Virtual Assistant Forums | Work from Home

HelpInAHurry · #1 (**permalink**) 09-14-2011

Okay, I'm new to creating a website (gulp), and new to being an entrepreneur (double gulp), so I've been afraid to ask for input on my website. But you know what? If I don't know what to fix, I don't know what to improve, lol.

So I figured it's time to suck it up, and find out what I can do to make this work!!!

I look forward to y'alls input!
http://helpinahurryllc.com

Mary Jansen · #2 (**permalink**) 09-14-2011

Hi Amanda. You are off to a good start. I would suggest changing "Help in a Hurry" to a smaller font so it will be more in proportion with "Virtual Assistant".
Secondly, I didn't understand the calendar on the home page and then found it on all pages. Is it possible to remove it from the home page?
Everything else looks clean and good white space.
Best to you.
Mary

leedrozak · #3 (**permalink**) 09-15-2011

Here are my suggestions, however please note I did not read all of your copy.

HOME PAGE: You should have an attention grabbing reason for people to use you. Right now because of your post feeds it looks like another blog and not a service provider.

ABOUT: I know this is a work in progress (always!) however because people will never "meet" you you should make this more conversational and expand on what you have to offer that will help them, why you are top dog, etc.

OVERALL: Do you need the calendar there? It is taking up valuable real estate and unless you are booking for appointments or announcing events it should go.

Header - can you move the text Help in a Hurry next to the logo to bump up the used area a tad. This will allow you for more above the fold space for content.

Call to action: you have none on most pages. You should at the very least have a phone, email, etc on your home page (if not every page).

I like to overall clean look and you have great use of white space.

Best to you as you continue.

Tess · #4 (**permalink**) 10-27-2011

Hi Amanda, I'm just now catching up with threads in this section

Are you still working on your site?

I think the suggestions the other two VAs offered are a great starting point and strongly agree that you need more content on your home page. Also, the calendar needs to go - it takes up a huge amount of space and offers no informational value, nothing for clients to click on... Remove that in favor of a unique call to action like signing up for your newsletter (if you have one), subscribing to your blog, or scheduling a free consultation.

I'd also recommend re-ordering the links in your menu so that the things you really want potential clients to interact with most are to the left. When someone lands on a site they tend to scan in an F shape, starting at the top left and moving down, then across in the two 'bars' of the letter F.

You can take advantage of that in the content area of your home page as well by adding more content with emphasis on linked calls to action - with the goal being to get people to click further into your site and ultimately to get in touch with you. Providing lots of links to your services page, contact page, and other important pages on your site within your textual content will help serve that purpose.

It doesn't look like you've made any of the changes that were previously suggested, but if you do decide to work on your site a bit be sure to post back!

MondayMorn · #5 (**permalink**) 10-29-2011

Great start! I agree with some of the comments already made - but I'll just riff while I go through everything.

1. If you're going to keep the creative commons on your site (is it really needed?) I'd put it in the footer. If people want to know, they'll be looking for it - for everyone else, they don't need to have it so prominent.

2. Remove the calendar and tags section on the sidebar.

3. On the home page, I'd remove the envelope icon. It just kind of sits there on it's own and you already have a contact us link at the top.

4. Remove the "blog" link in the nav bar if you're going to have your home page showing your blog posts.

5. Move the privacy policy either to the far right or into the footer.

Canary Admin Services · #6 (**permalink**) 10-29-2011

Your site is really clean and easy to read. My only "issues" are:

1.- I would put the content you have on your ABOUT page on your HOME page instead.

2.- Instead of providing links to external websites, perhaps you could explain to potential clients yourself what a VA does. It's a way of showing them you know what you're talking about and connecting with them personally. If I saw that as a client I may think you're not 100% sure of your services but if you explain it in your own words and use a link to back-up what you say it might look better.

3.- I would DEFINITELY get rid of the calendar because it takes up a lot of valuable space and doesn't serve any real purpose (I tried clicking on it but nothing happens).

4.- I would also move the BLOG and PRIVACY POLICY tabs to the end so that the really important info like your services and prices are seen.

I don't think anyone is 100% happy with their website (or maybe that's just me!!), I tweak mine quite a bit but I really like the overall look of your site because it's not crammed full of information and you go straight to the point which is what people want.

Good luck with your business

HelpInAHurry · #7 (**permalink**) 11-03-2011

Gosh yes, I'm going to work on the website this week! Sorry about that y'all..didn't mean to ignore you. I got HUGELY pregnant right there towards the end of my pregnancy, and I wasn't doing much of anything work wise. And then I had my gorgeous little boy, and gave myself a few weeks...attend IVAA online, and then my computer BSOD'd me. So now my computer is back, the baby is doing great, and I'm ready to rock this out. I'll repost when I've made adjustments!