✨ Homepage conversion improvements - Buyer-first value prop, real CTA links, inline enquiry form, and engagement/industry IA

[tomek-i]

Cc: @isaaclombardssw, @babakamyljanovssw @joshbermanssw @designbyalex
Hi @isaaclombardssw, @babakamyljanovssw
🟥 Watch the video (7 min 39 sec)

‼️ Original attached tasklist that was generated with the video ssw-website-review.tasks.md

Is your feature request related to a problem? Please describe.
SSW’s homepage appears optimised for the existing community (content marketing + events) rather than a high-intent buyer evaluating SSW to hire them.

Key conversion and IA problems observed in the review:

• Above-the-fold headline is SSW-centric (“three decades of enterprise solutions”) and doesn’t clearly state what SSW builds, for whom, and what outcomes the buyer gets.
• Primary CTA “Book a free initial call” exists as a <button> without an href (multiple instances). This reduces usability (no open in new tab), breaks SEO/link discoverability, and risks total loss of the conversion path if JS fails.
• The strongest keyword/value line (“Australia’s leading AI, .NET and Azure consultants”) is below the fold and demoted.
• Nav IA has many dropdowns that lead away from hiring (services/products/events/about/rules/tv) and lacks buyer-first pathways such as industries, engagement model/pricing, and “how we engage”.
• Proof is mostly volume metrics (solutions delivered, happy clients, years) rather than buyer outcomes (time saved, ROI, guarantees).
• Case studies and logos exist but don’t foreground measurable results; case studies are far down the page.
• Conversion funnel is high friction: there are zero inline form fields on the homepage; contact is gated behind a multi-step modal wizard with required fields upfront.
• Testimonial carousel is potentially harmful for accessibility/performance due to duplicated text/word-by-word markup.

Describe the solution you'd like
Implement a set of homepage changes to improve buyer-first messaging and reduce lead-capture friction:

• Rewrite the hero headline/subhead to a buyer outcome/value proposition.
• Promote “Australia’s leading AI, .NET and Azure consultants” (or similar) above the fold.
• Ensure primary CTAs that navigate are real links (<a href>), not JS-only buttons.
• Add a short inline enquiry form on the homepage as a low-commitment conversion path.
• Update navigation to include buyer-first paths: Industries, How we engage, Engagement models (and optionally pricing guidance).
• Add measurable outcomes to proof areas:
  • For logos: add 1 line of result/context and link to relevant story/case study.
  • For case studies: lead with the result (impact) rather than backstory.
• Review the testimonial animation implementation for accessibility/performance (avoid duplicate/overly-fragmented text in DOM).

Describe alternatives you've considered

• Keep the current modal lead-capture flow but add an inline form as an additional (lower-friction) option.
• Keep buttons for styling but wrap with link semantics (or use Next.js Link) so CTAs are crawlable and work without JS.
• Add a dedicated “How we engage”/“Engagement models” landing page and link prominently from nav and homepage.

Additional context
Screenshot from competitor comparison showing strong buyer-first navigation and an inline enquiry form:

Figure: Competitor page with buyer-first navigation (Industries/How We Engage) and an inline “Make an enquiry” form.