Question

Topic: Website Critique

Home Service Website

Posted by Anonymous on 2/7/2008 at 11:23 PM ET 50 Points
We are in the process of reviewing our website and have a few concerns. The biggest concern is why would someone want to visit a plumbing, heating, and cooling site? What can we do to get people to come and find our site helpful enough to come back. Thanks in advance.

www.HerrmannServices.com

Alex

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RESPONSES

  • Posted by Frank Hurtte on 2/8/2008 at 1:01 AM Member
    they will only come if they need something.... or if you offer something.

    I would suggest some articles loading the site up with key words and using a google ad word campaign centered around the cincinatti location...
  • Posted on 2/8/2008 at 11:33 AM Member
    First off, great site. The look is consistent, and the Left navigation bar makes it easy to navigate. Here are my thoughts on a few simple things to improve:

    First off, great site. The look is consistent, and the Left navigation bar makes it easy to navigate. Here are my thoughts on a few simple things to improve:

    1- I agree with NuCoPro, you should make the menu bar more noticeable on the homepage. Try putting it above the picture of the children, at the top.
    2- On your About Us page, mention that you are a family owned business in the first paragraph of text. This will tie in your header "So what's the secret to great service? Family" If I were you I'd also put in a few less spaces between the question and the word family.
    3- Small programming glitch- When you click on your Web Specials link in the Left navigation bar, it appears that you are in the main menu. That should be easy to fix.
    4-"Your Home" is great content you want to tout. THIS is part of what makes people come back. Everyone wants that kind of useful information! I'd place it below the left nav. bar, in a button or small banner ad form, to call it out. The button should have an attention getting header that tells them what to expect. Something like this: "Articles and Tips for All your Home Service Needs!” Though I like your slogan, I would get a little more specific.

    There's my 2 cents. Once you make changes, be sure to track your conversions (how many people follow through on certain steps, imputing information, etc. And how many don't). And track revisits. This is a surefire way to know if you're accomplishing your goals.

    Best of luck!
  • Posted on 2/8/2008 at 1:14 PM Accepted
    Customers visit a service provider's website to get self help to a pressing problem or to research the credibility and credentials of a company they are considering on hiring.

    Great looking site, but I think you could make an immediate impact by doing the following:

    1. Get rid of home page and instead extend the look and feel of interior pages to home pages.

    2. Create a FAQ section on home page which addresses quick temporary fixes along with a call to action. (I would use an accordion style ajax horizontal menu.)

    3. Create a section on the home page for customer comments. Nothing increases your credibility more than an endorsement from someone like your typical customer.

    4. I think 40 years in business is a big deal.. and maybe on the home page you should feature a short note from the founding father about his business ethics and promise to the customer. Makes the site more personable and again eases objections.

    5. I'd rotate an article from the Your Homes section to the home page every week or so.

    Overall site changes:

    1. Increase font size by 1 point and give access to increase type even more. Typical home customer may need some type of reading glasses.

    2. Put the BBB..etc seals of approval in the footer bar so it's visible on every page.

    3. Clean up left hand navigation.. it's a mess. I'd delete all of those pages and start over.

    4. Put "Request A Free Quote" in the header graphic somewhere.

    5. Add a page that contains links to your partners..like Home Depot, Builder Square etc.. any large or small company which you use to complete a project. The exception being a competitor of course.

    All of these changes will increase your visibility to search engine traffic because:

    1. Search engines love articles, frequent updates, meaningful information to search engine users.

    2. Give you a higher page rank when you link to other websites. (and when those websites link to you as well)

    3. Visit and update your site search information when home page information is updated frequently.

    Good luck!
  • Posted on 2/11/2008 at 3:05 PM Accepted
    1) To get people to come back or have continued exposure to your company, try starting a blog. People can either subscribe by email or RSS and you could post information about maintinaing your home or your heating and cooling system, or info relevant given the weather in your local area.

    2) Your website is not optimized for search engines, so people might have a hard time finding you. Here is a free report that will give you some suggestions: https://www.websitegrader.com/wsgid/701064/default.aspx
    You can run additional reports using the Website Grader free SEO tool (https://www.WebsiteGrader.com)

    Thanks,
    Mike Volpe
    VP Marketing
    HubSpot
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