Industries
Websites and software by industry
What different kinds of small business need from a website and the software behind it, written one industry at a time.
Updated September 24, 2026
In short
Every kind of business asks something different of its website. A bakery needs pre-orders with pickup times, and a dental office needs forms that patients fill in before the visit. Each page here covers one industry: what its site should do and what its back office needs, with a worked example priced from our price book.
The pages come from general knowledge of each trade, never from a client. Every worked example is an invented business, labelled as one, and every figure in it is a starting price from the price book.
Pick your industry
- BakeriesWhat a bakery needs from its website and its back office, from pre-orders with pickup slots to the day's production list.
- RestaurantsCommission-free pickup orders and reservations taken on a restaurant's own pages, with the kitchen screen and the guest list behind them.
- Home servicesOnline booking with arrival windows and invoices paid at the door, for plumbing, electrical, HVAC and cleaning companies.
- DentalNew patient forms filled in at home and a front desk queue of appointment requests: the site and the back office of a dental practice.
- Law firmsAn intake form that asks the right questions and a client portal behind it, for small firms and solo attorneys.
- Salons and spasOnline booking that takes a deposit under your own policy, and a checkout that credits it, for salons, spas and med spas.
- Real estateHow a brokerage or a small property manager can run listings and inquiries on its own site, with tenant and owner portals behind a login.
- Gyms and studiosHow a gym or fitness studio can take bookings and signed waivers on its own site, with memberships and the front desk run from the same records.
- RetailHow a boutique or small shop can sell online with stock that matches the shelves, and offer in-store pickup with the counter work behind it.
- Event venues and caterersHow a venue or a caterer can answer quote requests against a live calendar and take deposits on its own terms, without a marketplace in between.
Start with a written plan
Tell us about the business and what you need. We reply with questions, then a written plan that lists the work and its price, and nothing starts until you have read it.