One point each. Every check is a yes or a no you can repeat on your own phone.
We run 100 yes or no checks on a website, one point each, in ten groups: the first screen, phone calls, Google reviews, the enquiry form, proof, service pages, what Google can read, page weight, who the client deals with, and how easy it is to read and use. A planning consultancy site passed 39 and our demo for it passed 89.
How the scoring works
One point for each check that passes. No points for taste, and no row we score by feel.
On a phone. Every site is read at 375 pixels wide with an iPhone browser, the same way for every site.
The whole site a visitor can reach. The home page plus every page it links to.
Google facts from the listing on the day. The star score, the number of reviews and the words of each one.
Read only. We never type into a form or send one.
Evidence kept for every check. A script measures most of them. Where a check needs a look, we write down what we saw and keep the screenshot.
Two results we publish
Both scored on 21 October 2026, their live site against the demo we built them, with the same 100 checks. We leave the firms' names off.
39/100to89/100
Free demo
A planning consultancy in Bristol
Their current site passed 39 of the 100 checks. The free demo we built them passed 89. A demo, not a paying client yet.
Score for each group of ten checks
Group
Their site
Our demo
The first thing they see
4/10
10/10
Getting people to phone you
1/10
9/10
Your Google reviews
3/10
10/10
Making an enquiry
4/10
10/10
Proof a client can click
3/10
6/10
A page for each service
5/10
9/10
What Google can read
7/10
7/10
Weight and speed on a phone
2/10
10/10
Who they will be dealing with
4/10
9/10
Easy to read and use
6/10
9/10
Total
39/100
89/100
What our demo still fails (11): their opening hours, a link to the professional body, a page of past projects, a company number, insurance, the area named on every service page, the area named in every page title, short enough page titles, a sitemap file, a photo of the planner, the footer contrast test.
38/100to92/100
Free demo
A structural engineering practice in Glasgow
Their current site passed 38 of the 100 checks. The free demo we built them passed 92. A demo, not a paying client yet.
Score for each group of ten checks
Group
Their site
Our demo
The first thing they see
6/10
10/10
Getting people to phone you
0/10
10/10
Your Google reviews
2/10
10/10
Making an enquiry
4/10
10/10
Proof a client can click
5/10
7/10
A page for each service
0/10
9/10
What Google can read
7/10
8/10
Weight and speed on a phone
3/10
10/10
Who they will be dealing with
4/10
9/10
Easy to read and use
7/10
9/10
Total
38/100
92/100
What our demo still fails (8): a link to the professional body, a company number, insurance, the area named on every service page, short enough page titles, a sitemap file, a photo of the engineer, the footer contrast test.
Scorecards we sent before 21 October 2026 used our older card: nine rows, each marked out of 10, 90 in all. These two were re-scored on the 100 checks.
The 100 checks
Ten groups of ten. Open a group to see its checks. Each one is a yes or a no.
1The first thing they see10 checks
On the home page's first screen:
A main heading (the page's H1) shows.
That heading is real text of three words or more, not words inside a picture.
It says what the business does (the trade or service is named).
It names the town or area served.
It shows the business name.
It shows the Google star score.
It quotes a client's own words from a real review.
It shows a photograph at least 150 pixels tall that is not the logo.
It has a call, WhatsApp or enquiry button, apart from the menu.
Nothing covers it on load: no pop-up or banner over more than a quarter of it.
2Getting people to phone you10 checks
A phone number is printed on the home page.
The home page has a tap-to-call link.
A call button is on the first screen.
A call button stays on screen while scrolling (seen part way down the page).
Every page has a tap-to-call link.
The header or the menu holds a tap-to-call link.
The home page has a WhatsApp link.
Every tap-to-call link rings the same one number.
The site says when you can be reached (opening hours or a call-back time).
Every call link says "Call" or shows the number, not an icon on its own.
3Your Google reviews10 checks
The home page prints the Google star score.
The site prints how many Google reviews there are.
The home page quotes at least three reviews.
A reviews page or reviews section is linked from the menu.
Every quoted review names the person who wrote it.
Every quoted review shows its star rating.
Every quoted review shows when it was written.
The newest Google review is on the site.
Every Google review with words is on the site, word for word.
At least one service page quotes a review.
4Making an enquiry10 checks
The home page has an enquiry form.
A Contact page of its own is linked from the menu.
The form asks for a phone number.
The form asks where the job is (postcode or address).
The form asks what the job is (a choice of service or job type).
The form takes a file (a photo or a drawing).
Every field has a visible label, not only grey placeholder text.
Every service page has the enquiry form on it.
Every email field brings up the email keyboard and every phone field the number pad.
The form says what happens after you send it.
5Proof a client can click10 checks
A link opens the firm's Google listing.
Each quoted review links to that review, or to the listing, on Google.
No review badge or outside profile on the site shows another firm's name.
A professional body membership is shown and links to that body.
There is a page of past projects or case studies.
The projects carry photographs.
The projects name the place.
No link on the site leads to a dead or expired page.
A company number or registered office is printed.
Insurance is stated (professional indemnity or public liability).
6A page for each service10 checks
Every service the firm lists has a page of its own.
Each service page has at least 150 words of its own.
Each service page's main heading names the service.
Each service page's web address is readable words (not /blank-page or ?id=).
Each service page has a call or enquiry button.
Each service page names the town or area.
Each service page has at least two sub-headings.
Each service page links to another service page.
Every service page can be reached from the menu in two taps or fewer.
Each service page carries a photograph.
7What Google can read10 checks
Every page has its own title, no two the same.
Every page title names the town or area.
Every page has a description.
Every page title fits in Google's results (60 characters or fewer).
Every page has exactly one main heading.
The site is marked up as a local business (LocalBusiness data or a type of it).
That mark-up carries the phone number.
That mark-up carries the address or the area served.
Every page names its own preferred address (a canonical link).
A sitemap file lists the pages.
8Weight and speed on a phone10 checks
Home page, three cold loads, the middle figure, bytes as sent, no scrolling:
Under 2 MB to open.
Under 1 MB to open.
Under 60 requests.
Under 30 requests.
Under 400 KB of code (JavaScript).
Under 100 KB of code (JavaScript).
No single picture over 300 KB.
Photographs sent as WebP or AVIF.
Pictures below the first screen wait until you scroll to them.
Everything comes from fewer than five other web addresses.
9Who they will be dealing with10 checks
The full name of the person in charge is printed.
Their professional qualification is named.
An About page of its own is linked from the menu.
The About page has at least 150 words.
The site shows a photograph of that person.
Years of experience, or the year they started, is stated.
Their name or qualification is on the first screen.
The base town or office address is in the footer of every page.
There is a tap-to-email link.
The person's first name sits by the number or on the call button.
10Easy to read and use10 checks
No page scrolls sideways at 375 pixels wide.
Main body text is at least 16 pixels.
Pinch to zoom is allowed.
Every button and call link is at least 44 pixels tall (a link inside a sentence is exempt, as in WCAG).
Text colours pass the WCAG AA contrast test on the home page (axe, zero failures).
Every picture carries alt text (or is marked as decoration).
Every page declares English as its language.
Every button and link has a name a screen reader can read (axe, zero failures).
No link between the site's own pages is broken.
Every page with a form links to a privacy notice.
Get your own site scored
Send us your web address. We run the same 100 checks on it and send you the sheet, free, with the evidence for every line.
We use privacy-friendly analytics. No cookies, no personal data, no tracking across sites. Privacy policy.Privacy-friendly analytics. No cookies. Privacy.