This is a Website Autopsy - a free website strategy session on a real Kiwi business that volunteered to be roasted in the friendliest possible way. Big thanks to Mike from Refined Plumbing and Gasfitting Services in Palmerston North for putting his hand up.
Full disclosure - I worked on this website a few years back when we gave it a minor facelift. Things change, I've gotten better, and this one's ready for the next round. Here's what I'd do, and why it applies to every trades business.
The Five-Second Test: Does a Stranger Instantly Get What You Do?
Land on any website and you've got about five seconds to answer the visitor's silent questions. Who are you? What do you do? Where do you do it? Why should I trust you?
This site mostly passes - "Refined Plumbing and Gas Fitting" tells you the what. But the headline could work harder. Something like "Manawatu's trusted Master Plumber and Gasfitter" labels the who, what and where in one line. The Master Plumbers badge is a strong credibility marker - put it front and centre.
Then sharpen it further. Residential or commercial? New builds or repairs? The clearer the headline, the better qualified the lead.
Show Your Faces - People Hire People
This is the single biggest gap on most trades websites. Put yourself in the client's shoes: this person is coming to your home. They want to see a friendly face. Someone they can trust, and someone they'll recognise when the van pulls up.
Swap the stock images for real photos of the team on the job. Add a photo and a short blurb for each team member on the About page. It costs you one afternoon with a photographer and it adds more trust than any paragraph of copy ever will.
One Page Per Service - It's Not Optional Anymore
Plumbing, spouting, gasfitting. Three core services, and each one deserves its own dedicated page.
Two reasons. First, the visitor gets to learn whether you solve their specific problem. Second, Google gets to understand your business properly. When someone searches "spouting expert Palmerston North" and you've got a whole page about spouting - with examples of you doing the work - Google is far more likely to put you forward as the answer.
One generic services page splits your relevance three ways. Three dedicated pages stack the odds in your favour three times over.
Order Your Services by the Work You Want More Of
Your website has two jobs: attract leads, and qualify them. That second job is the one most businesses forget.
If plumbing is your bread and butter, it goes first - in the navigation, on the homepage, everywhere. Spouting second, gasfitting third, or whatever your priority order actually is. The hierarchy on your website should mirror the hierarchy of work you want coming through the door. If the site leads with a service you don't want to grow, you'll keep getting enquiries for it.
Feed Your Google Reviews Through Automatically
This business has 22 Google reviews, people are adding photos, and the team responds to every one. That's exactly the behaviour you want - and almost none of it is visible on the website.
A simple widget pulls your Google reviews through to your site and updates automatically every time a new one lands. Fresh, recent, real reviews on your homepage do two things: they build trust with visitors, and the underlying review count strengthens your findability on Google itself. Get as many as you can, then put them to work.
Document Your Jobs - It's the Cheapest Marketing You'll Ever Do
Here's the habit that compounds. Every job, take a few photos and jot down the problem you solved. That becomes a project entry on your website.
A spouting page with five or ten documented spouting jobs - especially paired with client testimonials - is gold for Google. It proves you've done the work. When Google weighs up which local business to recommend, the one with a dedicated service page full of real examples wins.
And that content isn't just for your website. Every project doubles as a Facebook post. One habit, multiple channels, more of the right leads.
Keep the Contact Page Simple - But Lead With Your Preferred Channel
For a trades business, the contact page doesn't need much. Phone, email, done. The one refinement: order the options by how you actually want to be contacted. If a phone call is best, make that unmistakably the first option. Don't make people guess.
The Takeaway
None of this is complicated. Clear headline, real faces, one page per service, reviews fed through automatically, jobs documented as you go. Each one is a marginal gain - together they turn a website into a salesman that never sleeps, attracting the right type of work and making strangers trust you before you've even picked up the phone.
Want your website on the chopping block? Nominate your business for a free Website Autopsy - drop your URL via this link and I'll add you to the list.
