How Many Websites Should You Have If You Own Multiple Businesses?
When a client comes to us with multiple businesses, one of the key decisions we’ll need to make is how many websites to build. The answer isn’t always straightforward, as it depends on various factors, such as the nature of the businesses, their target audiences, and the desired outcomes. Should each business have its own separate website, or can they share one unified online presence?
This article will explore the key considerations to help you determine the best approach, ensuring to create a solution that fits both our client's needs and their long-term goals. We’ll walk through the advantages and challenges of building separate websites versus consolidating multiple businesses under one website.
1. Factors to Consider When Deciding How Many Websites to Build
Separate Branding for Different Businesses
If the businesses your client owns have vastly different identities in terms of products, services, or even target markets, it's often necessary to create separate websites. Each business will need a unique identity and website that reflects its specific audience and offerings.
For example, a luxury fashion brand and a construction company may appeal to entirely different demographics and require distinct branding strategies. In this case, keeping the websites separate ensures that each business's brand identity stays clear and aligned with its target audience.
Unified Branding Under One Website
On the other hand, if the businesses are related or share a similar target audience, a single website might be a good option. For example, a client who runs both a catering service and a cooking school could benefit from consolidating the two businesses under one website, creating an umbrella brand that provides services in both areas.
A unified approach helps streamline marketing efforts and reduce the cost of maintaining multiple sites. However, it’s essential that you structure the website in a way that makes it easy for users to distinguish between the different services.
2. Target Audience
Distinct Audiences
If the businesses target completely different audiences, separate websites are often the best choice. Different target markets often mean different design requirements, content strategies, and SEO focuses. With multiple websites, you can cater to the specific needs of each audience without confusing them or diluting the brand message.
For instance, a client who runs a health clinic and a beauty salon should consider separate websites since the customer base for each business is likely to differ significantly. The design, tone, and messaging of the websites should be tailored specifically to the expectations and needs of each group.
Shared or Overlapping Audiences
If the businesses share a common audience, or their target demographics overlap, consolidating them into a single website might be more efficient. For example, if a client owns a bakery and a café, the target audience for both is likely to overlap—customers interested in food and beverages.
In this case, creating a single website that includes sections or landing pages for each business can help you deliver a tailored user experience while minimizing the complexity of managing multiple sites.
3. SEO and Content Strategy
Separate Websites for SEO
When the businesses operate in different industries or have distinct offerings, separate websites make it easier to create unique SEO strategies. By focusing on different keywords and content strategies for each website, you can target specific search queries without worrying about keyword cannibalization, where multiple pages from the same domain compete for similar search terms.
For example, if a client owns a dental clinic and a car dealership, each website can focus on different SEO goals, keywords, and geographic targets without conflicting with the other.
Unified Website for SEO
However, if the businesses are related or operate within a single niche, a single website can work just as effectively for SEO. Consolidating multiple businesses under one website allows you to focus all your SEO efforts on a single domain, increasing the domain authority and simplifying your link-building strategy.
For instance, a client who offers home renovation services and sells related products (like paint or tools) could benefit from a unified website, where SEO efforts for the home improvement business also help to promote the product sales.
4. Website Functionality
Distinct Functional Needs
Some businesses have unique functionality requirements that might be challenging to combine on one site. For instance, if one business involves e-commerce, while another provides services like booking or appointment scheduling, it may be more efficient to create separate websites to ensure that each site meets the specific functionality requirements of the business.
For example, a client who runs both a high-end fashion e-commerce store and a real estate agency will need very different website features, such as an integrated shopping cart and secure payment gateways for the fashion site, and property listing tools and contact forms for the real estate site.
Unified Website Functionality
If the businesses share similar functionalities or can be organized into clear sections, a single website can be a good solution. For example, if a client runs a fitness gym and a wellness coaching business, both services may share similar audiences and membership features. In this case, a single website that incorporates different sections for each service would be easier to manage and offer a better user experience.
5. Maintenance and Cost Considerations
Separate Websites for Maintenance
Managing multiple websites means more work in terms of hosting, updates, security, and backups. If each business requires regular updates or has different technical needs, separate websites may lead to higher maintenance costs and more time spent on ongoing management. However, if the businesses operate in entirely different industries and require distinct approaches, the additional complexity might be necessary.
Single Website for Easier Maintenance
A single website is much easier to maintain, as there is only one domain to manage, one hosting plan, and one set of updates and backups. This approach reduces the complexity of ongoing site maintenance and can result in cost savings for both the client and the designer.
6. Scalability and Future Growth
Separate Websites for Future Expansion
If your client anticipates expanding their businesses, either by launching new products, entering new markets, or acquiring additional ventures, separate websites can provide more flexibility. This approach ensures that each site can evolve independently and integrate new features or services without impacting other businesses. For example, if one of the businesses is expanding into international markets, having its own website can allow for tailored content and country-specific SEO strategies without diluting the main brand’s efforts.
Unified Website for Streamlined Growth
A single website can scale as the client grows, particularly if it’s designed with modularity in mind. By segmenting the site into business-specific sections or categories, you allow your client to expand the scope of each section as their business evolves. This approach might be more cost-effective in the long term, as it consolidates development and marketing efforts. However, it is important to create a structure that remains easy to navigate even as new sections are added, ensuring the user experience remains clear and accessible.
7. User Experience (UX) and Navigation
Separate Websites for Focused User Journeys
When clients have different business offerings, separate websites allow you to design distinct user journeys. Each website can be optimized with a clear focus on the user’s needs, ensuring intuitive navigation and functionality. Users are less likely to get confused or distracted when they’re only shown content that’s directly relevant to them.
For example, a client who owns a law firm and a marketing agency would likely benefit from separate websites, as each industry requires very different user interfaces, content, and calls-to-action. A user searching for legal advice may not want to navigate through a website filled with marketing-related content, and vice versa.
Unified Website with Clear Navigation
When multiple businesses are consolidated into one website, it’s essential to design clear, easy-to-follow navigation. Creating intuitive menus, clear headers, and distinct landing pages for each business helps visitors find what they’re looking for quickly. You’ll want to avoid overwhelming the user with too many choices or complex navigation paths, which could lead to frustration and a higher bounce rate.
For a client with a bakery and a café, you could use a single website with a top-level menu that clearly separates the two sections (e.g., “Cakes” and “Café”), but it’s important to ensure the content and visual design for each section still feel cohesive.
When to Build Multiple Websites
Building multiple websites for a client with multiple businesses may seem like a costly and time-consuming option, but it can be the right choice depending on specific business needs. Here are some situations where it makes sense to go down the multiple website route:
• The businesses have completely different branding and identity needs.
• The target audiences are distinct and require separate strategies.
• The SEO goals are vastly different and need individualized attention.
• The functionality requirements are too diverse to be accommodated by a single website.
• The businesses have their own independent content strategies.
When to Build a Single Website
While multiple websites may be the right choice for some clients, in many cases, a single website can be a simpler, more cost-effective solution. Here are some situations where building a single website is the better option:
• The businesses share a common audience or complementary services.
• The branding can be unified without compromising each business’s identity.
• The businesses have similar functionality or can be easily segmented.
• The goal is to streamline ongoing maintenance and reduce costs.
• The SEO strategies can be managed on a single domain.
How the Vanek Agency Makes Building Multiple Websites Easy
The Vanek Agency offers a powerful solution. With over 300 professionally designed themes spanning a wide range of industries, the Vanek Agency makes it incredibly fast and simple to launch multiple websites.
Whether you're building separate sites for a dental practice and a clothing boutique, or launching a unified site for a fitness studio and a wellness brand, the Vanek Agency can create affordable and unique websites.
Plus, all of our websites are built following the best practices set by Google; mobile responsive, SEO optimized, user friendly, secure, fast and more.