Know-How Exchange : Website Critique

Shelley,
Looks like a great concept and very needed. Quickly...I would get the site map off the top of the list. If he's promoting webinars...that should be tops. Games, also a great idea and should be up near the top.

"Sudden compliance" doesn't resonate with me, but it may for parents struggling with strong willed children.

Pictures: He seems to have represented blended and single-parent families. Is this based on the types of clients he has?

I like to see the link for "home" in the logo top left. Right now it's just a sign for the seminars. That's only an opinion.

Michael

My first reaction is that it's missing the WIIFM and a compelling call to action. As I look at the home page, I don't know (a) if I'm in the target audience or not, (b) what benefit I might expect if I sign up for the newsletter, or (c) what else, if anything, you want me to do -- and why I might want to do it.

The site seems to be more about what the organization does, where and how Mark grew up and was educated, etc., than about what important benefit it can provide for me.

My suggestion would be to review the copy with an eye toward pointing everything to the consumer benefit -- WIIFM -- and take out all the ego stuff. (When the first real copy at the top of the home page is about YOUR mission, you know the site is inward focused. And what do Mark's home town and alma mater have to do with the benefit?)

How about some testimonials, a video clip on the home page that demonstrates what Mark is all about (i.e., a free sample to get people excited), short benefit-oriented captions near the pictures, perhaps a very brief case study that showcases the benefit, etc.?

Less boring/irrelevant copy, more excitement and a clear benefit promise.

Since his goal is creating webinars, then a video on the home page makes good sense (either videos of snippets of previous seminars or a message from him to the website visitor).

There's a lot of text to wade through - I'd prefer to see some basic bullet-points to let me skim the copy.

How about adding a basic "test" to see if your child has a problem that this program can help with. These questions would be similar to some of the questions at: https://strongfamilies.us/seminars.php, but simpler. For example: Has your child's teacher complained about your child's behavior? Do you feel like you're spending too much time dealing with problems (and not enough time playing)?

What age range is the project geared? Can Mark offer slightly different programs for different niches (preschool, elementary school, etc.)? Different ages have different needs, different styles of communication, etc.

What's the benefit to signing up for the newsletter? What's the frequency? Are there tips or simply a sales piece?

Jay's comment on the video is right on, except he didn't tell the whole story.

The video is a 3+ minute commercial, and we still never get to see Mark in action, or get any sense of his personality or any sense of how he delivers his magic.

The soft music makes me think this is going to be a meditation session, not a high-energy, information-rich, how-to program that will make my life (and my kid) better immediately. I shudder to think that the program itself might be more of the same ... for hours on end.

I'd suggest a shorter video (45-60 seconds?) with Mark talking directly into the camera, as though he were having a one-on-one conversation with the parent ... perhaps giving a tip on how to improve communication (or whatever). If he has video testimonials from satisfied clients, 10-15 seconds of those would be good too.

But I find the video that's already on the site (that you linked to) a turn-off ... and may be doing more harm than good ... if anyone ever watches more than the first 30 seconds ... which are a real downer. They visualize the problem, not the solution! What do you think people will remember?

Yes I watched all 3:44 -- twice ... and it never gets much better. I even remember seeing visualization of money for about 20 seconds solid ... as in, "This is going to cost you a bundle!" And listening to a voice-over reading the TOC.

Mark: Lose this video. It should have been scrapped at the storyboard stage.

Would you buy into a diet program that showed only the "before" pictures, and no "after" pictures?

Would you be enticed by someone reading you the recipes and nutrition information for suggested meals ... and never even showing the meals?

Would you be likely to buy if 10% of the message was about how much it would cost you to get the claimed benefits, showing the money only ... and not the results?

Would you believe it works if the music were slow and hypnotic/lethargic?

You get the idea.