my website

[stuart bloomsbury]

Hi

I've built a new website for my company which can be viewed at bloomsburycleaning dot co dot uk, or I think you can click on my name above and it will direct you.

Before you start tearing it to shreds , I would point out that I am a complete web design novice, and before I started out knew absolutely nothing about html coding (and still don't for the best part). I constructed it in a WYSIWYG editor (Serif Webplus x2), which I have come to realise makes for a complete mess of coding that will probably be difficult for google to crawl properly. Theres reams of code before you even get to any of the text which I carefully researched for SEO purposes. Before this I had designed one previous and pretty basic website using Webplus 2 which was my first ever attempt at web design.

I'd like some comments on the overall feel and look of the site, ease of navigation and of course anything that might make it rank better in search engines - or comments as to whether that would be impossible with the program I have used!

 

[Fingers In Pies]

Excellent little site.

Your title tags could be a bit more descriptive.

It's fantastic... a great effort...

Now just need to get traffic to it.


Cheers

 

[rich06]

Hi Stuart,

I don't think it's bad for someone new to web design. However, I would make some amends.

The header image is far too big and I'm not sure what it is meant to be. I would remove this to get more content above the fold.

Be careful of the blue text on the blue background. I tested this and it doesn't meet W3C standards so I would recommend changing it to white text. People with poor sight would have difficulty picking this out otherwise.

Looks like you have the CSS coding within the pages which is probably as a result from using Serif Webplus x2. I would link to an external CSS file.

 

[wood1e2]

Move all the CSS and Javascript to an external file.

cut and paste the CSS code into notepad and save as mycss.css (or whatever name you want to give it)

Then upload to httpdocs on your live server

Then in the webpage insert

<link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="mycss.css" />

underneath your META description, do the same for the javascript file myjavascript.js

<script src="myjavascript.js" language="javascript" type="text/javascript"></script>

These can be placed in a separate folder if you have more than one files and wish to keep things tidy, just add "myfolder/" to the script source.

This will clean things up considerably, giving the SE bots more freedom to move around.

Look at using H1/H2/H3 tags to title elements within your content that need highlighting.

Research the keywords/keyphrases where you find your main competitors within search results (on google/Yahoo etc)

Then look at adding these to the title/META tags/Content of your website, obviously within the content make sure these are not just listed but placed with grammatically correct content.

Set up a Google/Yahoo webmaster account to let them know you are there.

Add yourself to Google Business listing.

Once you have gone through all that and I would look at local keywords first...ie London Cleaning Services, or even North London Cleaning services, as these are likely to be less competitive than straight forward 'Cleaning Services'

Then you can look at what keywords/keyphrases pay as that is what you are looking for in the long run...then look at changing your titles/content to match, post some articles/pr get some back links with the keywords/keyphrases as anchor text.

Then help that you never annoy the search engines and you get a high ranking...

This is just a quick run down, I am sure there is something I may have missed

Right time for a caffine refill

 

[stuart bloomsbury]

Thanks for your comments, all.

Wood1e2 - thanks for that solution - I'm not sure if I can do that in the program (and I don't quite understand all about css), but I'll try and get someone I know who can do coding to have a look at doing that. Cheers, big help.

 

[wood1e2]

Even if you progam does not let you, you should be able to remove the code from the pages using notepad then FTP the pages back up to your server

 

[bizideas]

Not sure if this has been mentioned, I personally would get rid of the flash picture header. This is not needed in my opinion and if removed everything on your site would move up and visitors would instantly be able to see the services you offer without scrolling the page. The 3 boxes explaining the services you offer should be on page without having to scroll.

You could reduce size of logo and have contact tel and email in the header

I am no pro but other than the above I would say a very nice site design for your first.



Mark

 

[Bruce_Andrews]

Nice looking site - definately gives a good impression.
I'd agree with the comments about the bit of flash at the top - IMO get rid of it.
You might try just using the mutiple blue lines as a top border - I think it would look OK.

Make a bigger thing of your 100% satisfaction guarantee - and add anything to it that you always do - e.g. if you always arrive on time, add it to the guarantee - it won't cost you anything.

re driving traffic
what about writing a few cleaning tips - it would give you a valid reason to constantly add content.
Combine that with a bi-monthly newsletter, or just the normal e-mail marketing, with links back to the tips, and the odd special offer.
And collect e-mail addresses at every opportunity - including when the client signs for a completed visit.

 

[mediadog]

Nice effort on the website there - just a few design tweaks I'd advise...

1. As mentioned by others, I'd drop the Flash - only use it if it really enhances the look or functionality of the site. Everything below 'Bloomsbury Cleaning Services London at a glance' could be moved I reckon.
2. The homepage is quite 'text heavy' - I'd personally try and cut it down and have the homepage as an brief introduction to the company, all the other info can be found on subsequent pages. Any search terms you'd like people to find you with can be addedin the meta tags - people don't need to literally read them on the page.
3. Maybe try and give some of your text a bit more formatting to break it up slightly? Your titles 'Regular Domestic Cleaning', 'End of Tenancy Cleaning' etc could have a backround on perhaps? Presently all the text looks a bit similar and I think it would look nicer if you could break up the monotony of it.
4. As mentioned previously - get all your CSS in a seperate file... it'll save you a lot of time in future and is so much easier to control then.
5. I presume you've used the Google Webmaster tools? If not, give them a go - it does wonders for your ranking. A good start is submitting a sitemap (do a seach for sitemap creator to get one done for you to add).

But generally I think you've done a sterling job!

 

[fisicx]

Stuart, to tell you the truth I preferred the old version. The new one is very 'busy' - your visitors will struggle to find the USP/call to action. As already suggested the homepage should be a brief introduction with a list of your services with links to more information, a call to action and your contact details.

I know you are stuck with serif but it's such a bad application that you will struggle for the life of the business to get the website to perform well.

Looking at your carpet cleaning page - there isn't actually anything to make me pick up the phone. You have a description of the cleaner and dust mites but nothing about the service you offer. For example, do I need to move the furniture, how long does it take, can I walk on the carpet afterwards, do you do rugs?

That's my impression anyhow.

 

[YourStressManager]

Nice site. I used the same web design programme for my first effort, but later had it done professionally to increase traffic, etc which seems to be working. As others have said, there's a lot of text on there, but overall I like it!! Well done.

 

[Isabella_Smith]

I found your website really good, as many of user's has give you some good answers but I think you should consider on these as well:

1. The header is not looking good. Frankly, this is just too big as placed a header, I think someone has mentioned it before as well.

2. The images you have used on the page, I think they need a professional touch. You have put them simply, you can make a border as you have done with the image in left panel.

3. Your company name you can put it on the header, I think this is the main thing which makes header big. The header shouldn't be more than 120pix (in my opinion).

4. Rest has mentioned above...

Good site you have designed.

 

[stuart bloomsbury]

Thanks for your comments everyone. I'm in discussions with an seo agency on this site to improve the coding, increase traffic etc.

With regards to the amount of content on there the idea behind this was so people could actually gather all the information they needed before ringing up. I've noticed hardly any of my competitors actually list much detail on their sites but many customers I've spoken to seem to want to have that information 'on hand' so they can make a decision before ringing. It seems to have worked, as we still have more of less the same amount of traffic, but business has doubled from website enquiries.

 

[fisicx]

Stuart,

It's not an SEO agency you need at the moment. There are a lot of fundamental design issues you need to consider first as well as revising your content.

I understand about proving lots of information for your visitors but all you have at the moment is loads of bumph. You have for example a telephione number in a button at the top but if I scroll down the page the number can no longer been seen. This isn't SEO, it's usability and accessibility. All SEO will do is improve your SE visibility, it's the site itself that converts and your unfortunately will struggle.

 

[seasonsonline]

I really like the site, and don't have any words of criticism! If there was anything negative that I could say it would be that your actual logo "Bloomsbury cleaning services" could do with a little extra jazzing up.

The site itself looks really crisp & fresh.- Excellent job.

 

[predicmack]

Nice & excellent site. Good job dude!!