“Founded in 2015, we are a leading provider of…”
I read some version of that sentence on the homepage of nearly every business I audited. 35 out of 55 had homepage or landing page problems, and the most common one was this: the page was about the company, not the customer.
Company history. Awards. Team photos. Three paragraphs about how passionate they are about their craft.
Nobody visiting your website for the first time cares about any of that. I realise that sounds harsh. Your founding story matters to you. Your awards are hard-won. But the person who just landed on your homepage from a Google search has a problem they want solved, and they’re trying to work out in about five seconds whether you can help. If the first thing they see is your origin story, they’re already looking at the back button.
What the worst homepages had in common
The pattern was consistent across sectors. Manufacturing, creative services, health and wellbeing, property, recruitment. Different industries, same mistakes.
They led with the company, not the customer. The first screen was a mission statement or a timeline of the company’s history. The actual services were buried further down the page or hidden behind a menu item.
They had no call to action above the fold. One business had a genuinely beautiful website. Well designed, good imagery, well written. The only way to get in touch was a “Contact” page buried in the footer navigation. Every other page on the site was a dead end. A visitor could read everything, be completely convinced and then have to hunt for a way to make contact.
37 out of 55 businesses needed call-to-action fixes. That was the single most common recommendation across all 55 audits. Pages with loads of good content and absolutely no indication of what the visitor should do with it. No enquiry form. No phone number in a visible spot. No “get a quote” button. Just information floating in space.
One homepage had only 281 words on it. That’s barely a paragraph. Not enough for a visitor to understand what the business does, and not nearly enough for Google to understand what the page is about.
What the ones that worked did differently
The businesses that were actually converting website visitors had their homepage structured around the customer, not themselves.
They led with the problem they solve. Not “we are a leading provider of bespoke kitchen installations” but “planning a kitchen renovation? Here’s how we make it painless.” The difference is subtle but it matters. The first is about the business. The second is about the person reading it.
They showed proof quickly. A testimonial quote. A row of client logos. A single strong number (“400+ kitchens installed” or “serving 1,000 clients across the UK”). Something that says “we’re not just claiming to be good, here’s evidence” within the first scroll.
They made the next step obvious. An enquiry form visible on the page. A phone number you don’t have to hunt for. A bright, clear button that says something like “get a free quote” or “book a consultation”. Above the fold. Not tucked away in the footer.
One business I audited had multiple audiences (corporate training, public courses, equipment sales). The recommendation was to create distinct entry routes from the homepage so each visitor type could self-select. Not a complicated redesign. Just three clear boxes: “I need training for my team”, “I want to book a course”, “I’m looking for equipment”. Simple. Effective.
The three-section homepage test
You don’t need a full redesign to fix this. Most homepage problems can be solved by restructuring what’s already there. Here’s a framework I keep coming back to.
Section one is above the fold. One sentence: what do you do and who is it for? Not your company slogan. Not your mission statement. What problem do you solve, in plain language? Then a call to action. A button, a form, a phone number. Something that says “here’s what to do next.”
Section two is proof. A short testimonial from a real client with their name attached. Or a row of logos. Or a brief case study summary. Whatever makes a stranger think “OK, these people are credible.” This doesn’t need to be elaborate. A single sentence from a happy client with their name and company is worth more than three paragraphs of self-praise.
Section three is more detail. Your key services, briefly explained. How you work. What makes you different. This is where a bit of company story can live, but it’s earned now because the visitor already knows what you do and has seen evidence that you’re good at it.
That’s it. Three sections. You can probably rearrange your existing homepage to fit this structure this week without touching a line of code.
Every page needs a next step
The call-to-action problem extended well beyond the homepage. 37 out of 55 businesses had this issue across their entire site.
A service page that explains what you do brilliantly but doesn’t ask the visitor to do anything. A blog post that’s genuinely useful but ends without a link to a relevant service or a way to get in touch. A case study that builds trust and then… nothing. The page just ends.
Every page on your website should answer one question: what do you want the visitor to do next? Sometimes it’s “call us.” Sometimes it’s “read this case study.” Sometimes it’s “fill in this form for a quote.” But it always needs to be something, and it needs to be visible. Not a pale grey link in the footer. A clear, obvious prompt.
One report I wrote recommended adopting “clear call to actions on every page, in colour.” In colour. Because the business had call-to-action buttons that were white text on a white background. They existed technically but were invisible in practice.
Go look at yours
Pull up your homepage right now. Pretend you’ve never seen it before. Can you tell what the business does within five seconds? Is there a clear next step above the fold? If you scrolled past the first screen, would you know how to get in touch?
If the answer to any of those is no, you know what to work on. The fix doesn’t require a developer. It requires an honest look at whether your homepage serves you or your customer. In my experience, the answer is usually you. And switching that around is the single most effective change most small businesses can make to their website.
This article is part of a series based on findings from 55 digital audits. Read the full case study for the complete picture, or get in touch if you’d like an honest look at where your business stands.
Read the full 55 audits case study
