How I set up a fake web design company to test an idea

Look, I get it. My website looks pretty different compared to lots of others. It’s designed that way because I want to make it obvious I do things differently. I want to express my personality, and I don’t take myself as seriously as I do my work. But I began to wonder if my opinionated design was too off-putting, or if Google isn’t the source of work it once was. Would a more generic-looking agency site bring in more leads than my deliberately opinionated one?

A Google search for “web design north wales” brings up plenty of solo web designers, partnerships, and small businesses, and their websites are different and say very different things from mine. I wondered whether having a website more like everyone else’s would create leads. So, a year ago, I spent an evening making one.

I started by registering a supposedly SEO-friendly domain, north-wales-website-design.agency, and set up hosting on Netlify.

Fake images

Most small-ish web designers rely on stock or AI-generated images, so I tasked Midjourney to make some for me of a modern office with people working on laptops. It did a half-decent job, even though several people have no legs. They must be somewhere in the Metaverse.

Fake content

Continuing with AI, I copied content from the top 10 organic results on Google (excluding Stuff & Nonsense) and set ChatGPT to work on producing copy for my fake business. I was surprised how good the results were, and I pasted it word-for-word.

“As leading web designers in North Wales, we are renowned for our expertise and creativity in delivering website solutions tailored to your business needs. Whether you’re launching a start-up or an established business looking to enhance your existing website, we design and develop sites that drive growth. Our approach balances aesthetics and performance, ensuring every website not only looks fantastic but also delivers strong results. With a design process focused on aligning with your business goals, we guarantee a website that supports your success.”

Then, I included the types of content I see so regularly, and I added items—like FAQs and a list of local towns—which are purely there to stuff the pages with keywords. I even added a prices page complete with three packages.

Fake clients

Next came the portfolio. For obvious reasons, I didn’t want to include my real client work, so I created four fake clients. I intentionally designed their screenshots in the style I often see in designer portfolios, with full-width banner images, 2-up, 3-up, and 4-up components on a cookie-cutter 12-column grid.

Fake business

Back in ChatGPT, I asked it to write a few blog posts, with titles like “Websites for small businesses” and “What makes a great business brochure website,” which I used verbatim.

Finally, I added contact information and a form, uploaded the site to Netlify and sat back waiting for the phone to ring.

I’m still waiting.

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It took just over a week before the new website appeared on Google, and with a little bit more work on SEO, it climbed to position four a week or so later for a search for “web design north wales”. I’m not sure where it ranks right now.

But did this fake web design company and its site generate any enquiries? Actually, no. Not a single email or phone call since its launch. The domain expires soon, and I won’t be renewing it.

It’s funny, because I have had enquiries via Google to Stuff & Nonsense from people using other search terms. They weren’t put off by my opinionated design and commented positively about it. Turns out, the problem might not be my weird website—it might just be that small business owners don’t search for website designers the same way anymore.

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Update August 2025: The domain has now expired and the experiment is over.