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Lyrafire
07-19-2010, 01:51 PM
Hello! This site still needs minor tweaking (I need to install two Buy Now buttons and get rid of the Credit Card icons on others), but basically, this is it. I'm worried that it's not slick enough. Also, I'm thinking of moving the whole thing to another host with more capabilities and control. The link colors here are wonky!

http://BeneWords.com

Thanks!

Marco Santori
07-19-2010, 08:13 PM
Hi lyrafire,

You may not think your website is slick enough, but I think that the benefits of using plain HTML instead of flash or java based solutions might weigh in your favor.

I will also note that your site needs a copyright policy, privacy policy, legal section, including disclaimers and notice of your business status. Are you an LLC? Sole proprietorship? Let me know if you have any questions.

vangogh
07-19-2010, 10:59 PM
First I'll echo what Marco said. And go figure a lawyer recommending all sorts of policy pages :)

I won't tell you your site is the greatest design I've ever seen, but I also won't tell you the worst. It's somewhere in the middle. It may not be flashy, but it works. It loads quickly. It's easy to navigate.

While I haven't read every word on every page I did read through the home page. I think the following is a great sales point that you should make more promiment


Go to any well-designed money-making website and what will you discover? Content articles.

Why not make that a heading for the page or something that stands out more. However I would ask why the phrase "content articles" You use it a lot on the site. Is there another kind of article I'm unaware of? Seems like an awkward phrase. I'd answer the question above with "great content" instead.

One thing I notice is most of the text just about touches the borders of the columns. A little more space (padding) would make everything easier to read. In fact you don't really need the borders or the separate boxes for each column. Just give the whole main content area that gray background and let the alignment of the text be what separates one column from another. It's all you need.

I'm not crazy about the black down the sidebar. Even just a few shades lighter so it's a dark gray would be better I think.

It's great you have a blog, but get it going as soon as possible. Given your business it's going to be one of the best marketing tools available to you as it will show proof of the quality of your writing. I'd also move the link for the blog to the top so it's easier to find.

Hope something above helps.

Lyrafire
07-20-2010, 03:52 PM
Yes--that's helpful. Thanks to both of you. I can't afford a lawyer right now. While I'm devoting myself to developing all this, I'm not working for money, so I'll have to find some boilerplate legal stuff.

As for design, I've been hamstrung by my free host: Microsoft Office Live Small Business. Today I decided to move the site to Bluehost, which is also the host for my blog. That should free up some design elements. I also didn't like the black and was looking for ways to add in space without losing content.

Given that I'm aiming at Mom and Pops, I think I have to educate visitors to the value of good web content. In fact, I just made a note to myself to offer a free report.

Also, regarding the blog, I'm looking for folks to contribute some guest posts. I can write them all myself, but I think it would be a good idea to get some other voices in there, and I can devote the time I save to marketing issues. Still--getting more articles up quickly is a top priority.

VanGogh--that's an excellent suggestion about the line, "Go to any well-designed money-making website..."

I use the phrase "content articles" only because that's what we call them at Demand Studios, for whom I often write articles. I'll look at modifying it.

Again, thanks so much to both of you for the valuable suggestions.

vangogh
07-21-2010, 11:51 AM
Glad to see you're moving away from the free hosting. That was going to limit you forever. Better to have more control over what you can do.

I understand the idea of aiming at mom and pops and thinking you need to educate them to sell your services. However you may find it not so easy to convince people of the value of great content. Why not go after the subset of mom and pops who already know they should be adding more content to their site instead? You can still educate those who haven't been convinced yet through your blog. Save the energy though in the sales process for those who have already decided they want more content and just need to find someone to create it for them. There will be enough of those people for you to build a business around.

The above is coming from personal experience. I did basically the same thing when starting. Once i stopped trying to convince people they needed my services and focused on the people who already knew they needed my services and worked to convince them they should choose me over the next company, I had a lot more success.


I use the phrase "content articles" only because that's what we call them at Demand Studios, for whom I often write articles.

Use the phrase potential clients use. Find out what phrases people use when looking for content or for an article. I think people would use either content or articles, though I can't imaging too many using the complete phrase "content articles." I could be wrong of course, so don't avoid the phrase because of me. Search some free keyword tools and do a little research so you can find out what how your potential clients will search for and talk about your services.

em1880
07-22-2010, 11:06 AM
It loads fast and is easy to read.

Lyrafire
07-22-2010, 11:24 AM
em1880--Thanks--that's one good sign!

VanGogh--You are massively helpful. I've made some adjustments based on your recommendations. I can't move it just yet, because as it turns out, the domain name has to sit for 60 days before I can transfer it. Your sage advice concerning my target market makes sense. Naturally, I was (and am) worried about not finding enough clients. This is not my first website or my first business. That said, my last website wasn't about e-commerce and it was a long time ago. I got a lot of traffic though. That said, the times--they are a changin'.

vangogh
07-22-2010, 08:40 PM
Glad I could help and thanks for the compliments. Sounds like you're moving your domain as well as your hosting. The domain can't be moved for 60 days after registering, but the hosting usually can. Unless they're tied together with the free hosting. Not a big deal to wait though.

Like I said I did the same thing when defining my market. Initially I figured anyone looking for a website was my market, but that was trying to cast too wide a net. It's extremely difficult to stand out that way. Much easier to find a niche within the market and once you're doing well in that niche you can start branching out and casting the net a little wider.

sequoiapayroll
07-26-2010, 07:04 PM
I like it. It's easy to read, nice on the eyes. I like the simplicity of it. Then again my site is about as bare bones as it can get, but hey, if it works...

I would suggest changing up the pictures. They all look the same. some variety would add a little interest to the site...

vangogh
07-26-2010, 10:53 PM
I'll echo the thought about the images. You are using the same image throughout the site. I would definitely change that up. I notice you took me up on the heading for the home page. I would break it so it's not the one word that falls to the next line. Maybe after the word 'website' would be a good place to break it both visually and contextually.

Lyrafire
07-27-2010, 01:56 PM
Thanks Sequoiapayroll! Vangogh, what browser are you using? I use Mozilla Firefox, and I'm not seeing any lines containing only one word. I tried to check it in IE, but I had a virus a while back and since then, I haven't been able to get into Chrome. Today I discovered I also can't get into IE.

vangogh
07-27-2010, 07:27 PM
Interesting. I was looking in Safari, but when I checked in Firefox I see everything on one line. It looks like the font-size displays a little larger in Safari, which forces the word discover to a new line. I just checked and that line displays as 21px in Firefox, but 24px in Safari. Strange. Did you set the font-size in px or a relative measurement like 'em'

Lyrafire
07-27-2010, 08:34 PM
21 px. This is most annoying! But--I think I've fixed it. I agree about the repeated image--it was an experiment in design. I have to wait a day or two to fix it; time is a problem at the moment. Anyway, I used someone else's computer to check the site in Chrome and IE, as well as Mozilla. It looks OK--for now!

I have a feeling that when I move the site, some of these problems will disappear--but when I do, I'll have to learn new software--Concrete5. Ugh. I'm worried I'll have a bunch of new problems. As always, thanks for your help.

vangogh
07-27-2010, 10:40 PM
Glad to help. Just so you know I still see the site the same as I did above. Maybe if someone else has Safari (ideally on a Mac) They could look too. It's always possible it's something local to me and not something anyone else is seeing. Also it's not as though it looks horrible. Just leaves that one word on the line below and centered.