How to audit a business website before hiring a developer

An audit is useful when it turns complaints into a short list of fixes. You can do a first review without buying a tool or knowing how to code. Start with the tasks your customers need to complete.

Run three customer tasks

Choose realistic tasks: find a particular service, check whether you serve a location and contact the business. Start each task from the homepage on a phone. Write down the links you followed and where you hesitated. Ask someone unfamiliar with the business to repeat the exercise without coaching.

Record evidence instead of opinions

Use four columns: page, problem, customer consequence and proposed check. A useful entry is “Contact: the email link opens the wrong address; enquiries may go elsewhere; verify the address and test an email draft.” “Make the site more professional” gives the developer much less to work with.

Review the essentials

• Check service names, prices, opening hours and public contact details against your current records.
• Open the main menu with a keyboard as well as a mouse. Look for visible focus and a sensible order.
• Look for clipped text, sideways scrolling and controls covered by sticky elements on a phone.
• Check that the enquiry route tells visitors what happens next. An email draft is different from a message sent to a server.
• List broken links and missing pages separately from visual preferences.

Prioritise the report

Put blocked enquiries and incorrect information first. Then address confusing navigation or unreadable content. Keep optional visual changes in a separate section so they do not distract from broken functionality. Assign an owner to each fix and name the evidence that will show it is complete.

For example, a before-and-after screenshot can prove that text no longer overlaps, but it cannot prove an enquiry reached your inbox. That needs a delivery check. Keep screenshots dated and label the device used. This first review helps scope a project; it does not establish full accessibility conformance. W3C notes that automated tools alone cannot determine that.

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