Make it easy at every point
A visitor can decide to get in touch at any moment: halfway down a service page, after reading a review, or on the first screen. Wherever that happens, the way to contact you should be in reach without scrolling back to the top or opening a menu.
In practice that means a contact option in the header, one at the end of every page, and one inside longer pages near the points where people tend to make up their minds - after a price, after a set of photos, after a customer quote.
Offer the right options, not every option
Different customers prefer different ways to reach you. Some want to call right now; others would rather send a message they can write in their own time. Most local businesses do well with two or three options:
- A phone number that starts a call when tapped on a phone
- A short contact or quote form
- An email address, for people who prefer to write from their own inbox
Only offer channels you will actually watch. A messaging option that nobody checks is worse than not having it, because the customer thinks they have reached you. If you cannot answer the phone during jobs, say when you will call back.
Design a form people finish
Every extra field on a form is another reason to give up. Ask only for what you need to reply usefully. For most businesses that is a name, a way to reply (phone or email), and a message. Add one or two questions only if they genuinely save a round of back-and-forth, such as a ZIP code for a service-area business or the kind of job for a trade.
- Label every field clearly, above the box, not just as gray text inside it
- Mark which fields are optional, rather than marking every required one
- Use a button that says what happens, such as "Send my message" or "Request a quote"
- Show a clear confirmation after sending, with when they can expect a reply
- Test the form yourself on a phone, and make sure the messages actually arrive
On a Buildly site, every message sent through a form is saved as a lead in your dashboard, with spam checks, so nothing depends on an email arriving - see Where contact form submissions go.
Tell people what happens next
Uncertainty stops people getting in touch. Next to your form and phone number, say what will happen: "We reply to every message within one working day" or "Call between 8am and 6pm; outside those hours, leave a message and we will call back the next morning." Only promise what you can keep.
If you are fully booked for weeks, say that too, with your next available date. A customer who knows the wait in advance is far less likely to be disappointed than one who finds out after a call.
Reply quickly
A customer looking for a local service often contacts more than one business at the same time. The one that answers first, clearly and politely, frequently gets the job. That makes your reply time one of the most important parts of your website, even though it happens outside it.
Make sure inquiries reach you somewhere you look several times a day, such as your phone. Set aside a regular time to reply to anything you could not answer immediately. Even a short "Thanks, I am on a job until 4 and will call you after" keeps a customer from moving on.
Remove small obstacles
Look at your site the way a customer in a hurry would, and remove anything that slows them down:
- Phone numbers written as images, which cannot be tapped or copied
- A contact page that is hard to find from the menu
- Forms that ask people to make an account or solve a hard puzzle
- Pop-ups that cover the contact button on a phone screen
- Out-of-date hours or a phone number that is no longer answered
Learn from the inquiries you get
Your inquiries tell you how your site is working. If people keep asking the same question, answer it on the relevant page. If many inquiries are for a service you do not offer, your wording may be unclear. Ask new customers how they found you; over time the answers show which pages and listings bring in work.