An employer with eleven staff has a problem that started this morning. Maybe an employee has walked out, maybe an allegation has been made, maybe a long absence has reached a decision point. They have no HR department. They search, and they want one thing: someone to tell them what to do right now.
That is exactly the thing an HR consultancy's website must not do.
The teardown: urgency meets a hard line
The employer wants an answer. The consultancy cannot give one without the contract, the history and the facts. Get this wrong and the employer acts on half-information, which can turn a manageable situation into a tribunal claim. Get the tone wrong and they go to a competitor who sounds more willing.
What employers ask
Employers usually ask whether they can dismiss someone, how to handle a grievance or disciplinary, what to do about long-term absence, how to make a role redundant, whether their contracts are adequate, what notice they must give, how quickly they can speak to an adviser and what ongoing support costs.
What a website can say
It can explain the services offered, describe how support works, publish retainer and project pricing, explain response times and set out what happens on a first call. It can also explain, in general terms, that most employment processes have required steps and that acting quickly without them is the common expensive mistake.
Capturing without advising
SpideyChat for consultancies answers service and pricing questions at any hour and captures the outline of the situation so an adviser can call prepared.
Employer: One of my staff walked out yesterday. Can I dismiss them? Assistant: An adviser needs to look at the details before anything is decided, because the right process depends on the contract and the circumstances. The support page explains how advice lines and retainers work and what they cost. So an adviser can come back to you quickly, could you share how many employees you have, roughly how long this person has worked for you and what has happened so far?
Speed is the product
For urgent HR problems, response time is the service. Publishing how quickly retained clients are called back, and what non-clients can expect, sets honest expectations and sells the retainer.
Retainers versus one-off help
Many employers want help today but resist a monthly fee. Offering a clear one-off option, and explaining what a retainer adds, converts more of them than a retainer-only offer. Consultancy pricing questions follow the patterns in international prospects and consulting enquiries.
Where the assistant stops
Anything about a named individual, a specific dismissal, a settlement or a tribunal is advice. The assistant should capture and hand over, which is the boundary described in what an AI employee can and cannot do.
Documents and contracts
Many enquiries are really about missing paperwork: no contracts, no handbook, no policies. Publishing a document review service gives these employers an easy first purchase.
Training and workshops
Managers often need training rather than advice. Workshop enquiries work like those described in speaking and workshop requests for consultants, and small employers behave much like the buyers in local businesses shopping for their first marketing agency.
Getting started
Publish your services, response times and pricing, then capture urgent situations at any hour without advising. Try SpideyChat on your own site, or read about capture on the features page.