You've been doing this work a long time and almost nobody outside your referral circle knows it. This worksheet is how we fix that. Fill it out however you want — type a lot, type a little, skip what stumps you. There are no wrong answers. This is you telling me what "right" sounds like.
The facts that get locked before anything gets built. If you don't know one, write "not sure" — that's useful to me too.
"Halekat Restoration"? With LLC or Inc.? And how do you say it out loud?
If not, no problem — I'll get one. If yes, do you have the login?
Is this a cell? Is it OK for it to ring at 2am?
Personal Gmail is fine for now — I'll set up a real business one.
My notes say Evanston and Wisconsin — I need the real map. List the Illinois side and the Wisconsin side. This is what gets you found on Google.
And do you want it public on the site, or keep it service-area only?
IL roofing contractor license, WI credentials, anything else. These go in the footer — they're a trust signal and some cities require it.
Someone at a gas station asks what you do. What comes out of your mouth?
My notes say the company started in 2015 but there's 37 years of work behind it. That gap is worth more than anything else on this page — I need to understand it so I can say it right.
Bobby — walk me through it. Who did you work for, what did you learn, what were you doing before Halekat had a name?
"Since 2015" and "37 years of experience" say different things. Which one do you want leading, or do we say both?
Bobby and Tiffany — split it out. Who's on the roof, who's on the phone, who deals with the adjuster, who does the books? This shapes the whole About page.
Don't check something you don't have. If it's blank, that's a to-do list, not a failure.
You do a lot. A website that says "we do everything" says nothing. Help me pick what leads.
Not what you can do. What you want the phone to ring about.
Be honest. And is it the same as the one you enjoy most?
Jobs too small, too far, the kind of customer that isn't worth it. Saying no on the site saves you hours on the phone.
Water doesn't wait. If someone calls at 11pm on a Sunday, what actually happens?
This is your real product. Anybody can nail a shingle. Almost nobody sits with a homeowner and makes sure the carrier pays what they owe. Take your time here — this section becomes the heart of the whole site.
From my notes: a client was offered $6,000. After you got involved, the number came back $31,000.
What was the damage? What did the adjuster miss? What did you document that changed the number? What did that mean for that family?
Any claim where you got someone paid what they were actually owed. Rough numbers are fine. These become the proof on the site.
My notes say you cite all the bill codes. Say it the way you'd say it standing in someone's kitchen — plain words, no industry talk. I want to put your actual sentences on the page.
This is where you separate from the truck that knocked on their door after the last hailstorm.
Walk me through the steps. Do you meet them on site? Do you write your own scope first? What software do you use?
If yes, that's the single strongest button on your homepage. If there's a catch, tell me the catch.
This matters legally — a licensed public adjuster negotiates on the homeowner's behalf, a contractor documents and scopes the work. I want the website to say exactly what you do and nothing more.
You know the guys who offer to "eat the deductible." I want to know how you handle it so the site can say it plainly.
Word of mouth picked your customers for you. Now you get to pick.
Think of an actual job that went great. Who were they? What kind of house? What did they care about?
Not who you have. Who you're building toward.
Name names if you want. The out-of-state storm chasers? The big franchises? The cheap guy down the block?
If you remember what they said, use their words. Their words are better than mine.
Price? Timing? They never called back? This tells me what the site has to answer before they can say no.
Somebody just found water in their basement. They land on your site. How should it feel in that moment?
Tap all that fit. Don't pick everything — pick the ones that are really you.
You're a word-of-mouth business. Real faces convert better than stock photos — but only if you're comfortable.
Even something rough on a truck or a business card. If not, I'll design one.
Any company — doesn't have to be a contractor. Say what you like about it.
Just as important. What would make you say "that's not us"?
You told me you have pictures. Good — that's most of the battle. Here's what I need to know before I take this over.
Phone camera roll? A folder? Do you have true before-AND-after pairs from the same job?
This matters. Their damaged house, their claim. Do we have an OK, or do we need to start asking?
Addresses, house numbers, faces, claim amounts, customer names. Set the rules and I'll follow them without asking every time.
A 30-second phone video of Bobby explaining what an adjuster missed will out-perform anything I can write. Be honest about your comfort level.
Do you want to see every post before it publishes, or do you want me to just run it?
How many Google reviews do you have? Do you ask? Who are the 5 customers who'd write you a great one today?
The most important section. If this all works perfectly — what actually changes for you two? Be specific. Numbers if you have them.
Everybody wants everything. Force the ranking.
Rough is fine. I can't tell you if this worked without a starting line.
Real answer. If the phone doubles and you can't staff it, we build differently.
Finish it with something you could actually count. Calls, jobs, dollars, a town you're now known in.
This feeds your About page and the first thing anyone reads. Nobody can copy your story — that's the whole point of telling it.
Family name? Two names put together? Something that means something? If there's a story here I want it.
What was the moment? Something happen at the old job? Something you knew you could do better?
Doesn't have to be the biggest. The one you'd tell somebody about.
The thing you'd never break. This might end up being the line at the top of the whole website.
You've watched people get lowballed for 37 years. Let it out. Anger is honest, and honest is what people believe.
Check what's already handled so I know what we set up together. You own all of it — I build and maintain it.
Nothing on this list is a judgment. It's a to-do list we work through together.
You asked about this, and you were right to. Contractors get targeted — fake invoice emails, hijacked Facebook pages, texts pretending to be a customer or a supplier. Answer honestly; nobody's grading you. This is a 30-minute fix once I know where you stand.
A weird text about an invoice. An email that looked like a supplier but the account number was different. Someone trying to get into Facebook. A "your account is locked" message. Anything.
If you email bank details for a deposit, that's the #1 way contractors get robbed. I'm not assuming — just tell me how it works now.
Old employee, a cousin who set up the Facebook, a bookkeeper. Anyone with a password we should know about.
Quick checklist. Even half of these makes the next meeting fly.
Wide open. Whatever didn't fit above — worries, ideas, things you've always wanted to do but nobody built for you.