Guide

Having a website created for small businesses and sole proprietors

Most examples come from companies with their own IT departments. What can be transferred to a business with three to fifteen people — and what cannot.

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Quote on request4 to 8 weeksAs of 2026

In short

For businesses with three to fifteen people, a website is often more effective than for large companies, because the same person has multiple roles. But the scope must be different: small scale, few moving parts, maintenance without specialist knowledge — not a solution designed for growth to fifty employees.

01 — Business size

What this means for small businesses

Most examples online come from companies with their own IT departments. In a business with three to fifteen people, different rules apply: there's no one to maintain a system on the side, and every hour spent on implementation is taken directly from day-to-day operations.

This does not mean that a website is unsuitable for small businesses — on the contrary, the effect is often greater there because the same person has multiple roles. It does mean that the scope must be different: small scale, few moving parts, maintenance without specialist knowledge.

A sole proprietorship doesn't need a solution designed for growth to fifty employees. Anyone who buys something like that pays for complexity that will never be used.

02 — Fit

When it's worth it

The process in question occurs at least weekly.
It follows rules you can write down — even if there are exceptions.
Today it's manual work that no one enjoys doing.
There's one person who decides, not three who need to coordinate.
You can name what would tell you it worked.

03 — Calculation

How to calculate it

Four numbers are enough: How often does the process occur? How long does it take? What does an hour cost internally? And what does the solution cost — one-time plus operation over three years?

An example: A process that occurs twice a week and takes 40 minutes each time ties up around 69 hours per year. At an internal hourly rate of 45 euros, that's roughly 3,100 euros per year locked in there. If a solution reduces this effort by two-thirds, it often pays for itself — depending on the actual quote — within one to two years. We'll give you the exact figure for your case after the initial meeting.

This calculation is deliberately conservative: it only accounts for the time saved, not the errors avoided or the orders that come through due to faster response. In practice, the benefit is usually higher — but you shouldn't count on it before you've measured it.

04 — Questions

Frequently asked questions

Can we manage the site ourselves?

Yes. You maintain texts, images, and simple pages yourself. For structural changes you get in touch — or not, that's not a dependency we build.

Are there subsidies?

For digitalization projects in Austria, there are several funding programs, such as KMU.DIGITAL (kmudigital.at) or the aws digitalization subsidy (aws.at). Whether your project currently qualifies, we check individually — the application must be approved before awarding the contract in any case.

What happens to our old site?

The content is carried over as long as it's suitable, and old addresses are redirected to the new ones. Without these redirects, you lose the visibility built up over years — that's the most common mistake in a relaunch.

What does ongoing operation cost?

Hosting, domain, updates, and backups are ongoing costs — how much depends on the size and requirements of the site, and we state that transparently in the quote. Anyone who skimps on that skimps until the first security incident.

What does a website cost in Austria?

There's no serious way to answer that as a flat rate — the market ranges are huge because a one-pager and a multilingual company site with twenty pages are completely different projects technically. What matters most is how much content has to be created from scratch — that's almost always the biggest line item, not the technology. Send us a quick note about what you have in mind, and you'll get a proposal that fits your scope.

WordPress or something else?

Depends on the case. WordPress makes sense when many people manage content and standard features are enough. Where speed, security, or custom functions matter, we build leaner. We don't recommend what we like building most, but what you can still operate in three years.

Does our website have to be accessible?

Since 28 June 2025, the Accessibility Act (Barrierefreiheitsgesetz) applies in Austria. Mainly affected are online shops, bookings, e-ticketing, and banking services in consumer business; micro-enterprises are exempt for services. A pure information site generally doesn't fall under it — we still build to WCAG 2.1 AA because it makes the site better for everyone and the rules tend to get stricter.

05 — Decision

How to move forward

The most affordable next step is a conversation, not a quote. Twenty minutes is usually enough to clarify whether a project makes sense, what scope it involves, and whether we're the right fit.

If we're not, we'll say so. An honest no costs less than a project you abandon after three months — for both sides.

06 — Next

Having a website created by region

Next step

We'll look at your starting position.

Tell us what's eating up time today. That becomes an assessment with effort and benefit — and only then an offer.

Send inquiry ↗ office@pipeline-solutions.at OR +43 681 207 64 203