About Checked Local WI

Why I built it

When I went looking for reliable local trades myself, I kept landing on big national directories with outdated information. So I started checking businesses one at a time against their own websites, Google, BBB and Yelp, and putting what I confirmed in one place.

Before this, I spent 13 years in print manufacturing, working bindery at Quad/Graphics, Mittera and Schumann Printers. Now I build with AI and automation, and I've taught myself every bit of it. On this site, nothing goes up until it's been checked, and anything I haven't confirmed yet says "Still confirming" instead of a guess.

Why small towns

Technology is changing how almost everything works, and small towns usually get it last. People here don't want tech for its own sake. They want something that solves a real problem and doesn't take away what makes a community feel like home. Checked Local is my small piece of that: a simple, honest way to find the people who keep local homes running, and a way for good local shops to get found.

The rules this site follows

• Nobody pays to rank. Order comes from the published Checked Score. If anything on the site is ever paid, it will be clearly labeled.
• Real phone numbers. Every listing shows the business's own number. No call-tracking numbers on free listings.
• Emergency means emergency. The emergency badge only shows when the business itself says it takes after-hours calls.
• No made-up data. If I can't confirm something, the listing says so.

Full disclosure

I also run Northwoods Call Company, which builds AI phone answering and follow-up systems for trades and home-service businesses, some of which may be listed here. The directory lists everyone the same way either way. Being a Northwoods customer doesn't change a business's score or position, and not being one doesn't hurt it.

Get in touch

Own a listed business, spot something wrong, or know a shop that should be here? Email [email protected].

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