What customers look for on a business website before they call

Many customers look at your website before they pick up the phone. They may have found you through a search, a friend, or a sign on a truck. Either way, the next step is often the same: they open the site and look for a few basic facts.

If those facts are easy to find, the call is easy to make. If they are missing, the customer may go to the next business on the list. This article lists what visitors look for first, based on published usability research, so you can check your own site against it.

Say plainly what you do

The Nielsen Norman Group, a research firm that studies how people use websites, lists "explain who you are and what you do" as one of five core principles for a homepage. Their advice is specific. Put your logo at the top left, add a short tagline that states what you offer, and replace a generic welcome message with real information.

They also recommend plain language instead of jargon, and text that is easy to scan. A visitor who has to read three paragraphs to learn what you sell is likely to leave.

A quick test: show your homepage to someone who does not know your business for five seconds, then ask what you do. If they cannot say, the page needs a clearer first line.

Put costs and contact details up front

Nielsen Norman Group ran a usability study of people choosing a cleaning service online. One of the four factors that shaped trust was what they call upfront disclosure. The recommendation is to display contact information prominently, and to state base costs, fees, return policies and guarantees early.

The study had a concrete example. One participant left a cleaning company's site after 35 seconds because it did not state its rates. The researchers also advise against long quote forms, and say that price ranges are acceptable if all the line items are visible.

You do not have to list every price to follow this. If your prices vary, say what they depend on. A visitor who sees a reason is more likely to stay than one who sees nothing.

Show real work and real people

A second factor in the same study was whether a site is comprehensive, correct and current. The researchers recommend photos of the full service process and of the people who will do the work, not only finished results.

They also found that the range of work shown matters. In their example, a company's portfolio showed only large properties, and visitors began to doubt that the company would take on a home job. If you offer several services, the site should show each of them.

Fix the small things

Design quality was the first of the four factors. The researchers recommend clear navigation labels instead of clever or vague ones, colors and images that fit the service, and enough white space that content looks organized.

They also say to fix typos and broken links, because these quickly undermine credibility. A dead link or a misspelled heading is easy for a visitor to notice.

Be present beyond your own site

The fourth factor was being connected to the rest of the web. Every participant in the study said they would read reviews before hiring a company, and they trusted outside testimonials more than the ones on the company's own site.

This does not mean your website matters less. It means the site is one of several places a customer will look. Keep your business name, phone number and services the same everywhere you appear, and link to outside sources where it makes sense.

Make the next step obvious

Once a visitor knows what you do, what it costs and that you are real, they need to know what to do next. Nielsen Norman Group advises specific link labels instead of vague ones such as "Click Here" or "Learn More," and calls to action organized around what the visitor wants to do.

Keep the page simple too. Their guidance is to favor conventional layouts, limit moving elements and autoplaying video, and avoid popups and splash screens unless the law requires them. A page that loads quickly and does not distract gives a visitor room to decide.

A checklist to use today

Open your website on your phone and check these items in order:

1. Does the first screen say what you do, in plain words?
2. Can you find your phone number or contact form without scrolling?
3. Are prices, or what they depend on, stated?
4. Are there photos of real work and real people?
5. Do the links and labels say where they go?
6. Are there any typos or broken links?
7. Is there one clear next step?

If most answers are yes, your site is doing its job. If several are no, fix those first. They are small changes, and they are the facts a customer looks for before deciding to call.