I wrote a technical checklist a while back. Forty two things a site should pass before it goes live. Schema, load speed, contrast ratios, all of it.
This is the other one. The one that has nothing to do with code.
Because a site can pass every technical check ever invented and still fail at the only job it has, which is turning a stranger who found you on Google into somebody who picks up the phone.
Here’s what that actually takes.
Part 1 · The first screen
You get about three seconds. On a phone, that’s roughly the top four hundred pixels. Everything below that only matters if this part works.
Four things have to be there. Not five, not eight. Four.
1. What you do and where you do it, in plain words.
Not your slogan. Not your company name in a large font. The thing you actually sell, and the city.
“Emergency plumbing in Murrieta and Temecula.” Done. A visitor now knows in half a second whether they’re in the right place, and that’s the entire job of a headline.
The most common mistake I see is a headline that’s about the business instead of the customer. “Family Owned and Operated Since 1998” is a nice fact. It’s not a headline. It answers a question nobody asked yet.
2. A price signal.
Not necessarily a price. A signal. “Flat rate diagnostics, $89.” “Starting at $2,400.” “Free estimates, no trip charge.” “Most jobs $150 to $400.”
Everybody’s instinct is to hide price so they can “get them on the phone first.” Here’s what actually happens: the visitor assumes it’s expensive and leaves. Price transparency doesn’t cost you the deal. It costs you the tire kickers, which is a different thing and a good thing.
3. A specific promise.
Not “quality service.” Not “satisfaction guaranteed.” Those are wallpaper. Nobody has ever read “satisfaction guaranteed” and felt anything.
A real promise is one you could be caught failing. “On site within 90 minutes or the trip is free.” “If it leaks again in twelve months, we fix it at no charge.” “Live in seven days or you don’t pay.”
The test: could somebody hold you to it? If not, it’s not a promise, it’s decoration.
4. Something to press.
A phone number that dials when tapped. A button. Both. Right there, above the fold, before any scrolling happens.
If your phone number is text a customer has to select and copy, you are losing calls. Not theoretically. Actually.
Part 2 · Proof, and where it goes
People don’t believe you. They believe other people. That’s not cynicism, it’s just how buying works.
5. A real number near the top. Reviews count, years in business, jobs completed. “4.9 stars, 187 Google reviews” is worth more than three paragraphs about your commitment to excellence.
6. Reviews with names and specifics. “Great service, highly recommend. Five stars.” from “J.M.” reads like you wrote it yourself. “Dave came out on a Sunday when our water heater went and had it done in two hours. Charged exactly what he quoted.” from “Kristen R., Murrieta” reads like a person.
7. Photos of you and your actual work. Your truck. Your crew. The job you finished last Tuesday. A slightly imperfect real photo beats a perfect stock one every single time, and everybody can tell the difference instantly even if they couldn’t tell you why.
8. Proof placed right next to the button. This is the one almost everybody misses and it matters more than you’d think. Doubt spikes at the exact moment somebody is about to click. So put the star rating, or the guarantee, physically adjacent to the primary button. Not in a separate section three scrolls down. Right there, answering the doubt at the moment it appears.
Part 3 · Removing friction
Every extra step between “I’m interested” and “I contacted them” loses people.
9. One primary action, repeated. Pick call, or book, or request a quote. One. Then repeat it down the page. A site offering call, text, email, book online, chat, download our guide, and follow us on Instagram is a site giving nobody a decision.
10. A form that asks for the minimum. Name, phone, and what they need. Every additional field costs you completions. You do not need their address before they’ve decided to talk to you.
11. The form has to actually work. Submit it yourself. Then have somebody else submit it. I have found dead forms on live sites that had been quietly eating leads for years, and the owner had no idea why business felt slow.
12. Hours, service area, and how fast you respond, stated plainly. “We answer calls 7am to 7pm, seven days, and return everything else within an hour.” That single sentence removes more hesitation than a page of marketing copy.
13. A sticky call bar on mobile. Pinned to the bottom of the screen, always visible, one tap to dial. For a trade business this is worth more than everything else on this list combined. It never scrolls away, so the ability to call is never more than one thumb-move away no matter where they are on the page.
Part 4 · The right widget for the right business
This is where most sites either do too little or way too much. The rule is simple: a widget earns its place only if it removes friction for how your specific customer buys. Everything else is a toy.
Here’s what I actually put on what.
Plumbers, HVAC, electricians, garage door, anything emergency.
Sticky call bar. Big tappable phone. A “what does it cost” flat-rate range table. A service area map that includes their neighborhood by name. What NOT to include: an online booking calendar. Somebody with water on the floor is not booking Thursday at 2. They’re calling. Every second you spend making them fill something out is a second they’re calling the next guy.
Roofers, remodelers, landscapers, solar, anything with a quote.
A guided quote qualifier. Three or four questions, one screen at a time, ending in contact info. This does two jobs: it feels easier than a wall-of-fields form, and it filters. You get fewer leads and dramatically better ones. Also: a before and after slider, because your product is a visible transformation and nothing sells that like dragging a handle across it. Also a project gallery with real jobs.
Salons, barbers, med spas, tattoo, lashes.
Real online booking integration, styled to match the site rather than an ugly embedded box. A gallery with a lightbox, because they’re buying a look. A service menu with prices, actually listed. Staff bios with photos, because in beauty people book a person, not a business.
Restaurants, cafes, bars, food trucks.
A proper menu on the page as text, not a PDF and not a photo of a chalkboard. This is the number one failure in the entire category. Hours that are correct and obvious. Order-ahead integration if you have it. Directions and parking. Photos of food that look genuinely good, which means real photos taken in daylight.
Gyms, martial arts, dance, yoga, tutoring.
A class schedule that’s readable on a phone. A free trial or intro offer as the primary action, since almost nobody buys a membership cold. Instructor bios. Video, if you have any, because people want to see the room before they walk in.
Dentists, chiropractors, medical, therapy.
Insurance accepted, listed plainly. New patient forms available before the visit. Booking or a request form. A real photo of the actual office interior, because medical anxiety is about the room. Provider bios with credentials.
Consultants, attorneys, accountants, agencies.
A calendar booking link as the primary action. Case studies or results with actual numbers. A clear description of who you work with and who you don’t, which qualifies harder than any form. Almost no widgets otherwise. Restraint reads as expensive in professional services.
Auto shops, detailers, mobile services.
A service and price table. Before and after gallery. A service area map for mobile. Text-to-book, since this customer texts more than they call.
What almost nobody needs: a live chat widget nobody staffs, a newsletter popup on a plumbing site, an Instagram feed embed that slows the page down, a testimonial carousel that auto-advances before anyone can read it, and a hero video that takes eight seconds to load.
Part 5 · The five second test
Here’s how to check your own site right now.
Open it on your phone. Cellular data, not office wifi. Look at it for five seconds and then look away.
Now answer, without looking back:
- What does this business do?
- Where are they?
- What would it cost, roughly?
- What am I supposed to do next?
- Why would I pick them over the next result?
If you can’t answer all five from memory, neither can your customer. And they aren’t going to give you a second five seconds. They’re going to hit back and click your competitor.
That test is free, it takes a minute, and it will tell you more than any analytics dashboard.
Want me to run it for you?
Send me your URL. I’ll go through this list and the technical one, and send you back a straight assessment of what’s working and what’s costing you calls. Free, no meeting, no pitch attached.
If the answer is “this is fine, save your money,” I’ll say that.
