Most business websites look fine. The problem is that many of them quietly lose customers: pages load slowly, visitors cannot find the phone number, or the site never shows up on Google in the first place.
Whether you are planning a new website or wondering why your current one is not bringing in enquiries, run through this checklist. Each point is something we check on every site we build.
1. A clear message at the top of the page
Within a few seconds of landing, a visitor should understand what you do, who it is for and what to do next. Use a plain headline (“Airport transfers across London at fixed prices” works far better than “Welcome to our website”), a short supporting line and one obvious button.
2. One main call to action on every page
Decide what you most want visitors to do: call, send a WhatsApp message, book or request a quote. Make that action easy to find on every page, including on mobile. Too many competing buttons usually means fewer people click any of them.
3. Fast loading speed
Slow pages cost you visitors and rankings. Google measures real-world experience with Core Web Vitals:
- Largest Contentful Paint (LCP): how quickly the main content appears.
- Interaction to Next Paint (INP): how fast the page responds when someone taps or clicks.
- Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS): how much the layout jumps around while it loads.
Compress your images, remove sliders and plugins you do not need, and use good hosting with caching.
4. Built for mobile first
For most businesses, the majority of visitors arrive on a phone. Check your site on a real phone: text should be readable without zooming, buttons should be large enough to tap, and forms should be short. Click-to-call and WhatsApp buttons make a big difference here.
5. Easy ways to contact you
Show your phone number, email and, if relevant, your address and opening hours clearly. A short contact form helps, but many customers prefer to call or message, so offer more than one option and reply quickly.
6. Real trust signals
People buy from businesses they trust. Show genuine reviews and testimonials (with permission), photos of your real work and team, examples of past projects, any certifications or memberships, and clear policies. Avoid generic stock photos and never invent reviews.
7. A separate page for each service
One long page that lists every service is hard to rank and hard to read. Give each main service its own page with a clear explanation, what is included, common questions and a call to action. This also gives Google more chances to show your site for specific searches.
8. SEO basics done properly
- Every page has a unique title and meta description that include the words customers actually search for.
- Headings follow a logical order, with one main heading (H1) per page.
- Images have short, descriptive alt text.
- The site has an XML sitemap and is connected to Google Search Console.
- Pages link to each other naturally, for example from a blog post to the related service page.
9. Security and an SSL certificate
Your site should load over HTTPS with a valid SSL certificate, so browsers show it as secure. Keep your CMS, theme and plugins updated, use strong passwords and take regular backups so you can recover quickly if anything goes wrong.
10. Analytics and goal tracking
If you are not measuring, you are guessing. Set up Google Analytics and Google Search Console, and track the actions that matter, such as form submissions, calls and WhatsApp clicks. Then you know which pages and channels actually bring in business.
11. Fresh, useful content
A blog or resources section answers the questions customers ask before they buy. Helpful articles build trust, give people a reason to come back and help you rank for more searches over time. Even one well-written article a month adds up.
12. A plan for after launch
A website is never really finished. Prices change, services grow and new questions come up. Decide who will update content, fix issues and keep the site secure. Sites that are looked after keep performing; sites that are forgotten slowly fall behind.
How does your website score?
If you ticked fewer than nine of these, there is a good chance your website is costing you enquiries. The fixes are often simpler than a full redesign.
Take a look at our website design and development service, or send us your current site and we will point out the biggest improvements.
