A short handyman website customers can use from their phone
People looking for a handyman usually have a small list: a shelf, a dripping tap, a door that sticks. They want to know you'll do those jobs, roughly what it costs and when you can come. A handyman website should answer that on a phone screen in under a minute, then let them book a visit or send the list.
Keep it short on purpose
A handyman's customer is often standing in the room with the problem, phone in hand. They won't read an about page or scroll through ten sections. One page with four things works better than a five-page site: what you do, what you charge, where you work and how to get you there. Add a second page only if a part of the business needs it, such as flat-pack assembly for a local shop or work for landlords.
The job list
Customers search with the job in mind, not the trade. List the jobs plainly, grouped so they scan quickly, and include the jobs you don't do, because that saves both of you a call.
- Fixing and fitting
- Shelves, curtain poles, blinds, mirrors, TV brackets, pictures, door handles and locks.
- Assembly
- Flat-pack furniture, garden furniture, sheds and playsets.
- Small repairs
- Sticking doors, loose tiles, dripping taps, sealant round baths, fence panels, gutters at ground level.
- Finishing
- Touch-up painting, filling holes, small patches of tiling.
- Not taken on
- Gas work, new electrical circuits, structural work and anything needing a certified trade. Say you'll recommend someone.
Rates people understand
Handymen usually price in one of three ways: an hourly rate with a minimum charge, a half-day or day rate, or a fixed price for common jobs. Whichever you use, write it down. A clear minimum charge ("covers the first hour, including travel within the area") stops the awkward conversation about a five-minute job. Say whether materials are extra, whether you can buy them on the way, and how you take payment. You don't need to show the amounts in a table; a short paragraph is enough.
Area covered
Name the towns, districts or postcodes you cover, and what happens outside them (a travel charge, or no). Put the area in the first screen of the site, under the headline, because it's what rules a visitor in or out. Local customers also search with the place name, so mentioning the towns you serve helps the right people find the page.
Two ways to get in touch
- Book a visit. For customers who already know what they need. The booking calendar lets them pick a day and one of six fixed start times (Mondays skipped), with a name, phone number and email; take the address and job list when you confirm.
- Send a job request. For customers who aren't sure how long it'll take. The contact form's name, email and message box are enough if a line above it asks for the postcode and the list of jobs; ask them to email photos when you reply.
Keep a tap-to-call button too. Some customers will always prefer to ring.
Mistakes to avoid
- A long homepage of generic sections ("Our mission", "Why choose us") that pushes the job list off the screen.
- "No job too small" with no minimum charge, which invites calls you'd rather not take.
- A phone number in tiny text at the bottom of the page.
- Photos of tools on a workbench. Photos of your finished jobs say more.
Building it with Anticode
Describe the business in one sentence: "a handyman in Exeter doing shelves, flat-pack, small repairs and fencing, with an hourly rate and online booking for visits". Ask for a one-page site; the Architect asks up to three questions where the answer changes the build. Choose the booking calendar and contact form as must-haves. Swiss (Inter Tight) or Technical (IBM Plex Sans) suit a no-nonsense trade, Playful (Fredoka) a friendlier one; an orange or green action colour keeps the buttons easy to spot. Every published site can be installed on a phone like an app, which some regular customers, such as landlords, find handy.
The booking calendar shows the coming days, refuses past dates and dates more than 120 days out, and won't let two customers take the same slot. Bookings and job requests are saved and can be emailed to you, or sent to a Telegram chat on your phone through a connector. For the bigger trades nearby, see plumbers and painters and decorators.
Limits
- Start times, not job lengths. The calendar doesn't work out how long a job list will take, so treat each booking as the start of a visit and adjust by phone.
- No deposits or payments at booking. Take payment on the day, or send a payment link for larger jobs.
- No calendar sync or text reminders.
Questions people ask
Should a handyman show prices online?
Yes, at least an hourly rate or minimum charge and whether materials are extra. It filters out jobs that aren't worth the trip.
Do I need more than one page?
Usually not. One page with the job list, rates, area and booking does the job. Add pages later with a request in a sentence if you need them.
Can customers send photos of the job?
Not through the form. Ask them to describe the job and reply with photos by email or message.