Question

Topic: Website Critique

What Impression Does The Website Give You?

Posted by Anonymous on 7/27/2008 at 8:38 AM ET 125 Points
Hi everyone, Thank you for all the replies on my previous question.I used it to grow. Please visit my new website & share what impression it gives you, is it informative ect. My site has to fill puropose of online marketing. What is needed for you the client to feel safe to purchase the program? www.mystudysmart.com
Thank you for assisting me in growing in the corporate world.
Regards M Gorton
[email address deleted by staff... PLEASE use the My Profile page instead]
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RESPONSES

  • Posted by Jay Hamilton-Roth on 7/27/2008 at 9:04 AM Member
    Your tagline words are hard to read (I had to look up Entelechy to understand the Aristotle connection)

    Your home page has too many words on it. Keep it simple. For example, since your offerings differ for your 3 groups, then make the group's names (10-14 years, etc.) into active links for your specific pages.

    Since you have a .com name, you need to clearly state where you're located on all web pages.

    I would like to see some testimonials on your home page.
  • Posted by Kevin McIntosh on 7/27/2008 at 9:15 AM Accepted
    Reading your home page, my first question is:

    Who is the audience you are writing to? Parents? or learners? And if learners, adult learners or youth learners? Obviously, you're trying to talk to all of these groups, but I wonder if there's a way to simplify the dialogue-give you are on the internet and that's how you can use links to your advantage.

    What if you segment your audiences on that home page? I'm guessing this is a website template? But can you at least have different links titled to address the audience segments? ie. "Adult students" ; "Parents of students" ; each relative link leads to a page with copy focused on that particular audience's needs.

    Also, what if you tried to open with a bit more of a pacing and leading technique of copywriting.

    Meet your audience where they are. The key thing to keep in mind is that marketing is all about solving a problem to an unmet need for your target. What is the problem you are solving?

    Based on your list of features at the bottom of the page, what if you led with ideas that focus on the problems/needs:

    Are you the parnent of a child who's getting poor grades?
    Does your child having trouble concentrating on schoolwork assignments?

    Or whatever the "needs" are.

    When you start there, you engage the reader, you become relevant. Then move on to how your solutions will help.

    From my 20 years as a professional copywriter, that's my thoughts on copy. People decide within a few seconds of landing on your home page if they want to stay.

    And how will they get to this page? Via Adwords ads? Your business card/other marketing communications? Or Google search engines? For Adwords ads, keep this theory in mind for your landing pages: Segment, qualify, measure, tweak and repeat.

    That's how you'll up your conversion rate, cutting your dollars spent to get clients.

  • Posted by Frank Hurtte on 7/27/2008 at 1:22 PM Accepted
    it loads painfully slow..

    I would recommend you change your title from Manager and Founder to simply--- Founder

    other than that it scores high with me.

  • Posted by jenshinn on 7/27/2008 at 7:57 PM Accepted
    Overall the site is visually pleasing.

    In order for people to find your site thought a search engine (like Google) you need basic Search Engine Optimization (SEO) elements. Start out with keyword research. Do people search for an "online tutor" or "study habits"? Once you decide what keywords you want to rank for use them throughout the content of the site and specifically in the Title, Keyword Meta Tags and the Meta Description.

    It took me a while to figure out what your selling. I feel you need a stronger call to action on every page of the site. Every web page should offer people the option to receive "free" information.

    Consider setting up a site that's specific to the US. In order to win over US searchers the site needs to speak to them in a way they are use to. Reading through the site for the first time I instantly knew it was not a US based company by the choice of words. This could be easliy addressed without changing your main concept.

    These are just some high-level observations. Please let me know if you need more details.
    Thanks for the opportunity to checkout your site!

  • Posted on 7/28/2008 at 8:54 AM Member
    It's not clear who you are talking to (students? their parents?), or what you are offering. Is it a class? Or a home-study course?

    Also, since there's no physical address, the only clue to where you are is on the enrollment page (where it says certain classes are available only in the Georges area - wherever that is).

    The inquiry form is too long and asks for too much information. Ask for the minimum amount of information; it will boost your inquiries.

    As Kathleen said, have a native English speaker review your site. Spelling and grammatical errors reduce your credibility, especially when you're selling tutoring help.

    A worldwide audience is probably not familiar with some of breakfast foods you mention (such as mealie pap). I suggest you include only standard foods (or categories), such as eggs or protein or carbs.

    I just read an article debunking some of things our mothers all told us (you CAN swim after you eat!), and one of them was drinking 6-8 glasses of water a day. Apparently, there's no medical benefit.


    The free assessment offer is buried in your newsletter. Why not showcase it as a way to drive inquiries?

    Jodi
  • Posted on 7/28/2008 at 7:32 PM Member
    There is something very Mid-90's about the overall design - the generic 3-D buttons, layout and such. I would consider something fresher if at all possible.

    I recommend getting rid of the Flash header on the homepage. It makes the page load much slower and seeing it stops after the third sequence, it's like a static header anyways. More importantly, does it add or detract from the content? Considering it slows down the page load, I'd say it detracts.

    You need to clearly state what it is you do fast and upfront. It took me a few seconds to actually figure out what you did (an eternity by web standards).

    You have too much copy on your homepage. Tell people what you do, tell them quickly and invite them to explore.

    I suspect you didn't hire a advertising copywriter for the content did you? The copy, aside from being too much, is very dry. Copywriting is a true art, and online copywriting even more so. Consider hiring a professional copywriter to rework the content. I recognize that you are an educational website, and advertising breaks all sorts of grammatical rules, but it does because that produces the most compelling copy.

    You have a lot of navigation. Consider rolling your Contact Us, General Enquiries and Enrollment Enquiries into a single page. As well, consider getting rid of the links section, unless they are directly tied into what you do or what you deliver. You want your site to be about Study Smart solely.

    Finally. Have you tested your website on your potential and existing clients. While I think you are on the right track, and you are getting excellent advice here, only your users will be able to tell you for sure.

    Best of luck.
    Eric
  • Posted on 7/29/2008 at 1:20 PM Accepted
    Use more visuals and less words. Visitors don't have the patience to "read" your home page. They'll scan it for a few second before hitting the back button, or if you're lucky, they'll click on a link to get more information.

    You need to read, "Don't Make Me Think: A Common Sense Approach to Web Usability".
  • Posted on 8/4/2008 at 8:40 AM Author
    Thank you to everyone who participated in my question regarding StudySmart. Everyones contribution is appreciated and definitely has assisted me in some way.

    I will keep in touch.

    Regards
    M Gorton
    StudySmart Academy
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