80% of Business Websites in Latvia Don't Actually Work. Here's Why.

Something Is Wrong With Business Websites in Latvia

A couple weeks ago I was sitting in a café with an old acquaintance — he runs a small construction company near Riga. Between stories, he mentioned he'd paid 1,800 euros for a new website about a year ago. "Looks good," he said, showing it on his phone. And yeah, it looked fine. Then I asked — how many clients came from the website last month? He looked at me like I'd asked him how many stars are in the sky.

Nobody had been counting. Nobody had even set up Google Analytics. The website was sitting there like a pretty sign on a road nobody drives on.

And this isn't an exception. This is the norm. After 20 years in this business I can say — at least 80% of business websites in Latvia bring in zero clients. They just... exist. Like digital business cards nobody sees.

Why Your Web Developer Doesn't Tell You This

Simple — because it's convenient for them that you think: website done, job finished, invoice paid, goodbye. They handed you a nice picture, you paid. Everyone's happy.

But a website isn't a picture. A website is a business tool. Just like your CRM, your phone, or your sales team. And if the tool doesn't work — you've got a problem you don't even know about. Because nobody tells you that your website is just sitting there doing nothing.

It's like buying a car but never changing the oil, never checking the brakes, never doing maintenance. Eventually it just stops working. A website is exactly the same — it needs maintenance, analysis, and regular improvements.

5 Things That Are Almost Certainly Wrong With Your Website

It's unclear what visitors should do

Go to your website. Look at it as a stranger who's seeing you for the very first time. Can you understand within 5 seconds — what this company does, and what you should do next?

If the first screen says "Welcome to our website" or "Quality services since 2005" — that's empty filler. Nobody cares when you started. People don't want to greet you. They want to solve their problem. Fast.

Every page needs one clear action — "Get a quote", "Book a free consultation", "Learn more". Not three buttons. Not zero. One clear next step. If a visitor doesn't know what to do — they'll close the tab and go to your competitor where it IS clear.

The website is beautiful but confusing

I have a client whose designer created a visually stunning website. Animations, parallax effects, video backgrounds, full-screen images. Beautiful like an art gallery. One problem — nobody could find the phone number. It was hidden in a hamburger menu, behind three clicks. The contact form was at the very bottom of the page, past three screens of "about us" text that nobody ever reads.

Beautiful ≠ effective. Your client doesn't want to admire your website. They want to quickly understand if you can help them, and how to reach you. 3 seconds — that's how long you have before they leave.

I've personally tested dozens of websites with real users. Almost every time the problem is the same — the designer thought about how it looks, not how it works. If you want to know exactly where your website "loses" people — a usability audit will show you with concrete numbers.

Google doesn't know you exist

Have you ever tried this? Go to Google and type your main service + "Latvia" or "Riga". Like "construction work Riga" or "accounting services Latvia". Are you on the first page?

If not — you're invisible. Practically don't exist. Your competitor who IS on the first page gets clients every day for free, while you're waiting for someone to pass along your business card or notice your Facebook post.

SEO isn't magic and it's not rocket science either. The basics — proper meta tags for each page, fast loading, sitemap, mobile version, Google Search Console — all of this should be included in any normal website development project. If your developer didn't do it — they didn't finish the job. Simple as that.

You have no idea what's happening on your website

How many people were on your website yesterday? Where did they come from — Google, Facebook, or typed the address directly? Which page did they look at most? Where did they leave?

If the answer to any of these is "I don't know" — you're running your digital business blindfolded. Imagine having a shop but not knowing how many people walk in, what they look at, and why they leave without buying. Absurd, right? But that's exactly how most business owners treat their website.

Google Analytics is free. Completely. Setup takes 15-20 minutes. If your developer didn't set it up — demand it. There's no excuse not to.

It looks terrible on phones

Pick up your phone and open your website. Slowly. Honestly. Is the text readable without zooming? Can you tap buttons with your thumb without hitting neighboring ones? Does everything look proper and tidy?

65% of your potential clients will see you for the first time through a phone screen. If it looks wonky or is hard to use — they won't look a second time. They won't even think to check from a computer — they'll simply leave.

By the way — Google has been evaluating websites based on the mobile version, not desktop, since 2019. So if your website looks mediocre on your phone — Google thinks so too.

A Simple Test You Can Do Right Now

Show your website to someone who's never seen it. Your mom, a friend, a neighbor, a colleague from another company — doesn't matter who. Let them look for 10 seconds. Then ask:

• "What does this company do?"
• "Would you trust them and want to work with them?"
• "How would you contact them if you wanted to?"

If the answers are unclear or unconvincing — you've got a problem you probably didn't know about. And it's costing you real money every month — in lost clients and deals that never happened.

What I Recommend Doing (and What NOT To)

Don't start with a new website. Don't start with a new design. Don't start with a logo redesign. That's like repainting a house that has a leaking roof.

Start with an honest audit — look at what works and what doesn't. No point spending 5,000 euros on a new website if the problem is that your phone number is hidden and Google can't find you.

We offer a free website assessment — we look at 3–5 specific things to improve. No sales pressure, no strings attached. If it turns out everything is fine — I'll tell you honestly. But after 20 years in this business — it usually isn't.

Questions I Hear Often

"But my website looks good..."

It might! But "looks good" and "works well" are two completely different things. I've seen simple, almost "boring" websites generating 30+ inquiries per month, and others that look like a million bucks but haven't brought a single client in a whole year. Design isn't the problem — strategy is.

"My cousin/friend/student made the website..."

Nothing wrong with that. But did they think about SEO? About conversions? About the mobile version? About analytics? A website that "looks OK" and a website that "brings clients" are two different things. The first is a hobby project, the second is a business tool.

"How much does it cost to fix a website?"

From 500 euros for specific UX improvements up to 3,000-10,000 for a complete rebuild with a new tech foundation. But the right question is different — how much is a non-working website costing you right now? Because that price is much, much higher.