How I prospect tradespeople with aging websites — and deliver a demo before even contacting them

#webdev #automation #python #freelance

When you're a freelance developer, the hardest part isn't coding. It's proving your value before you've signed anything.

I built a pipeline that lets me:

Find tradespeople whose websites are stuck in 2005
Generate a modern version before contacting them
Send them an email with a clickable link to their future site

All in 5 minutes per lead.

Step 1: Scrape aging websites

I target sites hosted on free.fr, pages with no viewport meta tag, those still using <font> or <center> tags.

OLD_SIGNALS = [
    'free.fr',        # Free hosting from the 2000s
    '<font ',         # Deprecated HTML tag
    '<center>',       # Pure HTML centering
]

curl -sL "http://example.free.fr" | grep -c '<font '

In 30 minutes, 10-15 qualified leads.

Step 2: Generate the deliverable automatically

I created Artisan Démo, which generates everything in a single command:

python3 genere-demo.py "E.D. Maçonnerie" \
  --secteur maconnerie --ville "Estissac (10)" \
  --email "contact@ed-maconnerie.fr" --auto

✅ Full showcase website (Tailwind, responsive, PWA)
✅ Sector-adapted color schemes
✅ Built-in quote request form
✅ Auto-deployed to atlasnexus.tech

The site is live before the prospect even knows I exist.

Step 3: Reach out with something concrete

"Hi, I visited your website and took the liberty of creating a modernized version:
👉 https://atlasnexus.tech/your-business/"

No abstract pitch. The site is already done, right there.

Results

E.D. Maçonnerie — ed-maconnerie (Masonry)
Duault Anatole — duault-anatole (Construction & Painting)
Artisan Métallier — artisan-metallier (Metalwork)
Menuiserie DEVARENNE — menuiserie-devarenne (Carpentry)

8 demos on the AtlasNexus portfolio.

The stack

Scraping: Python + curl
Generation: Artisan Démo (open-source)
Deployment: git push → GitHub Pages
Visibility: Dev.to API

Why it works

Deliverable before contact — you show something that exists
Automation — 5 min per lead
Pricing — €50 per redesign, €10/month maintenance
Volume — 10 clients = €500 + €100/month recurring

Open-source repo: AtlasNexusOps/artisan-demo — more demos at atlasnexus.tech.

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