The subcontractor website checklist: 16 checks buyers and AI tools run.
Before a quantity surveyor, procurement team or AI assistant shortlists a subcontractor, they run the same checks, in the same order. Here are all 16, grouped into the four stages of our Tender Check. Go through them with your own website open, or let the interactive version score it for you.
Found
Can buyers and AI tools find you for your trade and region?
- 1. Page one for your trade plus your regionSearch your trade with your region or nearest city in a private window, for example “groundworks contractor Manchester”. If you are not on page one, a buyer assembling a supply chain does not see you.
- 2. 10 or more Google reviews from clients and main contractorsThe local map is ranked largely on reviews. Ask the contracts manager or QS on every completed package to mention the trade, the project and the sector.
- 3. A separate page for each trade or packageGroundworks, drainage, RC frames, steel, M&E and cladding each need their own page with scope, typical values and sectors. One shared services page cannot rank for any of them and gives an AI tool nothing specific to cite.
- 4. Named when AI tools are askedAsk ChatGPT and Google AI which firms in your trade and region have worked for a Tier 1. If you are not named, the buyer who asked the same question did not see you either.
Verified
Can a buyer or an AI assistant verify you in a minute?
- 5. SSIP accreditation written out with level and expiryNot a logo. CHAS, Constructionline, SafeContractor or SMAS with the level and renewal date in text, linked to the register so a buyer and an AI tool can confirm it.
- 6. Insurance types and limits statedPublic liability, employers’ liability, contract works and professional indemnity where you hold it, with the limits and the renewal month, not just “fully insured”.
- 7. ISO certificates listed with the issuing bodyISO 9001, 14001 and 45001 with the certification body and scope, each linked to the certificate or the register.
- 8. Business details that match the registersCompany name, registered number, address and phone identical across your website, Companies House, Constructionline, CHAS and Google Business Profile. Differences lower trust with every tool that checks.
Evidenced
Does your site prove you have delivered their kind of package?
- 9. Case studies in PQQ formatClient, main contractor, sector, value band, programme and scope, with a named contracts manager. The format a quality submission asks for, so a bid writer can lift it straight in.
- 10. Pages for the sectors you want more ofHousing, education, healthcare, commercial, industrial and infrastructure each have their own buyers, frameworks and standards. A page per sector with a named project is what a procurement team recognises.
- 11. A capability statement a buyer can downloadA two-page PDF with your accreditations, sectors, values and contacts, built from the site so it never goes out of date, so a QS can attach you to a tender without emailing first.
- 12. H&S and environmental figures publishedAccident frequency rate, RIDDOR history, waste and carbon figures on one page. Numbers buyers and AI tools both treat as evidence; claims they treat as noise.
Contacted
Is it easy to send you a tender once they have decided?
- 13. A named tender contact with a direct emailA person, a direct phone number and a tenders@ address on the contact page and every trade page. An info@ inbox is where tender invitations go to die.
- 14. Tap-to-call on mobileMost site teams are on a phone. The number should dial with one tap from the header on every page.
- 15. A stated response time for tender invitations“Tenders acknowledged within one working day” tells a QS with a deadline that you will not waste their time.
- 16. A route for drawings and tender packsA form with document upload, or a stated file transfer route, so a tender pack does not bounce off a 10MB email limit.
Score each check two for yes, one for partly, none for no. A stage clears at 6 out of 8; 24 or more out of 32 is a cleared site.
Get the 16-point checklist as a PDF.
Print it, share it with your team or work through it with your web designer. We will also email you a copy so it is easy to find later.
- All 16 checks on two printable pages
- Tick boxes to work through with your team or web designer
- Grouped into the four stages buyers and AI tools follow
Questions about the checklist
How do I score my website against the checklist?
Give each of the 16 checks two points for yes, one for partly and none for no. A stage clears at six out of eight, and the site scores out of 32: under 13 is not cleared, 13 to 23 is partly cleared and 24 or more is cleared. The interactive version does the scoring for you in about three minutes.
What score do most subcontractor websites get?
Most sites we review score between 10 and 16 out of 32. The commonest pattern is a pass on Contacted, because every site has a phone number, and a fail on Verified, because almost none put the accreditations in text with an expiry.
Which checks should I fix first?
Usually the Verified stage. It is the cheapest to fix, often a single accreditations page, and it is the stage AI assistants weigh most when deciding which firms to name. It is also the first week of the Foundations Sprint.
Get your site scored in three minutes, free.
The interactive Tender Check scores all 16 checks in a few minutes, and our team personally reviews your site within one working day.
