Plenty of trade websites work like an online brochure: they look fine and produce very little. A site that brings in work is built around one goal, getting the visitor to call or send an enquiry. That means saying clearly what you do and where, proving you're trustworthy, working smoothly on a phone and loading quickly.
The first screen
Visitors decide very quickly whether to stay. Before they scroll, the top of the page should answer three questions.
What do you do?
"Licensed plumber and gasfitter" says more than a clever slogan ever will.
Where do you work?
Name your area up front, for example "Covering Brisbane's northside".
How do I reach you?
A phone number they can see straight away, which dials with one tap on a mobile, plus a clear button to request a quote.
If someone has to hunt for any of those, there's a good chance they'll hit back and try the next business in the results.
Proof people look for
Hiring a tradesperson is a decision about trust. The customer is letting a stranger into their home, or committing a serious amount of money. Your site needs to settle those nerves quickly.
- Reviews: show your Google rating and a few real reviews, with a link to the full list.
- Licence numbers: displayed where people can find them, as proof you're qualified.
- Insurance: say plainly that you carry public liability cover.
- Real photos: you, your crew, your ute and finished jobs, never stock images.
- How long you've traded: a track record is reassuring.
- Memberships: logos from bodies such as Master Builders or Master Electricians, where you belong to them.
Built for phones
A lot of people looking for a local trade are searching on a phone, often in a hurry. If the site is awkward on a small screen, it's awkward for many of the people you most want to reach.
Tap to call
A call button that stays in view and dials in a single tap.
Quick to load
Pages that appear fast on mobile data, not only on the office wifi.
Thumb-sized buttons
Big enough to hit first time, with space between them.
Short forms
Name, phone number and a line about the job. Anything more can wait for the call.
Text should be readable without pinching to zoom, and nothing should spill off the side of the screen.
The pages you need
- Home: a clear statement of what you do and where, your main services, proof you can be trusted and an obvious next step. Keep it focused.
- A page for each service: one per main job rather than everything crammed onto one page. Each can explain the work properly and match what people search for.
- About: who you are, your qualifications and photos of the actual team. People hire people.
- Contact: your number, email address, the areas you cover and a brief form, with nothing in the way.
- Reviews: a page gathering your best feedback, linking out to your Google reviews so visitors can see they're genuine.
Speed
A slow site loses people before they've read a word. Google also says it takes page experience, including loading speed, into account in search.
The usual culprits on trade websites are huge photos uploaded straight from a camera, budget hosting, bloated themes, a long list of add-ons or plugins, and videos that start loading as soon as the page opens.
Put your address into our free website checker to see how your site performs on speed, search basics and security.
The do-it-yourself gap
Website builders make it easy to get something online, and for a new business that can be a perfectly sensible start. The gap is between having a website and having one that reliably produces enquiries.
A site built to generate work brings together a layout designed around the call or enquiry, pages structured for search, tracking that shows where each lead came from, solid hosting, a smooth phone experience and regular upkeep. Looking good is only part of it.
Plenty of trade sites look acceptable yet turn few visitors into jobs. If you'd like to know where yours is losing people, our free marketing review covers it.
Things to do today
- Put your phone number at the top of every page, set to dial when tapped on a mobile.
- Swap any stock photos for real shots of your work, team or vehicle.
- Add your licence number and a note that you're fully insured to the homepage.
- Shrink oversized images with a free image compression tool before uploading them.
- Open your site on your own phone and fix anything hard to read or tap.
