Forums: Discussions for entrepreneurs and small business.

I just redesigned our homepage.  We usually let it get out of date ... keeping up with projects always seems more important. But since we're growing we needed to update our site.

We found that when we had a single page we got better conversions.  We also found our "under construction" page was probably our best site... (interestingly enough).

What do you think about the new one? Simple enough?  (We know the text in the middle there could look more styled -- again, we found the rough edge to be better suited for small business clientelle who mostly don't have considerable knowledge of the web).

Are the flippable icons at the bottom easy enough/obvious enough to use?

Thanks!

http://www.redfishbluefishdesign.com

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A spin-off from my company, now undergoing funding. A real-time, live-event polling program. Engage your audience at your next conference, seminar, talk or retreat! http://www.indiegogo.com/ballotboxes

I really like the simplistic layout. The presentation of the previous work is very nicely done and the flipping icons works well too.

Sorry I cant offer any constructive criticism as there really isn't much to critique on this site ... Sometimes keeping it simple works out best!

hey Jeff I think you could include the specifics on your services.  I would want to know the breadth of services you conduct (PHP, SEO, which CMS systems etc.) and what rates you bill at.

Otherwise I love your site and the portfolio looks great!  In fact I was wondering if you would be willing to accept any referrals I may be able to offer you in the future.  If we talked I could write an article about RedFishBlueFish on my blog and discuss where to go from there.

Kalen

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I provide information on new technology businesses and use to social media to help promote the dreams of others. Engineer-a-Business Engineerbiz

Minimalism can go a long way if done correctly. I, too, am in the business of designing and developing sites, so I thought I would chime in.

On the technical side of things:

• It seems you're breaking some best practices. Namely, including your javascript files at the top of the page. This slows down page load times.
  
• There are numerous errors in your markup, causing your page not to validate.
• There's a small number of errors in your css stylesheets, causing your page not to validate.
• Your using div tags in some places where p tags would be better suited. Remember, you want to have semantic html not divitis.
• I didn't see any SEO inside of the head section; you could be getting more exposure with a proper SEO strategy.

On the design side of things:

• The text on the page does seem a bit generic. Typography is part of design, even causing experts to say that design should be 95% typography (or some other high number figure).
• Also, the text @ the top of the page might be a bit verbose. Saying that you were turning away clients, to me, sounds a bit like a lie. Plus, I don't think potential clients really care.
• Tsk, tsk. Declaring arial before helvetica in your font-stack... But at least you declared your font-sizes in em's :)
  
• Contact information should be better distinguishable from the rest of the text on the page. After all, that's the gateway for customers to reach you and you want to make sure they see it.
• The jquery effect with the flipping of the cards feels a little generic. Also, you shouldn't be hiding information from the user in that way. More on that below.

From the UX side of things:

• Why isn't there a contact form on your page? Most portfolio sites include as a default. The contact form is the fastest and surest way for a client to reach you. Think about it - a prospect is already on the page, so they might as well fill it out.
• The logo representing a past client means nothing unless you designed it. It would be better to include a couple of screenshots from the client's site along with a description of what was done and what techniques and technologies were used. Don't drive users away from your site by making them go to the client's site. They're probably not going to come back to yours. Don't make your user's think.
• What services do you offer? Any testimonials? As a potential client, how do I know you rock and I should hire you?

Sorry for the long-winded review, but I hope it proved to be insightful. Best of luck!

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h: Terminal Phantoms - Bloody Awesome Web Design and Development | t: @kuroi_kenshi

I like the design, however I would differentiate the text in the middle of the page. At present it's all bold, making it hard to read. Also, since this space is probably where all your customers look, I would put a few icons or navigational images, as I have to scroll down to see your portfolio.

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Référencement Suisse et gestion d'image internet, pour le positionnement dans les moteurs de recherche.

WOW... I guess Host_Samuri, let you have it... I am a web developer/Designer myself, and One thing I can't understand is why, do you have that message? stating that you've been busy? That you can now take on clients.... That's a Positive - Negative... Basically what you are telling your new clients is... I'm a great designer (the positive message) but! I can't take on your project because we are busy with other projects (the negative) ... So, think for a minute...

Do you think, I would want to give you my business if I knew you were busy or would do it in a hurry?

Secondly, I didn't see any errors on your CSS but one, but that's simply because you are using CSS3.0, and the w3c.org validator only understands CSS2.1.

here is my take on it Redfishbluefish, alot of designers/developers don't understand the proper way to use CSS. They use div tags as if they were working in tables. The whole purpose of CSS is to separate the content from the design and to be able to position items on the page by using CSS...

You could have used an Unorder List to create all your image place holders rather than div boxes..

I would redesign the web site and make it more accessible... Did you even worry about the mobile sector? Can you pull your web site through a smart phone? These are things you need to keep in mind as a developer...

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Edgar Monroy
Web Developer / Owner / Consultant
When starting your own business the need to "know-how" is greater than money!
http://www.nuevolution.net