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View Full Version : ValueTechRepair.com Need Feedback from customer's point of view



bonddm
10-14-2015, 10:10 AM
Please go to Value Tech Repair (http://valuetechrepair.com) as if you were a customer and provide feedback, tips, concerns here on what you think of the website. I need critiques so I can move forward. This is a Tech Repair Business so we compete with small pc repair companies, Best Buy's Geek Squad, Fry's, etc.

MyITGuy
10-14-2015, 05:46 PM
A few things I noticed, which is more than an average customer may notice:
-You have two menu bars across the top of the page, and both of them wrap to two lines making them look bad
-The right hand side of the page duplicates your two headers and has boxes that probably shouldn't be visible (WordPress Login, Archives and etc)
-Contact Information - Why list your yahoo and gmail accounts? Will you always be the one to answer e-mails? If not, maybe an info@ e-mail address would be more appropriate to distribute inbound e-mails to a CRM or Sales tool would be better? Or better yet, use a Contact form to prevent/reduce SPAM.
-Location - Duplicate of Contact Information with minor changes
-Contact/Location - Your publishing your home address and cell phone number? Would recommend getting a PO Box and/or business # that points to the system you need or forwards to your cell phone.
-Disclaimers - What is the purpose of all the text on this page? The majority of it appears to be recommended text for e-mail disclaimers.
-Services - Confusing terminology and pricing, especially when considering the average user. I.E. (Glancing over text under Value Tech Repair) I want to upgrade to the latest Microsoft Operating System, that only costs $20? What does HDD stand for under Format HDD and why would I need that? What is Raid and why do I need that?
-About Us/Credentials - Where are the Credentials?
-Looks like you used the gdrealestate theme but haven't really tweaked it to make it your own (I.E. Home - Prehistoric Antiquities & Archaeological News Quarterly (http://www.thepaq.com/), http://shardainfosys.com/, http://vgsirishsig.org/, https://www.chicagoseopros.org/, Jim & Em's Coffee - Gourmet Coffee (http://jimandemscoffee.com/), http://www.intellihat.com/)

bonddm
10-14-2015, 10:11 PM
Good critiques. "Four eyes are always better than two." I'm still learning WordPress. You have made some valid points, so I can take some things and tweak my website now. The thing is, I'm fairly new to the small business world so I'm still in the introductory stage. I listed the gmail and yahoo accounts because I frequently check them throughout the day via phone and computer. As of now, I am operating as a sole proprietorship so I have to be self-reliant. I will look into the PO BOX but I listed my home address as my place of doing business. In regards to your business # comment that would have to come down the road because I don't have the funds for an additional line.

I put disclaimers there just as a precaution but I intend to tweak that section of the site as well.

My prices aren't currently "set in stone" and will have to be adjusted. HDD is short for Hard Disk Drive and RAID is a form of disk management that allows efficient use of multiple hard drives based on the users preference.

My credentials are my CompTIA A+ certification.

Still, I appreciate you taking the time to add your critiques which I will put to use.

MyITGuy
10-15-2015, 11:38 AM
I listed the gmail and yahoo accounts because I frequently check them throughout the day via phone and computer.
I would recommend utilizing a contact form, or setting up an alias on your domain (Info@) that forwards to your yahoo/gmail domain)


In regards to your business # comment that would have to come down the road because I don't have the funds for an additional line.
Check out flowroute.com - Telephone #'s run less than $1.50/month and you pay per minute for usage.


HDD is short for Hard Disk Drive and RAID is a form of disk management that allows efficient use of multiple hard drives based on the users preference.
I know what they stand for, but your customers don't. You're customers also wouldn't know why they need this service performed unless you explain it.


My credentials are my CompTIA A+ certification.
While I know what a CompTIA certificate is, your customers don't. You should explain what this certificate is and instead of using a link display it on page.

bonddm
10-15-2015, 11:51 AM
I moved the contact form on the services page to the top so it's easily visible. I will look into getting a business line later. You might be right about the customers not knowing. I'll make some adjustments. Thanks.

bonddm
10-15-2015, 11:55 AM
Also I looked at your website and you seem to have developed a nice company/brand. I like your business model and initially I talked about having a similar model for providing IT support for businesses. How did you get started and what advise can you give?

MyITGuy
10-16-2015, 12:37 PM
Also I looked at your website and you seem to have developed a nice company/brand. I like your business model and initially I talked about having a similar model for providing IT support for businesses. How did you get started and what advise can you give?

I've been involved with IT since 92 and while I was working as a System Administrator/Business Analyst in 09 I was approached by a colleague to see if I had any interest in consulting for other companies. The offer was enough to offset my existing salary with room for growth, but I would only be a contractor so I incorporated for tax purposes and potential growth, this eventually led to becoming a Managed Services Provider which then led to buying equipment and providing hosting/co-location services.

As far as some advice, I'd recommend Robin Robbins or CharTech for some insight into the Sales/Marketing
If you need to scale, but cant hire employees at the moment, check out third parties such as Virtual Administrator

During my time I've toyed with the idea of offering local PC repair, but the margins just aren't there in comparison to the business market, especially if your going to take the route of performing the service only without reselling hardware/software.

In the end, what really matters is knowledge. If you don't have the experience/knowledge then you cant expect your clients to pay you on an hourly/contract basis for your work (I.E. While you may know about PC's for personal use, business PC's/Networks/Servers/Infrastructure are a different beast IMO).

Full Disclosure: In 2013 one of my clients made me an offer I couldn't refuse to come work for them directly, so my company has scaled back significantly. I'm still aware of whats going on in the industry and am always open to new prospects/opportunities, but nothing that I've been able to practice myself at the moment.

Harold Mansfield
10-16-2015, 12:59 PM
MyITGuy hit on a lot of the obvious issues. Really it all centers around poor design, copy writing, and content organization. Your site doesn't really have any kind of structure. It's just stuff on pages.

I don't what the "Legal and Business Documents" page is supposed to be, but if it's not a service it really shouldn't have such a staring role in your navigation.
Your basic navigation should be About you, your services and how to get in touch or do business with you.

Your entire sidebar is wasted space and a distraction.
You don't have enough content on your pages, and what you have doesn't do a good job of saying anything or selling any services.
Why can't "Contact" and "Location" be the same page?
"Our Advantage" can either be a blurb on the home page, or part of the "About Us" page. Not an entire page for one paragraph.
The "Services" page is bad. This page is your bread and butter. Each distinctly different service should have it's own page. And get that contact form out of there.

These are just the things I had time to put down.
I understand that you're just starting out, and budget is probably short, but if you expect the web to be a source of leads you can't afford NOT to get your site right.
If you can't afford to hire someone you're going to have to learn how to do it yourself and understand things like sales, copy writing, structure, design, and understand how people use the web.

Structuring a services site isn't rocket science. People want to know who you are, if you provide the services they're looking for (prices if possible), and how to do business with you. And they expect that information to be presented clearly, professionally and for it to be easy to find. They don't know when a website is laid out correctly..they just unconsciously trust it and call, but they do know when it isn't.

It doesn't have to be fancy. It just needs to do a good job of selling, be laid out neatly, and written well. Your site should be doing all of the work so that when the phone rings, all you're doing is closing.