On this page
- 01Key takeaways
- 02What is a service status page?
- 03Which businesses need one?
- 04What should a status page show?
- 05Where should it be hosted?
- 06How often should updates be posted?
- 07When is a status page overkill?
- 08What does this look like in practice?
- 09Status page checklist
- 10Next step
- 11Sources and further reading
- 12Frequently asked questions
Key takeaways
A service status page shows whether your systems or service are working, any current disruption and when it will be fixed. Businesses customers rely on daily, such as IT support, software, hosting, deliveries or utilities, benefit most. During an outage, it answers the question everyone would otherwise phone to ask.
- Useful for services customers rely on daily, such as IT, software and deliveries.
- Show current status, affected services and next update time.
- Host it separately so it works when your main systems are down.
- Post updates at set intervals, even if nothing has changed.
Want help planning a status page? Message us on WhatsApp.
Chat on WhatsApp →What is a service status page?
A service status page is a public page showing whether your services are working, any current incidents, what is affected and when the next update is due. Global Bridge Labs (GBL) recommends one for businesses whose customers depend on them daily, where outages generate floods of calls.
Which businesses need one?
Managed IT providers, software and web platforms, hosting firms, payment and booking services, logistics and delivery companies, and utilities benefit most. A local trade rarely needs one. The test is whether a disruption would cause many customers to contact you at once.
What should a status page show?
Show each service and its current state, a plain description of any incident, when it started, what customers can do meanwhile and when the next update will be posted. Afterwards, add a short summary of what happened. The GOV.UK Service Manual recommends planning how you will communicate when a service is down.
Where should it be hosted?
Host it separately from your main systems, for example on a status service or a different provider, so it stays up when the thing it reports on goes down. Link to it from your support page, footer and automated phone message.
How often should updates be posted?
Post updates at set intervals during an incident, such as every 30 or 60 minutes, even if the update is 'still investigating'. Silence prompts calls. State the time of the next update in each post, and keep the language plain.
When is a status page overkill?
It is overkill for businesses with few customers depending on a live service. A banner on the homepage during rare disruptions is enough. A status page left showing 'all systems operational' during an obvious outage does more harm than none.
What does this look like in practice?
A pattern we see with IT support firms: during a supplier outage, every client phones at once and the helpdesk cannot reach anyone. A status page updated every 30 minutes, linked from the phone message, turns hundreds of calls into a few.
Status page checklist
- List the services customers rely on.
- Host the page separately.
- Define incident wording templates.
- Set an update interval.
- Link it from support and phone messages.
- Publish a short summary after each incident.
Next step
Think back to your last outage or disruption. If the phone rang all day with the same question, a status page would have answered it.
Message us on WhatsApp for help planning incident communication, with no pitch.
Chat on WhatsApp →Sources and further reading
- Uptime and availability: keeping your service online · GOV.UK Service Manual
- UK Customer Satisfaction Index · Institute of Customer Service
- Understanding WCAG 2.2 success criterion 3.2.6: Consistent Help · W3C
Frequently asked questions
Does a small business need a status page?
Only if many customers depend on a live service from you, such as IT support, software, hosting or deliveries. For most local businesses, a homepage banner during rare disruptions is enough.
What should a status page include?
Each service's current state, any incident description, start time, what customers can do, and when the next update is due. Afterwards, add a brief summary of the cause and fix.
Where should a status page be hosted?
Separately from the systems it reports on, so it stays available during an outage. Many businesses use a dedicated status service. Link it from your support page and phone messages.
Written by
Global Bridge Labs (GBL) is a UK–Sri Lanka partner for social media, websites and BPO. Everything here comes from client delivery, not theory.
