# Build a trades website

Generate a site for a plumber, electrician or other trade on the Datum template, list your services and areas, and receive quote requests in your Inbox.

A trades site wins work when it shows what you do, where you work and how to ask for a quote. The generator drafts that from a description. Quote requests then reach your Inbox and your email.

## Which templates fit

| Template | What the generator uses it for |
| --- | --- |
| Datum | Trades. The generator's template for plumbers, electricians and similar businesses. |
| Grove | Landscaping. See [Build a landscaping website](https://www.uova.com/help/use-cases/landscaping-website). |
| Capitol | The general-purpose template and the fallback if a build fails. |

For another design, filter the [Templates](https://www.uova.com/help/build/templates) gallery by Services or Business and press **Use Template**.

## What a generation includes

- One multi-page site on the template the generator matches to your prompt. The pages follow that template's own page plan, plus the template's legal pages. The exact set depends on the template.
- Copy written by the model from your description. The brand name and contact details come only from your prompt and the **+ Add** tray. Anything that was not supplied is removed or shown in the editor as an "Add your …" instruction, and those lines are hidden on the public site. Read every line before you publish.
- Legal pages as drafts for you to fill in. An unfilled one is left off the live site, with its links, until you edit it. Capitol has none.
- Images: when you are signed in the build may add fresh images, and your own photos (up to 20) and logo are carried in.
- One language per site, detected from your prompt: English, Portuguese, Spanish, French, German or Italian. Writing "in Portuguese" settles it.

## What to put in the prompt

A prompt can be up to 6,000 characters. Plain sentences work. This is a sample you can adapt:

```
Hartley Plumbing is a family plumbing business in Manchester. We cover Manchester, Salford and Stockport. Services: boiler repair and servicing, bathroom fitting, emergency call-outs, leak detection. Gas Safe registered. Phone 0161 555 0188.
```

- Name the trade and every area you cover, so the draft names them.
- List services one by one. Each can become its own section or page.
- State a registration or licence only if you hold one. Write the number yourself, because the generator will not supply it.
- Attach before and after photos of real jobs.

See [Write a prompt that works](https://www.uova.com/help/build/writing-a-good-prompt) for the full list of what the generator reads.

## Editor features to use

- [Pages and navigation](https://www.uova.com/help/build/pages): add a page per service or per area.
- [Forms and contact blocks](https://www.uova.com/help/build/editor/forms): choose the quote form's fields and set which email address receives requests.
- [SEO settings](https://www.uova.com/help/build/seo): write a page title and description that name the trade and the town.
- [Images, video and the media library](https://www.uova.com/help/build/editor/images-and-media): replace stock images with photos of your own work.

## Publish and connect

- Select **Publish** and choose the address. A `uova.io` address is included on every plan, and it cannot be changed after the first publish. See [Publish your site](https://www.uova.com/help/build/publish/publish-your-site).
- Add your own domain on a paid plan, either one you own or one you buy through UOVA. See [Connect a domain you own](https://www.uova.com/help/build/domains/connect-your-own-domain) and [Buy a domain](https://www.uova.com/help/build/domains/buy-a-domain).
- Messages from your site's forms arrive in your Inbox and are emailed to you. The default is up to 20 message emails per site per day, then one summary. The visitor gets no automatic confirmation email. See [Inbox and form messages](https://www.uova.com/help/account/inbox).
- Set a title and description for each page in [SEO settings](https://www.uova.com/help/build/seo).
- Quote requests appear in your Inbox with the sender's name, email, phone number and message. **Reply by email** answers from your own program. **Call back** replaces it only when the sender left a phone number and no email address. See [Inbox and form messages](https://www.uova.com/help/account/inbox).

## What UOVA does not do here

- Form messages are not pushed to job-management or customer tools. Copy a request across by hand.
- Taking payment, invoicing and online booking through the generated pages are not covered by this guide. To let customers book a survey or visit, use the Book section in Project settings > **Booking** with a Cal.com, Calendly or Square Appointments link.
- You cannot choose which template the generator uses. To pick a design yourself, start from a template instead. See [Start from a template](https://www.uova.com/help/build/templates/use-a-template).
- You cannot import an existing site. Rebuild it from a prompt and paste in your own wording. You can give the generator one link to an existing site or Google listing, which it reads for facts only, not for style.
- Scripts and iframes are not allowed in your own HTML, so third-party widgets cannot be embedded. The one supported embed is the Book section, which works with Cal.com, Calendly and Square Appointments only. For any other tool, link a button to its web address.
- You reply to form messages from your own email program with **Reply by email**. There is no in-app reply and no Inbox export.
- UOVA does not host email at your domain or forward it. See [Email and forwarding](https://www.uova.com/help/build/domains/email-and-forwarding).

## Common questions

**Will the site rank for my town and trade?**

UOVA gives you per-page title and description controls and a sitemap for each site. It does not promise any search position. See [SEO settings](https://www.uova.com/help/build/seo).

**Can I add a page for each service?**

Yes. Add pages in the Pages panel. See [Pages and navigation](https://www.uova.com/help/build/pages) for how a new page reaches your menu.

Source: https://www.uova.com/help/use-cases/trades-website