Script that finds local businesses with bad websites and cold emails

Name: Script that finds local businesses with bad websites and cold emails
Availability: InStock
Author: ryanholtdev

by ryanholtdev·Mar 9, 2026·1 point·1 comment

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AI Analysis

●MidShip It

Yet another lead gen tool, but the DOM audit scoring is actually clever.

Strengths

•No API keys needed—runs entirely with requests and BeautifulSoup
•DOM audit scores sites on real issues like missing SSL and outdated copyright
•Generates personalized emails referencing specific site problems found

Weaknesses

•Competes with Apollo, Hunter, and dozens of established lead gen tools
•No ongoing lead database—requires fresh scraping each run

Post Description

I built this because I was trying to get freelance web dev clients. The standard approach (manually Googling, clicking each site, finding an email) was taking hours per dozen leads.

What it does: - Takes a city + business type (e.g. "Las Vegas plumbers") - Searches for local businesses via DDG - Visits each site and runs a DOM audit: mobile viewport, SSL, page speed, meta tags, outdated copyright, missing favicons - Scores each site 0-100, filters to only the bad ones (score >= 40 = real fixable problems) - Tries to extract a contact email from the site - Generates a personalized cold email referencing the specific issues found - Outputs a CSV with business name, URL, score, issues, email, and draft pitch

Stack: Python 3.9, requests, BeautifulSoup, no external APIs needed.

I tested it on Las Vegas nail salons and cleaning companies. First run: 22 emails sent, 6 replies. It finds real problems because it actually visits the site rather than using a database.

Would love feedback on the DOM audit heuristics - currently scoring on ~13 signals. Is website quality actually a good proxy for "willing to pay for a redesign"?