Sample report · Other business

Demo business — real audit patterns, anonymized

High-intent customers are leaking before the first reply.

A full demonstration report. The business is fictional; every pattern in it is one we have measured in real audits.

The team is warm and courteous when it engages — but slow first replies, quotes that don’t match the small business’s own published prices, and no follow-up mean customers asking about a typical order are quietly choosing whoever answered first.

Business
Example Business (demo)
Market
Denver, CO (demo)
Audit period
Jul – Aug 2026
Channels shopped
5 of 5 · 7 days each
Revenue at risk

Revenue at risk on three of five channels

The inquiry form never replied, the email quoted below the published “from” price, and a follow-up came from a contact not on the staff list.

  • Inquiry form · 0/100 · Not scored — no reply in 7 days
  • Email inquiry · 69/100
  • Live chat · 77/100
  • WhatsApp · 62/100
  • Phone call · 44/100
Slowest first reply
9h 27m

On the email. Benchmark for a small business: reply within 2 business days.

Biggest price gap
$100

Quoted $400 on the email vs. “prices from $500” on the small business’s own website.

Red flags found
1

A follow-up from a contact not on the staff list, with evidence attached.

What you're looking at

A demonstration report for a fictional small business, built from anonymized patterns we see in real audits.

One score, nine criteria

Speed, accuracy, personalization, qualification, follow-up, close, tone, red flags.

Evidence on every finding

Timestamps, transcripts, screenshots and recordings attached in the full report.

Fixes ranked by revenue

What to change this week, in order of money at stake.

01 — Per-channel scorecard

How each channel treated a real prospect

ChannelFirst replyQuoted vs listed priceFollow-upsCourtesyScore
Inquiry formNo reply in 7 days— nothing to compare0 in 7 days—0/ 100

Not scored — no reply in 7 days

Email inquiry9h 27m — Tue 18:41✗ $400 quoted · from $500 according to your website0 in 7 daysWarm · 8069/ 100
Live chat7 min✓ $500 · matches your website1 in 7 daysCourteous · 6877/ 100
WhatsApp5h 35m✗ $375 quoted · from $500 according to your Instagram1 in 7 daysWarm · 9562/ 100
Phone callRed flagFollow-up came from a number not on the staff listAnswered in 3 rings✓ $575 quoted · at or above “from $500” according to your website1 in 7 days — from an unlisted numberWarm · 8544/ 100

First reply, price accuracy, follow-up and courtesy are four of the nine criteria. A channel with no reply in 7 days scores 0 — there is nothing to judge, so it gets no partial credit. Listed price = what you publish on your website or social profiles. A quote at or above a “from” price counts as consistent; where nothing is listed we show “No listed price to compare” instead of a score. The overall score is the weighted total across the nine criteria.

02 — Criterion scores

Nine criteria, scored across every channel

Response time22/100
weakest: email inquiry

Email 9h 27m, live chat 7 min, WhatsApp 5h 35m and phone line answered live. The inquiry form never replied. The slowest reply took 9h 27m. Benchmark for a small business: reply within 2 business days.

Answered at all70/100
weakest: inquiry form

Four of five channels replied. The inquiry form submission never received an acknowledgement during the 7-day window.

Price accuracy vs listed price35/100
weakest: email inquiry

The website and the small business’s Instagram both say “prices from $500”. The live chat and phone line quotes are at or above that, so they count as consistent. The email quoted $400 — $100 below the published “from” price. The WhatsApp quoted $375 — $125 below the published “from” price.

Listed price = what you publish on your website or social profiles.

Personalization55/100
weakest: phone call

The live chat reply used our name and picked up what we’d asked about. The phone line reply was a template that could have gone to any customer.

Qualification questions40/100
weakest: phone call

Good questions on the live chat: what we needed, how soon, and our budget. The phone line asked nothing before pushing for a booking.

Follow-up cadence15/100
weakest: email inquiry

The live chat followed up once, the WhatsApp followed up once and the phone line followed up once (from a contact not on the staff list). The email never followed up. The inquiry form never replied at all.

Close attempt / next step30/100
weakest: phone call

The live chat offered a call at a specific time. The phone line ended “let us know if you’d like to go ahead” — no time offered.

Tone & professionalism82/100

Courteous and well-written where replies came.

Red-flag screen60/100
weakest: phone call

One flag raised — see below. Also noted: no price given until after a call.

03 — Red flags, in plain English

What the shopper found first

Red flag

Follow-up from a number not on the staff list

Our phone line inquiry (Thu 14:20) was followed up the next morning from a cell number not on the small business’s authorized staff list, by someone who said they worked “with” the business and offered to arrange a call “directly”. We report what the evidence shows; we make no claim about intent.

Evidence: Contact log and the sending details are attached in the full report.

Fix → Check how phone line inquiries are forwarded and confirm who can reach customers from outside the business.

Missed revenue

One reply, then silence

After the first email reply nobody followed up in seven days — on a customer who said they wanted to book soon.

Fix → A day-2 check-in and a day-5 last-chance message, written once, sent every time.

Also noted

No price given until after a call

On the phone line: no price given until after a call. Not a red flag on its own — but it is the kind of gap that sends a customer to whoever spelled it out.

Fix → Write down how the team handles this, and check it in next month’s audit.

04 — Reply A vs Reply B

The reply you sent, next to the reply that wins the job

Left: the reply the business actually sent. Right: what a best-in-class reply to the same inquiry looks like — the name, the exact question answered, the price from the business’s own list, the timeline, what happens next, something to keep, a concrete time to talk, and a real person to call.

What Sophie asked · Email inquiry · Tue 09:14
“Hi, I’m interested in what you offer and would like a price. Could you send me a quote?”
Reply A — what the business sent45/100

From the audit record: the reply the business actually sent.

The team, shared inbox 9h 27m after the inquiry

Hi S____, thanks for reaching out! A typical order is around $400. Feel free to get in touch to book.
Speed
25
Answered
100
Price
30
Personal
55
Questions
20
Follow-up
10
Next step
30
Tone
80
Red flags
100
Reply B — the reply that wins the job96/100

What a best-in-class reply looks like — the standard your competitors are measured against

A named person at the small business, same email 15 min after the inquiry

Hi Sophie, Thanks for getting in touch — yes, we can help, and here is everything you asked. Price: our website says “prices from $500”. That’s the figure we work from; the exact price depends on the details. Timing: reply within 2 business days, as standard. What happens next: a call, then the exact figure in writing within 24 hours. One question so I can be exact: is there a date you need this sorted by? I’ve attached “Example Business — prices and what’s included” (PDF), so you have it all in writing. Can I call you Thursday between 5 and 7 pm to arrange a call? If another time suits, reply with it and I’ll hold it. If I don’t hear back, I’ll check in on Friday morning.

Example Business — prices and what’s included (PDF)

Maria Lopez
New inquiries, Example Business
Direct line: (303) 555-0147

Speed
95
Answered
100
Price
100
Personal
95
Questions
90
Follow-up
90
Next step
100
Tone
95
Red flags
100

The difference · 51 points

Same inquiry, same business, same facts.

  • Answered in 15 minutes, not 9h 27m.
  • Quotes the published price (“prices from $500”) instead of $400.
  • Greets Sophie by name and answers the question that was asked.
  • Says what happens next and when: reply within 2 business days.
  • Asks one question that moves the booking forward.
  • Attaches a fact sheet the customer can keep.
  • Offers a specific call — Thursday, 5–7 pm — instead of an open “let us know”.
  • Signed by a named person with a direct line, and a dated check-in if nobody replies.

Reply B is written by us from the facts the business already had — its own published price, its own next step — so the gap is the reply, not the offer. It is the standard, not a named rival: this sample is fictional. In a live audit this panel is built from your own replies, and on SalesWitness Watch Pro the quarterly competitor benchmark shops two real competitors and scores their replies the same way. Follow-up on Reply B is scored on the dated check-in it commits to.

05 — Review snapshot and monitoring

What prospects read before they inquire

Rating
4.3

112 reviews on Google

Negative reviews
6

1–3★ in the last 90 days

Negatives unanswered
4 of 6

No owner reply on the profile

Oldest unanswered
38 days

Still waiting for an owner reply

What it means Two of the four unanswered reviews say “never heard back” — the same leak the shop found.

On SalesWitness Watch, the next one never waits 38 days

The audit reads every profile once. Watch keeps reading them every day — and when a negative review lands, you hear about it within hours, with the reply already drafted.

  1. 01Watched daily

    Google, Yelp, BBB, Angi, Houzz, Facebook, Trustpilot and any other review site we find. Every negative review in each profile’s full history is captured on the first sweep.

  2. 02Alert within hours

    A new 1–3★ review triggers an alert, with the review quoted in full and the profile it is on.

  3. 03A drafted reply

    Empathetic, de-escalating, no admission of fault — marked “review before use”, ready to paste.

  4. 04A removal path, when the rules allow

    If the review breaks the platform’s own policy, you get the rule it breaks and the exact appeal route.

One of the 4 unanswered reviews above, as the alert would arrive

Review alert · Google

Sent within hours
R. D.
“Left two messages and never heard back. Went somewhere else in the end.”

Policy check: a genuine customer experience — not removable. Reply publicly, and fix the cause.

Drafted replyReview before use

Hi R., thank you for taking the time to tell us, and I’m sorry this wasn’t the experience you expected. That isn’t how we want anyone to be treated. I’d like to understand what happened and put it right — please call me directly on (303) 555-0147.

— Maria, Example Business

When a review breaks the rules · Google

  1. 1Check the review against Google’s “Prohibited and restricted content” policy — e.g. not based on a real experience, a conflict of interest, personal information.
  2. 2Gather the evidence: most often, no matching booking, order or inquiry on your records.
  3. 3Report it: Business Profile → Read reviews → Report, or Google’s Reviews Management Tool. Google says decisions typically take several days.
  4. 4If it’s refused: one appeal through the same tool, with the case ID and the evidence. That decision is final.

SalesWitness Watch: the appeal drafted for you, citing the rule — you file it.SalesWitness Watch Pro: we file the appeal for you.

Platforms remove policy breaches, not bad opinions. We never file a false report, and we never post or solicit reviews — the public reply goes up either way, because it is the part prospects actually read. Every platform we read has its own route; the same checks apply.

06 — The tape: one inquiry, two replies

One inquiry. Two replies.

Our inquiry · email inquiry

📨 Prospect emails hello@abc-company.com asking for a quote.

✅ Reply 1 — from the company

sales@abc-company.com · quotes list price · books a call

🚩 Reply 2 — from a rep, personally

j.smith.freelance@gmail.com · “I can do it cheaper directly” · asks to move to WhatsApp

What the report says“The inquiry was answered from an address not on the authorized staff list, with an offer to transact off-channel (evidence attached).” Evidence-led, defamation-safe — and the kind of leak that costs more than a year of SalesWitness.
One customer inquiry receiving two separate replies — one official, one from a personal phone

07 — Evidence excerpt

The email thread

[Tue 09:14] Auditor → Hi, I’m interested in what you offer and would like a price. Could you send me a quote?

[Tue 18:41] Team → Hi S____, thanks for reaching out! A typical order is around $400. Feel free to get in touch to book.

[— no further contact from the small business during the 7-day window —]

08 — Case closed: what changes next month

Three fixes, under two hours

None of this needs new software or a new hire. In order of revenue impact.

  1. 01

    15-minute first-response target

    Route email notifications to a phone that is always staffed; add an auto-acknowledgement after hours.

    45 minFront-desk lead
  2. 02

    One price list, everywhere

    Match the website, social profiles and the front-desk sheet, then reissue it to everyone who answers inquiries; spot-check monthly.

    30 minOwner
  3. 03

    A next step in every reply

    Replace “feel free to get in touch” with two concrete times for a call and a booking link.

    15 minFront-desk lead

Before → after

Illustrative — what the three fixes typically change within 30 days.

  • First-reply time

    9h 27munder 1 h

    via 15-minute first-response target

  • Follow-ups

    0 of 7 daysday 1 and day 3

    via A next step in every reply

  • Quotes matching published prices

    2 of 44 of 4

    via One price list, everywhere

Confidential. Prepared under the written authorization of the business owner. Findings reflect the audit record only and are phrased to describe evidence, not intent. Not legal advice. The business and every figure above are illustrative, not a guarantee.

09 — What this costs

What slow and missed inquiries cost a business like this

Inquiries a month
50

Typical for a small business

Close rate
3 in 10

30% · lost to slow or missed replies: 2 in 10 of those

Average order value
$500

What one order is worth

Lost a month
$1,500

$18,000 a year

50 inquiries × 30% close rate × 20% lost to slow or missed replies = 3 orders lost × $500 = $1,500 a month

One recovered sale ($500) covers 5 months of SalesWitness Watch ($99/month).

Typical figures for this kind of business, not a benchmark and not a promise. A lost inquiry isn’t a lost sale, so only the share you’d normally close counts. Put your own numbers into the calculator for your figure.

Your report looks like this — with your channels, your prices, your evidence

See yours.

One SalesWitness Audit shops every channel you offer — inquiry form, email inquiry, live chat, WhatsApp, phone call — twice, 15 days apart, scores them against your own fact sheet and lands in your portal. Owner-authorized, evidence-led.

Audit my sales channels — $299See what one lost sale costs you
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