Website, landing page or web app: which one do you actually need?

When people get in touch with us, they often say "I need a website" when they actually need something smaller, or something much bigger. Getting this right at the start saves a lot of money and frustration.

A landing page: one page, one goal

A landing page is a single page built around one action: sign up for a workshop, book a free consultation, download a menu, pre-order a product.

Good for:

• an advertising campaign,
• a launch or a seasonal offer,
• testing whether people want something before building more.

Not good for: explaining a whole business with many services. It is deliberately narrow.

A website: who you are and what you offer

A business website is a set of pages that explain what you do: home, services, about, work or gallery, prices, contact, perhaps a blog. Visitors read, browse and get in touch.

Good for: most shops, clinics, studios, consultants, restaurants and service businesses.

A website can include some interactive pieces, such as a contact form, an enquiry form, an embedded booking widget or a simple catalogue, without becoming a full application.

A web application: the site does work for people

A web app is software that runs in the browser. Users log in, create and change things, and the system remembers them. Examples:

• a customer portal where clients see their orders, invoices and documents,
• an online booking system with staff calendars, reminders and payments,
• an internal tool that replaces the spreadsheets your team passes around (signs you need one),
• a marketplace, a learning platform, a dashboard.

Good for: when the website needs to do something, not just say something.

Web apps take longer and cost more because there is much more to design and test: user accounts, permissions, data, security, edge cases and what happens when things go wrong.

How to tell which one you need

Ask yourself a few questions:

1. Do visitors need to log in? If yes, it is a web app.
2. Will people create or change information that you need to keep? (orders, bookings, records) That points to a web app, or a website plus a ready-made tool.
3. Is there one specific campaign or offer? A landing page may be enough.
4. Do you mainly need to be found and trusted? A website.

Start smaller than you think

A common and sensible path is:

1. Start with a clear website that brings in enquiries.
2. Use existing tools for bookings or payments while you learn what customers want.
3. Build a custom web app once you know exactly which manual work is eating your time.

Building the full system on day one, before you know how customers will use it, is the most expensive way to find out.

Mobile app or web app?

People often ask for an app when a web app would do. A web app works on every phone and computer with a link, without an app store download. A mobile app makes sense when people will use it often, need it offline, or need phone features such as notifications or the camera. We cover the trade-offs when we scope a project.

If you are not sure which you need, describe the problem rather than the solution. "Customers keep calling to ask whether their order is ready" tells a developer much more than "I need an app".