Most people looking at a trade website are on their phone, often standing in the room that needs the work. They give you a few seconds. In that time they want to know three things: do you do what I need, do you cover my area, and how do I reach you?
Here is what your home page needs so the answer to all three is obvious.
1. Your trade and your town in the first line
Your main heading should say what you do and where. "Roofing in Maidstone and across Kent" is far better than "Quality you can trust". The first tells a visitor and Google exactly what you offer. The second could be anyone, anywhere.
2. A way to call you without scrolling
Put your phone number in the header and make it tappable on a phone. On mobile, a bar fixed to the bottom of the screen with Call, WhatsApp and Get a quote buttons works brilliantly, because the buttons are always under the visitor's thumb.
3. A short quote form
Not everyone wants to call. Some are at work, some prefer to write it down. Keep the form short:
- Name
- Phone or email
- Postcode
- What they need (a dropdown of your services)
- A box for details
Every extra field loses you enquiries. You can ask the rest when you call them back.
4. Your services, one by one
List what you actually do, each with a sentence or two. "Roof repairs", "New roofs", "Flat roofing", "Chimney work". Better still, give each service its own page with more detail. That is what lets you appear when someone searches for that exact job.
5. The areas you cover
Name the towns and villages. People want to see their own town on the page before they call. A simple list does the job, and a page for each main area helps you show up in searches for "your trade + their town".
6. Something that proves you are real
This is where many sites go wrong by overdoing it. You do not need "500 happy customers" or "award-winning service". You need things a visitor can believe:
- Your full business name, and your company number if you are a limited company
- How long you have been trading, if it is true
- Insurance and memberships you really hold, such as Gas Safe or NICEIC, with your registration number on request
- Real reviews from real customers, with their first name and town
Never make any of it up. Visitors can usually tell, competitors notice, and in the UK and US fake reviews are now against the law.
7. Photos, if you have them
Photos of your own finished jobs are the most persuasive thing on any trade website. If you are just starting out and do not have many yet, that is fine. Use a clean design with good general imagery for now, and never present someone else's work as yours. Add your own photos as the jobs come in.
8. How it works
A short three-step section calms nervous customers: "Tell us what you need. We come and look and give you a written quote. We agree a date and do the work." It answers the question many people are too polite to ask: what happens after I call?
9. Answers to the common questions
A few short questions and answers save you phone calls and win over people who are still deciding:
- Do you take on small jobs?
- Do you give written quotes?
- Which areas do you cover?
- How soon can you start?
Only answer with what is true for your business. If you do not offer emergency call-outs, do not hint that you do.
What you can leave out
You do not need a long "About us" story, a slider of stock photos, pop-ups, or a blog you will not keep up. Each of these slows the page down or gets in the way of the call button.
The quick way to tick every box
Every site we build at SiteForTrades includes all nine of these by default: the trade and town heading, call, WhatsApp and quote buttons on every page, a short form, a page for each service and area, honest proof, and common questions. You answer a few questions, pick one of three designs, and you are live.
Whether you use us or build it yourself, run your home page against this list. If a visitor cannot answer "do they do it, do they cover me, how do I reach them" in five seconds, fix that first.