Web Design & Development
Fast, modern WordPress sites that turn visitors into customers — designed, written, launched, maintained.
A small business website has one job: make the phone ring. Riot Design builds WordPress websites for small businesses across Milton, Burlington, Oakville and Halton Hills that load fast, read clearly, rank in local search and make booking you the obvious next step — then we keep them running so you never think about hosting again.
Designed to sell
Every page built around the action you want — call, book, order, visit.
Built properly
Modern WordPress, editable by you, no page-builder spaghetti, no ransom.
Found locally
Schema, speed and local SEO fundamentals baked in from day one.
Before a pixel is pushed we map the whole machine — every page, every path a customer can take, every point where they might leave. Then we design the site around the shortest route to “yes.” Sites we’ve shipped this way include BOSS women’s self-defence and Shuck Off Oysters:
Seven rules for a small business website that actually sells.
- 01
Answer the three questions above the fold
What do you do, where do you do it, how do I get it. If a stranger can’t answer all three in five seconds, the design has failed — no matter how pretty.
- 02
Speed is a ranking factor and a trust factor
Every second of load time costs conversions, and Google notices too. Compressed images, no bloated page builders, good hosting. Boring, decisive, cheap.
- 03
One call-to-action per page
“Call us” or “Book now” — pick one and repeat it. Five competing buttons split attention five ways and win nothing.
- 04
Real photos beat stock, every time
Visitors smell stock photography instantly. One half-day shoot gives a site more credibility than any template — it’s why we bundle photography with web projects.
- 05
Write for the local search you want to win
“Karate lessons Oakville” in a headline outranks a page of clever wordplay. Say the thing people type.
- 06
Own your domain and hosting
Registered in your name, on your card. We set it up and maintain it — but if we vanished tomorrow, you’d lose nothing.
- 07
A website is a beginning, not a finish line
The sites that keep ranking get small updates monthly — a review here, a photo there. That’s what the care plan is for.
What it costs
Websites
All prices CAD before HST. Copywriting included — you talk, we write.
How much does a small business website cost in Ontario?
DIY builders run $20–$50 a month forever; freelance builds $1,000–$3,000; agencies $3,000–$10,000+. Ours are flat and published: one-page site $900, business site $2,400, e-commerce $3,800 — copywriting included.
WordPress or Wix/Squarespace?
Builders are fine until you need local SEO depth, real ownership and portability. We build on WordPress because you own every file and can fire us without losing your site — leverage you should keep.
How fast can we launch?
A one-page site: under two weeks. A full business site: two to four. The bottleneck is usually content, which is why we write it with you.
Can I edit the site myself?
Yes — it’s normal WordPress with readable sections. We hand you the keys with plain-language training.
Will it work on phones?
It’s designed for phones first; most local traffic is mobile. Test it on yours before we launch — that’s part of the checklist.
What does a website need to rank locally?
Fast loading, complete Google Business Profile, consistent name-address-phone, real photos, and pages that literally say what you do and where. We build all five in by default.
A site we built, working
BOSS women’s self-defence — brand, illustration and web presence in one case study.
Every web price, published
One-page to e-commerce, care plans included, in CAD.
The course version
Bring Your Business Online teaches the five-block formula and the launch checklist — $95, curriculum public.
The five-block one-page formula.
Steal this. A one-page site with these five blocks, in this order, outsells most five-page sites — it’s Module 4 of the course, free right here:
- 01
Block 1 — What and where
One sentence a stranger understands: “Wood-fired pizza catering for events across Halton.” If your headline needs a second sentence, it isn’t done.
- 02
Block 2 — Proof
Three real photos and one honest review beat any paragraph about passion. Show the plate, the class, the show.
- 03
Block 3 — What it costs
Even a starting price (“Events from $600”) filters out mismatches and builds trust with everyone else. Hiding prices only creates awkward phone calls.
- 04
Block 4 — Who you are
One photo of a human, two sentences. People hire people — especially locally.
- 05
Block 5 — One way to say yes
A single button: call, book or message. Every extra option you add splits your results. Pick the action you actually want.
Want the rest — domains, Google Business Profile, the launch checklist? The full course is $95, curriculum published here. Or we’ll build the page for you, starting at $900 flat.
Ready for a site that sells?
A free 20-minute call. No pressure, no jargon — just a straight answer on what your business needs next.