Walk down any high street and you'll find two kinds of business that need you: the ones with no website at all, and the ones with a website nobody has touched in years. The second kind is often the easier first client. The owner already knows they need a website, they're probably already paying for one, and you can see exactly what's wrong with it.
You don't have to start from a blank page. Give Ullbek the old site's address and it reads the pages, then builds a fresh, custom website from them. This page walks you through it, from the rebuild to the domain. If you're just getting started, read Start your agency first.
Why old websites make good first clients
They already believe in websites
Nobody has to convince this owner a website matters. They have one. They just know it's not doing them any favours.
You can see what's wrong
Open it on your phone. Tiny text, a broken menu, last year's prices, a photo from 2014. Every one is a reason to talk.
Before and after sells itself
Their old site next to their new one, on your phone, with their own words and photos. You don't have to explain much.
The content is already there
Services, prices, opening hours, photos. Ullbek reads them from the old site, so you're not chasing the owner for every detail.
Build the new version before you walk in. Rebuilding from the old address takes minutes, and a preview link opens on any phone. "I made you something" is a far easier conversation than "would you like a website?"
Rebuild from the old address
You don't need to copy and paste anything. Give Ullbek the current website address and it reads the pages (the text, the links and the images) and can bring the images across. Then it builds a fresh, custom site from them. It's a rebuild, not a copy: the old content, in a new, better site.
- Create the site in your main workspace
Click New site from your dashboard. All your client sites live together in your main workspace; see Organise clients with workspaces.
- Give Ullbek the old address and a direction
Say what to keep, what to change, and how it should feel. The prompts below are a good start.
- Check every page against the old site
Prices, opening hours, phone numbers, addresses, staff names. Ask for corrections in plain words.
- Send the owner a preview link
They see their new site before anything changes for their customers. See Previews, approvals & changes.
- Publish, then move the domain
Only after the owner says yes. The next sections cover the domain.
The last one is useful for a big old site: you see what's there, decide with the owner what's worth keeping, and then ask for the rebuild.
A rebuild faithfully brings across what the old site says, including last year's prices and a phone number nobody answers. Ask the owner to read the new site properly at the preview stage. It's often the first time in years anyone has.
Before you publish, make sure the owner is happy for you to reuse their words and photos, and if they have better, newer pictures, ask for those. You can always tell Ullbek to swap images in later.
A small "Website by" line in the footer, linking to your studio's site, is how your work finds you the next client. Agree it with the owner when they say yes (it's normal agency practice). It takes one sentence:
This is your own credit. It's separate from the Ullbek badge, which only appears on free ullbek.site addresses.
Check it's a website, not an app
Ullbek builds websites, not web apps, and that's a deliberate, permanent choice. Most old sites you'll find are websites: a bakery, a salon, a plumber, a photographer. A few aren't. Ullbek doesn't do:
- Member logins: no customer accounts, member areas or paywalled pages.
- Full online shops: no cart, checkout or stock management.
- Booking engines: no calendar that takes appointments on the site itself.
What it does well is everything around those. A site can link out to the tools the business already uses: a Shopify or Etsy shop behind the "Buy" button, a booking page behind "Book an appointment". And every site can have a working contact form that sends enquiries straight to the business. If an old site is really a members' portal or a full shop, that business isn't the right client for this; move on to the next one.
Moving the domain
The business's domain keeps its name; you point it at the new site. A site on its own domain needs premium hosting, a monthly plan per site. Once the owner has approved the new site and it's published:
- Put the site on premium hosting
Premium hosting is per site. The price shows before you pay, in your workspace's currency.
- Connect the domain
Enter the domain and Ullbek shows you the DNS records to add at the company where it's registered. The domain itself can stay registered where it is.
- Wait for it to go live
Once the records are in place, the site starts serving on the business's domain, secure certificate included.
- Then cancel the old hosting
Only after you've opened the site on its domain and seen the new version.
Often the person who built the old site also registered the domain, and the owner has never logged in. Ask early: "Where is your domain registered, and can you get into it?" Adding the records needs that login, so it's worth sorting out while the new site is still being approved.
Many businesses run their email on the same domain. When you connect the domain, add or change only the records Ullbek shows you, and leave the others (like the ones for email) as they are.
If the business doesn't have a domain yet, or wants a better one, you can buy a new .com, .net or .org right inside Ullbek. Bought for a site that's already on premium hosting, it's connected for you, with the DNS and certificate included and no records for anyone to add. The full walk-through is in Publishing & going live, and domains are on ullbek.com/domains. Who pays for the hosting, you or the owner, is in Who pays for what.
Checklist
One row per step, for each old site you redo. Copy it into your notes and tick as you go.
| Step | Done when |
|---|---|
| 1. Content captured | You know every page on the old site and what the owner wants to keep, drop or update. |
| 2. Rebuilt | The new site is built in your main workspace, and you've checked every page's prices, hours and contact details. |
| 3. Studio credit in the footer | Every page carries your small "Website by" line, linking to your studio's site, as agreed with the owner. |
| 4. Approved | The owner has seen it through the preview link and said "yes, publish" in writing. |
| 5. Form recipient set | Form messages go to the owner's email, confirmed with the 6-digit code sent to that address, and a test message arrived. See Contact forms. |
| 6. Domain connected | The site is published on premium hosting and opens on the business's own domain, secure. |
| 7. Old hosting cancelled | Only after step 6, once the new site is live on the domain. |
Start with a business you know, ideally one whose old site you've winced at. It's the easiest "before and after" you'll ever show the next client.
Related
Start your agency
Your first 30 days: your own site, your domain, a portfolio, your first client.
Previews, approvals & changes
Preview links, the approval loop, and client editors.
Who pays for what
Building, hosting and domains, in your currency or your client's.
Agency FAQ
The badge, client ownership, limits, and what Ullbek doesn't do.
Try it on a site you walk past
Sign up free, give Ullbek the address of a local business's old website, and see what it could be.