Northbridge presents as credible but underperforms its peer set on every conversion surface that matters. The hero buries the value proposition beneath a fullscreen stock image, mobile reflow breaks the primary navigation, and the consultation path requires six fields where two would suffice. The foundation is sound; the architecture is leaking revenue.
The 'Book a consultation' form collects full name, company, role, email, phone and matter description on a single screen with no progress indication.
Reduce to name and email on the first step. Surface the remaining fields only after the lead has committed, in a guided follow-up.
The horizontal nav does not collapse below 1024px; on phones it scrolls horizontally off-screen and the hamburger is non-functional.
Implement a functional drawer nav under 1024px and reflow the top bar to a single logo + menu affordance.
A fullscreen photograph occupies the entire above-the-fold; the one-line headline sits at 16px over a busy image with no contrast layer.
Replace the image-led hero with a typographic hero: a 64px value proposition, a one-line proof point, and a single primary CTA.
No visible call-to-action appears without scrolling; the only CTA is a footer link labelled 'Contact'.
Place a single 'Book a consultation' button, high contrast, top-right and repeated at hero base.
Muted grey body copy on white measures approximately 3.8:1 contrast; link text is distinguished by colour alone.
Raise body text to #1a1a1a (7:1) and underline links in addition to colour.
'Excellence in every matter' communicates no specialisation, audience or outcome.
Lead with the audience and outcome: 'Commercial counsel for venture-backed founders — from term sheet to exit.'
Each practice area page uses the firm name as its H1; meta titles duplicate the homepage.
Write a unique descriptive H1 per practice area and a 55-character meta title naming the service and city.
Logos of past clients are absent; only a generic 'trusted by leaders' line appears.
Add a restrained logo bar of six recognisable clients above the fold, with permission.
Visitors who scroll past the consultation CTA have no second chance to convert.
Surface a lightweight 'download our term-sheet checklist' offer mid-page to capture email from the not-yet-ready.
Keyboard focus is visible on links but removed on buttons via a CSS reset.
Restore a 2px surgical-green focus ring on all interactive elements.
Fullscreen photograph, 16px headline lost in the image, no call to action in view.
Typographic hero: 'Commercial counsel for venture-backed founders' at 64px, one proof line, a single 'Book a consultation' button — clarity in three seconds.
Horizontal nav overflows the viewport; hamburger is non-functional.
A single logo and menu affordance open a full-height drawer with practice areas, contact and CTA.
Six fields on one screen with no progress cue.
Two fields — name and email — with the remaining detail gathered in a guided follow-up after commitment.
Generic 'trusted by leaders' line, no logos.
A restrained row of six recognisable client logos above the fold, with permission.
Muted grey on white (~3.8:1), links by colour alone.
Near-black body copy at 7:1 contrast, links underlined in addition to colour, restored focus rings.
This dossier is the diagnosis. The build is the cure — Slate & Anchor Studio designs and builds the high-converting website these findings prescribe. Request a strategy call with the senior architect who produced this audit.
