Notes from the studio
Straight talk on
sites that sell.
How home-service sites win the glance, the lead and the job — written by the people who build them. No borrowed statistics, no filler.
A Day in the Life of a Lead: From the Glance to Money in the BankA Day in the Life of a Lead: From the Glance to Money in the Bank
Follow one homeowner from a stain on a ceiling to a paid invoice and a five-star review, and watch every place the whole thing nearly fell apart.
What To Put On Your Homepage: A Section-By-Section BlueprintWhat To Put On Your Homepage: A Section-By-Section Blueprint
Eleven sections, in order, with what belongs in each and the mistake that usually shows up there. Built for home-service companies where the homepage has to do the selling.
Scandinavian Design, American TradesScandinavian Design, American Trades
We build from a small island on the Norwegian west coast for contractors in Texas and Florida. Here is what Scandinavian standard actually means on a plumbing website, in practical terms.
- How an AI Concierge Should Talk on a Contractor's Site
How an AI Concierge Should Talk on a Contractor's Site
The goal is not a chatbot that sounds human. It is one that is genuinely useful for three minutes and knows precisely when to get out of the way.
- Template Or Built From Scratch: What Actually Changes
Template Or Built From Scratch: What Actually Changes
Templates are genuinely good now, and plenty of contractors should use one. Here is a straight comparison of what you get either way, so you can pick on facts rather than on who is selling harder.
Seasonality for Home Services: Planning Your Site Around the CalendarSeasonality for Home Services: Planning Your Site Around the Calendar
Your revenue has a shape across the year and your website almost certainly does not. Some opinionated notes on working ahead of your own busy season.
- Why We Build The Homepage Before You Pay Us Anything
Why We Build The Homepage Before You Pay Us Anything
We finish your real homepage in 48 hours and you owe nothing until you have seen it. Here is the honest reasoning from our side of the table - including what it costs us and when it goes wrong.
Pricing Pages, Quote Forms and Phone Numbers: What to Show, What to Save for the CallPricing Pages, Quote Forms and Phone Numbers: What to Show, What to Save for the Call
Hiding all pricing costs you qualified leads. Publishing exact prices costs you margin. There is a middle position, and it is not a compromise.
Review Requests That Do Not Get You In TroubleReview Requests That Do Not Get You In Trouble
Reviews are the single most persuasive thing on your site, and there are a few bright lines you genuinely should not cross. Here is the plain-English version of what to avoid and what to do instead.
- No Account Managers: Why You Should Talk to the Person Building Your Site
No Account Managers: Why You Should Talk to the Person Building Your Site
Every layer between you and the builder costs a week and some meaning. Here is how to tell, before you sign anything, who you will actually be working with.
Text-To-Pay: Getting Paid The Day The Job Is DoneText-To-Pay: Getting Paid The Day The Job Is Done
Mailed invoices and thirty-day terms are a choice, not a law of nature. Here is how to collect on the driveway with a text and a link, and the details that keep it clean.
The 15-Minute Reveal Call: What Happens When We Show You Your HomepageThe 15-Minute Reveal Call: What Happens When We Show You Your Homepage
No slide deck, no discovery workshop, no mockups of three directions. We show you a working homepage built for your business and you tell us what is wrong with it.
- Case Studies Instead of Photo Dumps: Turning One Job Into the Next One
Case Studies Instead of Photo Dumps: Turning One Job Into the Next One
A gallery says you have done work. A case study says you can solve the specific problem the person reading it has right now. The second one wins jobs.
- Let The Booking Happen In The Conversation
Let The Booking Happen In The Conversation
The gap between I am interested and there is a time on the calendar is where most trades leads die. Here is how AI booking closes it mid-chat, and the seven things to watch so it does not embarrass you.
- Photos That Sell the Job: Shooting Before and After With a Phone
Photos That Sell the Job: Shooting Before and After With a Phone
You do not need a photographer. You need a routine, decent light, and the discipline to shoot the before photo when nobody feels like it.
Missed Calls Are The Biggest Leak In A Trades BusinessMissed Calls Are The Biggest Leak In A Trades Business
Every missed call is a homeowner already dialing the next number. Missed-call text-back closes that gap in about ten seconds, and it is one of the cheapest things you can turn on.
- Speed To Lead: Why The First Hour Decides Who Gets The Job
Speed To Lead: Why The First Hour Decides Who Gets The Job
The homeowner who filled out your form also filled out two others. Here is what the research says about response time, and how to automate the first touch so you stop losing on timing alone.
Mobile First Is Not a Slogan: What a Roofer's Site Looks Like on a Phone at 7 PMMobile First Is Not a Slogan: What a Roofer's Site Looks Like on a Phone at 7 PM
Your site gets judged on a cracked iPhone, one-handed, in a dim kitchen, by someone who is annoyed. Design for that person and the desktop version takes care of itself.
What Your Website Has To Do In The First Three SecondsWhat Your Website Has To Do In The First Three Seconds
A homeowner with a leak opens four tabs and closes three of them almost immediately. Here is what has to be visible before they decide which one you are.
- Your Google Business Profile and Your Website Are One System
Your Google Business Profile and Your Website Are One System
Most owners treat the profile and the site as two separate chores. Google treats them as one story, and so does the homeowner deciding whether to call you.