Great, you’ve started a side hustle. Maybe running a small catering business from home, offering coaching sessions or providing local services or maybe you’re selling on Etsy – congratulations. I know from experience how hard it is to be found on Etsy! You know you need a website, but you’re not sure what it should do for your business and your business goals.

This article is written for UK side hustlers juggling a main job, maybe family commitments and trying to build something on the side that can sustain them. You need practical advice that fits your budget and your reality so I’m here to help.

So far I have noticed that many articles are listing the same 5 objectives but they don’t say which is priority. They don’t tell you which website goals matters right now, the cost of your goals based on income or revenue and they sound like they are talking to established corporations or conglomerates.

This guide breaks down what your website should look like at each stage of your side hustle growth, with budget guidance matched to your monthly revenue if that’s the stage you are at. There’s no corporate jargon here and no assumptions about unlimited budgets. I don’t do fluff, just straight talk about building website goals that fits where you are right now.

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Website Goals: 5 Objectives of a Website (For UK Side Hustles)

About Side Hustle Websites

Before we get into the five objectives and as a side note, most web design agencies aren’t interested in side hustlers projects. Their minimum projects start at £8,000-£10,000 and they want clients who can afford ongoing retainers.

That pricing works for established businesses, but it doesn’t work for you at this stage. You’re not there yet.

The good news is that you don’t need an agency-level website when you’re just getting started. You need a website that grows with your revenue and you need someone who understands side hustle budgets. I am that person. I have had many a side hustle over the years. From selling shoes out of the boot of my car to baking cakes and selling to established businesses and everything in between.

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Two Paths to Your Side Hustle Website (Both Are Ture)

There are two legitimate ways to approach your website investment. They are both right.  

Path 1: Invest upfront with your idea

You have a business idea, some savings set aside and you want to launch properly from day one. You invest the £1,500 before you’ve made a single sale because you believe in your concept and want a professional foundation to generate income, not just scale existing income. This is the entrepreneur approach. You’re investing in your vision with conviction, and you need a website to START making money.

Path 2: Wait for revenue to prove your model

You start with a free platform  such as Wix trial, Instagram, Facebook page, marketplace selling to prove people will pay for what you offer, and then you invest in a proper website once you’re making £300-£500/month consistently. This is the cautious side hustler approach. You test the market first, then invest strategically once you’ve validated demand. Most of us choose path 1. Just like I do most of the time.

Both paths work. Choose based on your risk tolerance and financial situation.

The revenue guidance in this post helps both types of solopreneur or side hustle. If you’re investing upfront (Path 1), you’ll know exactly what features to include in your starter website and which upgrades to plan for as revenue grows. If you’re waiting for revenue proof (Path 2), you’ll know when you’re financially ready to make the investment and what to prioritise at each revenue milestone.

Most web design articles assume you already have established revenue. This isn’t always true. Many of my clients invest £1,500 upfront because they have an idea and want to launch with a strong foundation. Others come to me after making £500-£1,000/month via bricks and mortar shops. Some come to me because they have tried the free or low cost website builders, realise how limiting they are, see how much time they have to invest to even get it looking half decent. These people eventually throw in the towel because they have been working on it for over a year, and it’s still not finished.

Start Here

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Objective 1: Generate Sales or Leads

Your website needs to turn visitors into customers or enquiries. This means clear service descriptions, showing your prices to build trust, contact forms that work and a simple path to booking or buying.

Making £0-£500/Month

You need a basic website that shows what you do, your prices and how to contact you. Budget £1,500. I offer payment plans if it helps. (£300 deposit + monthly payments). This is your foundation.

Making £500-£2,000/Month

Invest in better conversion elements like testimonials, portfolio galleries, booking systems or ecommerce functionality. Budget: £2,500-£4,750. Most designers offer payment plans to spread this cost. I offer a premium package that can cover this or you can purchase the starter package with add-ons. The deposit on a premium payment plan for an ecommerce website with me is £1,500 deposit + monthly payments.

Making £2,000+/Month

Now you can afford advanced features like automated booking, client portals or membership areas. Budget £4,750-£6,000. At this revenue level, a good website pays for itself in 2-3 months.

SIDE NOTE. If you can’t afford £1,500 right now, the deposit or monthly payments, you’re probably not ready for a professional website. Start with a free option such as Wix, Squarespace trial or a landing page until you’re making at least £300/month consistently. Then invest in a proper website that you own, not rent via subscription.

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Objective 2: Increase Brand Awareness

You increase brand awareness when people finding you through Google searches, remembering your business name and recommending you to others. This is about showing up when potential customers search for services like yours in your area.

Below £1,000/Month

Focus on getting customers first. Brand awareness is a luxury you can’t afford yet. Your basic website will handle this through local SEO.

£1,000-£3,000/Month

Start investing in brand awareness through SEO services. Budget £180-£360/month for ongoing SEO work (blog posts, Google Business Profile optimisation, local directories). This is when brand awareness becomes profitable, not before. I offer SEO services exactly for this reason. My Foundation Builder SEO service is £180/month for a minimum of 6 months.

£3,000+/Month

Scale up your SEO investment and consider paid advertising along with SEO. Budget £420+/month for comprehensive SEO, plus an advertising budget.

SIDE NOTE. Most side hustlers waste money on brand awareness too early. You don’t need fancy logo designs, professional photography or brand guidelines when you’re making £300/month. You need customers. Focus on sales first, brand later.

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Objective 3: Improve Customer Service

Add FAQ pages that answer common questions, booking systems that let clients schedule themselves, automated confirmation emails and resources that save you from answering the same questions repeatedly.

Below £2,000/Month

Keep it personal. Answer enquiries manually, use free scheduling tools like Calendly and build your FAQ page as questions come up. Don’t pay for automation you don’t need just yet.

£2,000-£5,000/Month

Invest in proper customer service features. Budget £1,000-£2,000 for booking systems, client portals or automated workflows. This frees up 5-10 hours per week, which is huge when you’re juggling a side hustle with a main job or working with skeleton support staff.

£5,000+/Month

Go all in on automation. Budget £3,000-£5,000 for comprehensive systems that handle everything from booking to payment to follow-ups. At this revenue level, you’re transitioning from side hustle to proper business.

SIDE NOTE. Automation is brilliant, but only when you have enough customers to justify it. If you’re getting three enquiries per month, you don’t need a fancy booking system. When you’re getting 20+ enquiries per month and spending hours on admin, that’s when automation pays for itself.

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Objective 4: Enhance User Engagement

Getting visitors to spend more time on your site, read your content, sign up for your email list and engage with your brand beyond just buying once. This includes blogs, newsletters, resources and community building.

Below £3,000/Month

Don’t bother with increasing user engagement yet. Focus on getting sales and building your customer base. Engagement is a nice-to-have, not essential when you’re building momentum.

£3,000-£5,000/Month

Start creating valuable content through a blog, email newsletter or free resources. Budget £2,000-£3,000 for content features, email marketing integration and downloadable resources. This is when repeat customers and referrals become more valuable than new customer acquisition.

£5,000+/Month

Build a proper content strategy and community. Budget £3,500-£5,000 for advanced engagement features like members areas, courses or community forums, plus ongoing content investment (SEO retainers, content creation services).

SIDE NOTE. Every side hustler thinks they need a blog from day one. You don’t. Blogs are time-consuming and only work when you commit to consistent content for 6-12 months minimum. If you’re not ready for that commitment, skip the blog and focus on converting the traffic you already have.

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Objective 5: Reduce Operational Costs

Use your website to cut down on time-wasting tasks, reduce manual admin, automate repetitive processes and scale your business without proportionally increasing your workload. This includes digital product delivery, automated invoicing, self-service client areas and workflow automation.

Below £5,000/Month

Manual processes are fine. The cost of automation exceeds the value of your time saved. Do things manually, document your processes and wait until you have the revenue to justify efficiency investments.

£5,000-£10,000/Month

Start automating strategically. Budget £2,500-£4,000 for automated invoicing, digital product delivery, client onboarding systems and integration between your website and business tools. This investment saves 10-20 hours per month.

£10,000+/Month

Full automation and scaling infrastructure. Budget £5,000-£10,000 for comprehensive systems that let you scale revenue without adding proportional time. At this revenue level, you’re transitioning to full-time business owner, not side hustler.

SIDE NOTE. Operational efficiency sounds appealing when you’re busy, but most side hustlers need more revenue before they need more efficiency. If you’re making £500/month and spending 20 hours on your hustle, efficiency doesn’t help. You need more customers first. When you’re making £5,000/month and working 40 hours, then efficiency becomes your growth lever.

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Setting Website Goals That Match Your Side Hustle Revenue

You don’t need all five objectives from day one.

Start with Objective 1 – Generating sales or leads. Get a basic website that clearly explains what you do, shows your pricing and makes it easy to contact you. This costs £1,500 takes 2-4 weeks to build, and gives you a professional foundation that you own. Don’t do a subscription.

As your revenue grows, add the other objectives strategically:

1. At £1,000/month revenue: Add brand awareness through SEO services (£180/month starter and foundation builder package)
2. At £2,000/month revenue: Improve customer service with automation features (£1,000-£2,000 upgrade)
3. At £3,000/month revenue: Enhance engagement with content features (£2,000-£3,000 upgrade)
4. At £5,000/month revenue: Reduce operational costs through comprehensive automation (£2,500-£4,000 upgrade)

This phased approach means you’re investing in your website as your revenue grows, not gambling thousands of pounds before you’ve proven your business model.

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Why Solo Designers Understand Side Hustle Budgets Better Than Agencies

Agencies have overheads, office rent, multiple staff, fancy tools and corporate structure. They need to charge £5,000-£10,000 per project just to cover costs and make profit.

Solo designers work differently. Lower overhead means lower prices without compromising quality. Direct communication means faster turnaround (2-4 weeks vs 8-12 weeks for agencies). Payment plans mean you don’t need thousands upfront.

Most importantly, solo designers remember and know first hand what it’s like to build a business from scratch. We get it. I get it. I’ve side hustled my way through many side hustles.

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Common Mistakes Side Hustlers Make With Website Objectives

1. Waiting too long to get a website

If you have an idea you have been sitting on for a while. It won’t disappear. It’ll just linger, I know this is the truth from experience. Start to make steps towards investing in a website to make it happen. If you’re making £300+/month consistently, you’re ready for a professional website. Waiting until you’re making thousands per month means losing customers who check online before buying.

2. Choosing subscription website builders to save money

Wix, Squarespace and GoDaddy charge £15-£30/month forever. Over five years, you’ll pay £900-£1,800 and still won’t own your website. Compare that to £1,500 upfront or monthly deposits for a website you own. Do the maths.

3. Building it themselves with no design skills

Your time is worth money. If you’re making £25/hour from your side hustle, spending 40 hours building a website costs you £1,000 in lost earnings, plus you end up with an amateur-looking site that doesn’t convert visitors to customers.

4. Hiding their prices

This is the biggest mistake. Customers respect transparency. If your service costs £50, say so. If it’s £500, say so. Hiding prices makes people assume you’re expensive, which loses you the budget-conscious customers who would have said yes to your actual price.

5. Trying to compete with established businesses on budget

You don’t need the same website as a business making £50,000/month. You need the right website for your current revenue level. Start simple, scale strategically and invest in upgrades as your income grows.

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So…What are Website Goals and the 5 Objectives of a Website?

Start from where you are right now. If you have £1,500 saved or can manage payment plans from your main job income, invest in a professional website today. If not, maybe try a free platform until you’re confident.

As your revenue grows, add objectives strategically. Don’t try to build everything at once. Start with sales (Objective 1), then layer in brand awareness, customer service, engagement and automation as your monthly revenue justifies each investment.

Your website should grow with your business, not bankrupt it before you’ve proven your model. That’s the difference between side hustle reality and agency fantasy.

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I’m Onika Sabrina, web designer in Great Barr, Birmingham who works exclusively with side hustles and small businesses. Transparent pricing from £1,500, payment plans available and your website delivered in 2-4 weeks. No agency overhead, no corporate pricing, just affordable websites that convert.

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Frequently Asked Questions About Website Goals and Objectives