Why your website doesn't get you calls (and how to check in 5 minutes)

Most people who look for a contractor online are on a phone, usually searching for someone nearby. If your site makes them hunt for your number, wait for the page, or wonder whether you work in their town, they go back and try the next name.

You can find most of these problems yourself in five minutes. Grab your phone, open your website, and go through this list.

Minute 1: Is your phone number on the first screen?

Open your site on your phone without scrolling. Can you see your phone number and your trade? Tap the number. Does your phone start a call?

If the number is a picture, tucked into a menu or only in the footer, fix that first. A phone number should be a tap-to-call link. It is simple to set up and it is the most useful button on a contractor site.

Minute 2: Is it fast on a phone?

Go to Google’s free PageSpeed Insights tool, paste in your address and run the mobile test. Google describes the tool as reporting how a page performs for users on mobile and desktop and suggesting ways to improve it.

Two things to know when you read the result:

• Lab data comes from a simulated page load on a mid-tier phone and mobile network. It is good for finding problems.
• Field data comes from real Chrome users over the previous 28 days. A small site may not have enough visits to show any.

Do not chase a perfect score. Look at the suggestions near the top. Then open the site yourself on mobile data (not Wi-Fi) and notice whether you would wait for it.

Minute 3: Does Google know who you are?

Search for your business name on your phone. Does a Google Business Profile show up with the right name, address, phone number and hours? Does the website link on it go to your current site?

Google says: “Businesses with complete and accurate info are more likely to show up in local search results.” It also says local results rest on relevance, distance and prominence, and that links from other websites and more positive reviews can help your local ranking.

Check that the phone number and address on your profile match the ones on your site. Differences confuse customers.

Minute 4: Can a stranger tell what you do and where?

Read the top of your homepage as if you had never heard of your business. Can you tell:

• What you do, in plain words (for example “roof repair”, not “exterior solutions”)?
• Which towns or counties you serve?
• How to get a quote?

If the answer to any of these is “sort of,” say it outright. Name your services and name your towns.

Minute 5: Does the quote form work, and does the page look right on a phone?

Fill in your own quote form with a test message from your phone. Then check:

• Did it send? Did the request reach your phone or email, and how long did it take?
• Is it short? Name, phone and the job is usually enough.
• Does any text run off the screen? Are buttons too close together to tap?
• Does a banner or pop-up cover the content?

A form that quietly fails is the worst result, because you never find out about the customers you lost. Test it once a month.

Your score

Count how many of the five checks passed. If you missed two or more, your site may be costing you calls, and each fix above is usually small. Start with the phone number and the quote form, because that is where a visitor becomes a customer.

Next step

You can fix these yourself or have someone do it for you. Northeast Sites builds websites for contractors in Massachusetts, Connecticut and New York, and we offer a free accessibility check of your current site. Ask us if you want a second pair of eyes.

Sources

All accessed 2026-10-20.

• Google, “About PageSpeed Insights” (what the tool reports; lab vs. field data): https://developers.google.com/speed/docs/insights/v5/about
• Google Business Profile Help, “How to improve your local ranking on Google” (relevance, distance, prominence; complete and accurate info; links and reviews): https://support.google.com/business/answer/7091?hl=en