Two patterns from the sites we read, redrawn without names: answer engines that name rivals for what the company makes, and product pages that disappeared in a catalog change.
The five checks
Each check reads your site from outside, the way an engineer or a buyer meets it. Under each is what failing looked like on a site we read on 31 October and 1 November 2026, with the company's name left out.
01 Named in ChatGPT and Gemini answers for what you make
What passes
Asked for a maker of what you make, ChatGPT and Gemini name you.
What failing looked like
A maker of concrete products machinery, about 500 people. We asked ChatGPT and Gemini, twice each, which manufacturers make automated concrete batching and mixing equipment in the US. None of the four answers named it, and three named the same rival.
02 A homepage title and heading that name what you make
What passes
The page title and main heading say what you make and where. They are the first words a search engine reads.
What failing looked like
A sheet metal fabricator of about 200 people. Its homepage main heading carries no words, so the first line search engines read does not say fabrication or its city.
03 Product pages kept through catalog changes
What passes
Product, line and datasheet pages that engineers saved and other sites link to stay live, or point to their replacement.
What failing looked like
An adhesives and sealants distributor. 20 of 30 pages that were live in 2025 now show a not found page or the homepage, among them a product line page still live in June 2026 and a product page for a nozzle assembly.
04 Pages that load on a phone
What passes
Product and quote pages show their main content within Google's 2.5-second line on a phone.
What failing looked like
A fastener maker with 17 US locations. On phones its site takes 4.4 seconds to show its main content.
05 Supported server software and protected mail
What passes
The server runs a PHP branch that still gets security updates, and your DMARC record asks inboxes to refuse mail forged in your name.
What failing looked like
A contract manufacturer of about 225 people reports PHP 8.0.30. Upstream security updates for 8.0 ended in November 2023, and in October 2026 a PHP flaw let anyone run code on unpatched servers. Some hosts patch 8.0 themselves, so it is worth asking the host.
What we found on 7 manufacturers and distributors
Makers, distributors, a dealer and an industrial services company in the US, 200 to 500 people each, read from outside on 31 October and 1 November 2026.
We asked ChatGPT and Gemini about 4 of them, twice each, with a buyer's question. 2 were named in none of the four answers, 1 in one, and 1 in four.
2 lost 15 and 20 of the 30 pages they had live in 2025, product and service pages among them. Four other websites still link to one of the lost pages.
2 take 4.4 and 7.2 seconds to show their main content on a phone, past Google's 2.5-second line.
2 have no DMARC record, or one set to p=none.
1 runs PHP 8.0, whose upstream security updates ended in November 2023.
1 has a homepage main heading with no words.
1 publishes its WordPress login names, and 26 images on its homepage have no text description.
Counted from our notes on each site, which keep the two or three strongest findings, so the true counts can be higher. Sites change, and some of these may have been corrected since.
Case studies
Brand van Egmond, lighting maker
Brand van Egmond, the lighting maker, is one published case of ours. We rebuilt how enquiries reach Brand van Egmond's sales team, so each quote request arrives with consistent context.
DevriX case study, published September 2026.
Commercial vehicle distributor, 2024
A commercial vehicle distributor cut its manual sales messaging work by 80% after we connected WhatsApp to HubSpot.
DevriX case study, published September 2026.
Rather than waiting to be told exactly what to do, Devrix's team thinks through user and UX challenges and come up with clever solutions…
VP of Marketing, a security hardware maker (Clutch review)
How it works
Send your domain
Your company's website, a work email and three short questions.
We review it and read the site
From outside, the way a customer meets it. Nothing to install and no access needed.
We email your five checks
Each marked pass or fail with what we saw. If it fits, we offer a time with the team.
Who does the work
Value Creation Partner is the private equity practice of DevriX. The checks, and the work behind them, are done by DevriX's team.
DevriX has operated since 2010
11 WordPress core contributors
100+ clients served
Rated 4.8 on Clutch from 12 reviews
Questions
What does the work cost?
The work behind these checks starts at $10,000 a month, and its scope comes from what the checks find.
What do you need from us?
Your website and a work email. The checks read the site from outside, so we ask for no logins, access or data.
What do the five checks cover?
Named in ChatGPT and Gemini answers for what you make, a homepage title and heading that name what you make, product pages kept through catalog changes, pages that load on a phone, supported server software and protected mail, each marked pass or fail with what we saw.
Who is this for?
Manufacturers, distributors and dealers whose engineers and buyers find, specify and request quotes online.
What happens after I send the domain?
We review each request. If it fits, we send the checks and offer a time with the team.
Do you replace our web or marketing firm?
No. We work under your web firm and your marketing firm and keep five things right on the site, week after week.
Send us your domain and we send your five checks.
We review each request. If it fits, we send the checks and offer a time with the team.