Picture someone in London who needs exactly what you sell. They pull out their phone, search, tap your website, and within about five seconds they decide whether to call you or hit the back button. Most business owners never see that moment, so they never find out how many customers they're losing in it.
The good news is that you can run the same test yourself in a few minutes. Here are seven things to check, from the customer's side of the screen.
1. Open it on your phone, not your computer
Most people who look up a local business do it on a phone, often while they're in the car, on a lunch break or standing in their kitchen. If your website was built for a big screen, text gets tiny, buttons get hard to hit and pages load slowly. Open your site on your own phone right now. If you have to pinch and zoom to read it, so does every customer.
2. Can someone call you with one tap?
Your phone number should be at the very top of the page, and tapping it should start a call. That sounds obvious, but many sites still show the number as a picture, hide it on a Contact page, or put it at the bottom of a long page. Every extra step is a chance for that customer to call someone else.
3. Does it say what you do and where, in plain words?
A visitor should know in three seconds what you do and where you do it: "Kitchen and bathroom renovations in London and St. Thomas," not "Excellence in every project." Clear words also help Google understand who to show your business to, which matters more than any clever slogan.
4. Is anything out of date?
Old hours, last year's prices, a "new" service from 2019, a photo of staff who left years ago. Customers notice, and they quietly wonder whether you're still in business. Check your hours, prices, services and photos, and make sure they match your Google listing exactly.
5. How long does it take to load?
If your homepage takes more than a few seconds to appear on a phone, a lot of people will leave before they see anything. Big uncompressed photos and older website builders are the usual causes. A quick way to check is Google's free PageSpeed Insights tool. If the mobile score is in the red, that's worth fixing.
6. Is there a clear next step on every page?
Every page should end with an obvious action: call, book, get a quote, or visit. If a visitor reads your services page and there's no button telling them what to do next, many of them won't do anything. One clear button beats five competing links.
7. Would a stranger trust it?
People buy from businesses they trust. Real photos of your work and your team, a few genuine Google reviews, your city and service area, and a secure padlock in the browser bar all say "this is a real, local business that takes care of its customers." Stock photos and a "Not secure" warning say the opposite.
What to do if your site failed a few of these
Don't panic. Almost every small business website we look at misses at least two or three of these, and most of them are quick fixes. Start with the phone test, the tap-to-call button and your hours, because those three alone can bring in calls you're missing today.
If your website needs more than a touch-up, we can help. We'll build you a new, mobile-friendly website for free and send you a preview, so you can see it before you decide anything. If you like it, you keep it for a small monthly fee that covers hosting, security and updates, with no contract. If you don't, you owe nothing.
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