templates as the basis for their websites. They’re quick and they’re cheap. But they often leave your brand looking like everyone else’s.

A bespoke design, on the other hand, gives you a unique look that reflects your business. You get to incorporate the fonts, colour schemes, imagery and layouts that best suit your business and its branding.

Choose a multi-page layout

Single-page websites had a moment. These sites were super minimal and helped to create a streamlined user journey. This approach seemed perfect for brochure-style websites. But, the truth is, single-page sites aren’t great for SEO.

When choosing between single-page and multi-page websites, we always recommend our clients go for the latter. Because more pages mean more opportunities to show up in search engine result pages (SERPs) and more space to tell your story.

Keep navigation simple

It can be tempting to try and reinvent the wheel when designing website navigation for your brochure site. But straightforward and simple tends to work best. Pick menu header titles that are easy for users to understand so they can find what they’re looking for, fast.

Nail the technical basics

A brochure website may look simple. But the best sites have a lot going on behind the scenes.

To provide the best possible experience for website users and raise your chances of featuring on the first page of Google, you need a brochure website with good foundations.

That means creating a responsive website that looks good on all screens and devices. It means working to web accessibility guidelines and SEO best practice. It means prioritising website security and fast site speeds.

Benefits of a brochure-style website site

Still wondering whether a brochure-style website is the right choice for your business? Here are some of the key benefits they offer.

They’re quick and cheap to build

A brochure website is a quick and affordable option for your business. It can take a web design and development agency just a few weeks to get your site up and running. And — because your site doesn’t need lots of pages or lots of complex functionality — it’s at the cheaper end of the scale too.

They’re easy to maintain

A slim-line structure means your site is easy to maintain. And you have a foundation that can flex a little over time. For example, you can add new content to your blog or new service pages as you develop your offering.

They build trust

A brochure site establishes your brand on the World Wide Web. It helps to build trust and credibility with your customers. They see that you’ve invested time and money in building a website — and that you’re serious about what you do.

They drive organic traffic

Another benefit of brochure websites? You open up your brand to new customers. With a little SEO know-how, you can get your site to show up in SERPs and drive organic traffic. You improve brand visibility and — hopefully — sales too.

Limitations of a brochure site

Of course, every type of website has its pros and cons. Here are a few things to bear in mind before getting a web design and development company to create a brochure-style website for your business.

They have limited functionality

If you want any kind of functionality on your website, beyond email signup and contact forms, you’re venturing out of brochure website territory. What’s more, unless you plan ahead, your site infrastructure may not support advanced features and functionality later on.

They may not convert as well as more complex sites

Features like chatbots, interactive tools and booking systems boost user engagement and conversion rates. But they don’t come as standard on a basic brochure site.

They can easily become stale

To keep your site fresh — in the eyes of website visitors and search engines — you need to commit to adding new content regularly. This requires some creativity if you, like most brochure website owners, don’t often have new products and offers to share.

Brochure website examples for design inspiration

Now we know the pros and cons of brochure websites, it’s time for some inspiration. Take a look at these brochure website examples, from a bunch of very different small businesses, all designed and built by the Radical team.

1.Black Pear

Black Pear provides social-network-inspired software for healthcare providers. The brand’s clean and engaging brochure website gives visitors an introduction to its products and guides them to book a demo by filling out a contact form.

Potential customers can read about the brand’s vision, the people behind the product and how the software works. There’s also an engaging animated explainer video that summarises the brand’s offering in a super speedy 90 seconds.

2.Stockport Village Nursery

This is another brochure-style website the Radical team loved working on. The branding is warm, playful and welcoming. And the website has all the information parents need to get a sense of the nursery and its ethos.

Trust signals include a few key statistics that indicate the level of experience at the nursery, along with parent testimonials. Straight-forward menu headings direct parents to the info they need and clear CTAs guide parents to book a nursery tour by filling out a contact form.

3.People Legal

People Legal has one of the larger brochure websites on this list. Services are shared on separate pages, which supports the company’s SEO strategy and makes things crystal clear for users.

Trust signals are everywhere — from client reviews to industry awards to regulatory badges. And there are also handy extras, like a linked client portal (where clients can view and share documents and case updates) and online appointment booking via Calendly.

Is a brochure website right for your business?

Now you know the ins and outs of brochure websites, what’s your verdict?

If you want a simple, good-looking website that tells people who you are, what you do and how to get in touch, a brochure site could be exactly what you need. These websites are quick to build, easy to maintain and they don’t cost the earth.

It won’t sell products or book appointments (unless you build that stuff in). But it will give your brand a professional online presence, help you show up on Google and reassure your customers that you’re the real deal.

Just remember: simple doesn’t have to mean boring. The best brochure websites are engaging and conversion-focused — with distinctive branding, strong content and solid technical foundations.

And it’s a sliding scale. If you’re unsure that a basic brochure site will meet your business needs, you can incorporate a few extra bells and whistles to ensure your site ticks all the boxes.

Need a hand building a brochure-style website? Or want some advice on which type of website is the best fit for your business? We can help with that!

Get in touch with the Radical team to chat about your website project.

Brochure website FAQs

What is brochure website design?

Brochure website design is the design of a simple, static site that showcases a business much like a printed brochure would.

Brochure websites don’t feature advanced functionality or e-commerce capabilities. But they allow a business to share information about their brand, products, and services, while guiding users to get in touch.

How long does it take to build a brochure website?

Compared to other types of websites, brochure websites are quick to launch. A standard site takes between six to eight weeks to build. However, be sure to factor in your web agency’s lead time.