Forums: Discussions for entrepreneurs and small business.

I just redesigned my website and officially launched it 4 months ago. I have come up pretty quickly in google for many of my targeted keywords so I am getting pretty good traffic based ont hose keywords, but I feel like my conversaion rate is not where it should be....I get about 80-100 unique visitors a day but right now only generate about 5-7 sales a week.

I will be implementing a lot of traffic generating ideas in the next few weeks including article submissions, blog submissions and such so I would like a review to determine if there is a reason that targeted traffic is not actually purchasing from me that I am not seeing?!?!

I have absolutely no background in web design, but am proud to say I did this entirely myself!!!

The website is www.expressionsphotostore.net

I am tough so please don`t hold back!!!!  


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Jill Caren
ilovephotogifts.com
http://www.ilovephotogifts.com
Unique photo art, gifts, accessories and more!

Good looking site ..... well done.

I think you should add info about secure shopping. Also, not knowing what other sites cost for comparable items/services, maybe offer some type of comparison or or information that shows you offer a better value than your competitors.


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M Hall
Website Critique Community
International Society of Curmudgeons

Hi Jill :-)
The site looks very nice, that`s a strong positive. However, it doesn`t "do" anything, in the words of Tom Hanks, in that movie "Big."

First, I couldn`t read your tagline, so all I could see was "Expressions*Photo," which doesn`t quickly tell me what it is I can get from you.

Secondly, not really knowing what the site is about, I looked at all the pictures. I directly saw that I can get my photographs turned into custom art, so that helped solve the problem. My conclusion at that point, "ah Hah! Here`s one of those places where I can send a picture and have it turned into a keychain!"

Good enough, so far.

I didn`t really need to know anything else, so I look around. Where do I go to get into the process? I want a quick, 1,2,3-step thing where I can pick my product, upload my picture, fill out a form, make a payment, and expect my keychain in a couple of weeks. Nope....not easy to find.

Alright, so then I wanted to just see....what kinda stuff can I put my picture on? I looked at the LONNnnnnng list on the left menu, and got tired just thinking about it. Can`t it be simpler?

I cruised around for a bit, but there didn`t seem to be an "logic" to the place. In other words, I ended up randomly clicking on stuff to see where I`d end up. Then I`d have no particular idea of what I should do next.

All in all, I think this isn`t a problem of Web design, but more an issue of "customer journey." You need to greet your customer, then begin moving them toward a sale. IF they don`t know right away what it is you offer, then you can give them a sales bit with an explanation, but most people are going to know what it is you`re offering.

It`s one of those, "Great...now let`s get on with it! I wanna order an oven mitt with my mom`s picture on it, then I wanna get a refrigerator magnet with my dog`s picture on it. How do I do that....right now!?" :-) See?

I get that you`re offering more than a quick keychain thing, but I only figured that out as I clicked and stared, then clicked other places. You`re giving a bit of an ambiguous message: on the one hand that you`re like a mall kiosk, with tee shirts while you wait; and on the other hand, that you`re offering real art....of some kind.

Who makes these collages? How many pictures should I send? Do they need to be in some format? Where do I go all this?

thanks for the responses!  Craig, I am intrigues because I really put a LOT of thought into the customer aspect of shopping. Granted, I think men and women shop quite differently online..but your feedback if helpful and appreciated. I have a couple of questions in regards to your response...

You mentioned if you wanted to buy a keychain it would not be easy to do? The search box function is right at the top of the page.....did you miss it or do you not want to use it?  (NOT being controversial or difficult....this is just VERY helpful to me!!) 

As far as the category list...I did have it collapsed into major categories...but then felt it would be more helpful if they can just see all the subcategories at first glance....because we offer such unique things I felt this would be better....you think it is too much?

I am really confused about the "logic part".....if someone comes to my site through a search for "photo purses"....they come to the site...see link to photo purses on the left and select the one that they want....how can I simplify that?!?!

Please know that I am not taking anything personally and just want to really `get" all the feedback I receive.....I want the site to be easy and not confusing....

and since part of my marketing plan is to men this year for gifts for the wives I really want to make it easy for men as well!!!

Thanks so much!

Jill



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Jill Caren
ilovephotogifts.com
http://www.ilovephotogifts.com
Unique photo art, gifts, accessories and more!

Okay, I see where there`d be some confusion. I never use a "search" function on a site unless I`m forced to. It`s like going to Penney`s and stopping to ask every sales person where to find a shirt, in yellow, my size. I might ask where the clothing department might be, but to me, that`s also poor design.

I suspect that the majority of shoppers tend to arrive at a site, look at it for a couple of seconds, decide if they feel an interest, then browse. After all, they already DID a search in some search engine to find the site.

When I say there`s just too much to read, consider the difference between an executive summary and a full report. Then consider the difference between an outline and the complete text. Additionally, think about how a Help system is arranged for a computer program.

I believe it`s more comfortable for people to see hierarchical information, generally because that`s the way the world is organized. When you arrive at your site, then have to look through all the many categories to find that "photo purse," it`s a waste of time.

If I arrive at your site from a search result, I want to be right on the Photo Purse page. That, or I want to quickly see no more than 10 categories, where "purses" would be easy to spot, then click to that page. Does that help clarify?

In a nutshell, I think people aren`t using computers to the machine`s advantages. In a hardcopy reference book we have a table of contents, then an index of each occurrence of a word or phrase for more detail. On a computer, we use links in Help systems, and online Web sites.

You don`t need to lay out the entire site in your menu bar. You can "drill down" through increasingly specific categories, all very quickly. People are used to that, mostly because it takes so little time if it`s done right. In some poorly-done sites, the drilling down is way too long---the "granularity" is using too many steps.

Give me five or six things to look at, think for a minute, and choose. Then when I`ve chosen, give me five or so more. Then when I`ve chosen, I should be pretty much where I want to be to find "the" thing I want to buy.