Know-How Exchange : Website Critique

Hi (or should I say bonjour?) Claudette,

1) You ask me to join your email mailing list, but don't give any reasons why. What will I get? What information will you give me?

2) The Flash pictures on the left are unnecessary and distracting. They don't tell me anything about your company.

3) There should be a big, fat benefit on the front page: Get Rid of Clutter (without lifting a finger), Lose the Mess and Reduce Your Stress

4) Tell me WHY I should use your services. What will I get? How will it make my life easier?

5) The images in the center look like buttons, but they aren't. It's unclear why they're there.

6) Who is your target audience? Busy professionals? Older adults? You need to pick one and then tailor your message to fit those people (and those people only). Don't try to be all things to all people.

There are several reasons for this. One, it will make it much easier to promote your business (you'll be laser-focused, instead of spraying and praying, hoping to hit something). Two, it will make it easier to describe what you do to prospective clients. Three, it will make it easier for potential clients to remember you, and current clients to refer you (you'll have a "label" in their minds: oh, she's the organizer for busy working moms).

7) Design: It's much too blue. I love blue, but there's not enough contrast. Add a few more colors (it's the web, it's free).

8) Put those calculators up front (or even better, offer access as a bonus with sign-up for that mailing list).

9) I'm not clear what the estate planning and ID theft links are doing in your resources list. How does that help me organize my life?

10) Why is the 15-minute organizing guide hidden? That should be on the first page. How much does it cost? There's no price, not enough sales copy, and what copy there is doesn't tell me much about what it will do for me. Could you make that a giveaway instead (in return for the email signup)?

11) Your contact information is too hard to find. Put your address and phone number prominently on the site. You're asking people to trust you with their money and managing their lives; you'll need to look trustworthy.

12) The line at the bottom "Family Office, Daily Money Manager", etc. looks like links (but isn't). It's confusing.

13) Avoid words like "industry-leading" and "our commitment to your goals is our only priority"; they're meaningless. Instead, say something that's specific and remarkable. For instance, if you were the #1 organizing company in the US (in sales), or you had an ironclad guarantee; you're happy or your money back. Period.

14) Those images look like stock photos. Skip the canned people and show your actual staff (or people you've helped - with their permission)

15) Add testimonials, "Claudette and her team turned chaos into calm in only 25 minutes."

Jodi

Jodi has provided a wealth of information. Some more thoughts:
* You have (for SEO reasons) a laundry list of services in small type at the bottom of your site. It's not useful for visitors of your website to read. Instead, rewrite your copy to appeal to people who are likely to use your services (perhaps categorizing them into separate niches), applying some of your list to each category. That'll help both SEO and prospects.

The benefits that you mention aren't "core" enough ("Stop managing your life and start living it", "Freedom", "Independence", etc.). Perhaps: "Have More Time For Those You Love" (where you're selling time), "Make Your Business More Efficient" (where you're selling saving money), etc.

Also: Website Grader gives you a score of 59 / 100 (https://www.websitegrader.com/wsgid/3394291/default.aspx) with specific tips to improve your site.

Dear Claudette,

Hmm. You've already received a great deal of sound advice, some of which you might find duplicated below.

1. Flash. Lord, how I loathe Flash.

True, animation seems to please web designers and site owners, but it's my considered opinion that it rarely does much for site users and it does little if anything for search engines or search spiders.

2. Top right, you ask people to: “Join our FREE Email Mailing List”. Good. But what’s in it for your viewer? Why should I give you my name and e-mail list without being offered a better reason?

By telling people you’ll give them this or that, you offer something in exchange for their details, so you establish reciprocity. But by simply asking people to join your mailing list, there’s less incentive for them to join up. Their reaction might be “Why do I want to be on another mailing list without something in return?”

The solution? A big fat tempting offer! Something people want, need, and can make use of.

And your sign up box needs to be on every page and in the same position on every page: top right and with a clear offer: “you get this report for your name and e-mail address” or something along these lines.

3. Reduce the size of your logo.

Your service is not about you. It’s about the benefits, peace of mind, and freedoms you give your clients. You don’t need a large logo to do this. You need a CLEAR statement that tells people what it is you offer them and how you can change their lives.

4. Your website name. Might it suite you better (and make a more significant connection for first time users of your site) to use financial services keywords in your domain name? Had you not offered a translation of your website name I'd have been looking up “et cie” because I'd have had no clue what it meant.

Might other people have to do this too, and might this impact your search engine rankings? A domain name that includes your name and a few keywords might serve you better.

5. Clarify what you do.

From your home page it’s not clear what you offer. Making site users search for information leads to an increase in site abandonment rates.

So consider saying up front: this is what we do, this is who we
do it for, this is how you benefit. Be bold, CLEAR, and state benefits to site users.

The following text taken from your “About Us” page meets the need: “Paäge et Cie is a leading provider of confidential financial and organizational services to busy professionals, individuals and families, frequent travelers, homeowners with residences both in the USA and in other countries, owners of multiple residences, young and older adults and retirees.”

Says is all. It’s up front. And it’s benefit rich. Why bury this on a second tier page? Ditto for your online tools and resources. Bring them out into the brightness of the day and let people SEE them.

6. The run of small photos on your homepage appear to be linked to other pages. But they’re not. Site users may find this irritating.

Your site images also need “alt tags”, so rather than an image file sitting on a server somewhere with the name “JPG 1234”, the file name could be “Independence JPG/ alt tag “Go have fun with loved ones, while we manage your bill payments”.

The text in quotes then pops up when the image is moused over on the viewer’s screen. Alt tags also give heaps of additional information to site users AND ALSO GIVE additional keyword terms to search engine spiders.

7. Testimonials. These are huge in ANY business but more so in a financial service context. They offer instant social proof and they do much to increase your credibility, so no hiding them on another page.

As with any offer or sign up element (name and e-mail for our free report), testimonials help you when they appear on every page and in the same place on every page.

Why?

Because elements in predictable places help anchor site user’s eyes; people learn to look for them and when people look for things like this they tend to remain on a site longer, thereby helping to increase your conversion rate, AND THEREBY helping to increase the possibility of a sale. Hoorah!

8. Drop down menu sounds. There are users who love these toys. There are users who hate themIf you love them and they help with conversion rates, retain them. If not, nuke them.

9. Body copy size. Might your site users benefit from being able
to increase the font size in their browser? Your website designer ought to be able to install a wee script to permit you to do this, and as a service, offering your users this option makes your site more accessible to a good portion of your potential audience.

10. Audio/video. Why not have an introductory piece, or spoken testimonials? This can help increase confidence and helps appeal to users who may not want to read text. Making your services as accessible as possible give you greater clout.

So, those are my initial thoughts.

Of the points above, take what you agree with and feel free to reject anything you believe isn’t helpful.

One other point. You mentioned a blog. If your site becomes a Wordpress platform, and based on a Wordpress template (which saves a TON of design work), you’ll be able to include a blog, AND make any changes to the content of your site with minimal effort and not have to rely on a webmaster (which may not please your web designer, but this person works for you!).

A Wordpress platform gives you backend access, you’ll rarely if ever need to deal with HTML, and even if you do need to deal with HTML, it’s possible to figure out basic stuff in a weekend. (If I, a total nitwit when it comes to HTML, can figure it out, ANYBODY can!)

Of course, you may just want to hand everything over to your web designer and say “Make it so!”, and if you do, that’s fine. But as with most things, you trade money for expertise or hours for dollars. Wordpress access means you’d be largely free of time and money spent getting a web designer to make changes for you (on their time, at your expense, and when they’re good and ready), so it gives you leverage.

Anyway, I hope this helps. Good luck with your overhaul.

Gary Bloomer
Wilmington, DE, USA

Dear Claudettte,

I'm glad my thoughts were of use, and once again, Jay—expert of experts that he is, is quite right.

There are lots of truly excellent web designers. And there are lots of truly excellent marketers. But web designers who really, truly understand the importance of things such as persuasion pathways, site architecture, usability, and the power of a strong, compelling offer connected to an appealing, well-positioned, user-friendly sign-up form are few and far between.

I've seen sites designed by "top designers" that look great, but that don't convert, dissuade visitors, and that are a God damn nightmare to navigate!

Similarly, I've seen sites that look, how shall I put this—crap,
yes, that'll do—and that wouldn't ever win a design award
because aesthetically, they suck. But these sites are astoundingly well written and do what their prettier brethren will never do: convert visitors into buyers like hot cakes.

Likewise there are few web designers who can write fantastically user orientated, keyword rich sales copy. A great many designers are taught how to use their software, but what they're not taught is how to drive traffic and make a site convert.

I know of one company here in Wilmington DE., that produces great, great sites and that also knows its stuff in terms of SEO and conversion. They're ranked as one of the region's top interactive media outfits and they do first rate work. And most importantly: their sites gets results. All of which comes at a price.

I'd be happy to discuss your needs in greater detail off forum because despite the scenarios I've just pointed out, there ARE
web designers out there who know what they're doing and who also know how to create sites that are easy to navigate and that convert well.

However, the trick for anyone outside the world of marketing and design lies in finding them. If I can help, let me know.

Kind regards,

Gary Bloomer
Wilmington, DE, USA

Claudette,

As Gary said, what you want is a web designer who understands converting and selling. You don't want award-winning (you're not interested in awards).

What you want is a site that's easy to navigate, has clear benefits, speaks to a specific audience, offers helpful tools and resources upfront (where your prospects can find them), builds trust, establishes credibility, and generates leads/sales.

If you want a new web designer, I'm happy to refer you to someone here in New York who understands what a sales web site should (and should not) do. Click on my name to contact me.

Get testimonials and put them where they're easy to find (the same spot on each page). Get video testimonials (you can get a Flip camera for these), and upload them to your site. Tell them to be as specific as possible (numbers in time and savings):

"I used to spend 5 hours a day juggling three homes, five kids, and worldwide travel plans for two senior executives. Now it's down to 20 minutes! Claudette gave me my life back."

Of course, design alone isn't enough to drive sales or email signups. You'll also need benefit-rich sales copy that pulls readers in and drives conversions. The key is to talk in turns of the problems that your prospects have (not about yourself) and offer solutions to those problems. Show how your services reduce stress and save time. Again, give specific examples. Paint a picture in your visitors' minds of how much better they'll feel when they use your services.

If you want people to sign up for your email list, add an offer on the home page (the calculators or the book), in return for the email address. Give people a reason to WANT to be on your list, both because of the "bribe" and all the great tips you'll send them on how to save time and money.

You're not really selling financial services, you're selling stress reduction, peace of mind, and saving time.

Jodi