Hey all

Been a while since a post. I'm always lurking though.

Anyway, I've finally got my site just about finished (minus a few smaller details). I'd love if you guys could check it out and throw me any feedback.

www.aiyanaholton.com

Just fyi, here are the edits I already plan on making:
Actual useful things on my layer slider
Matching sizes to top images on single pages
Uploading portfolio on "Wordpress" page

And feedback will make me love you forever. ^_^

Thanks
Aiyana

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Aiyana H.

Hi Aiyana,

Very comprehensive and well laid out! Following is my constructive critique of suggestions from my experience on your site.

I feel your front page header rotates too quickly and is distracting for my taste.

Your pages are slow to load (ie http://aiyanaholton.com/services/admin-support), especially when you select them from the drop down menu.

You may want to update your copyright date to be current.

I would not recommend offering a time log to each of your clients. You are not an hourly worker, but a partner who can be trusted to complete the work as efficiently and professionally as possible. I would instead communicate by email on predetermined days each month to share hours remaining in the retainer.

I like how you have laid out your pricing and packages but have a question. What if a client wants two different services within a month but only wants to buy 10 hours total? Would you split the packages?

Overall you have done a fantastic job!

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Cynthia Bastian, Brass Ring Administrative Solutions
www.BrassRingAdmin.com

Thanks for your input Cynthia! I really appreciate it.

Regarding your packing question with the client wanting two different services, I thought of that too when I made the pricing options. I think the best way to go about that would be to somehow average out the rate (e.g. 10hr admin + 10hr PM / 2) <-- or something similar.

On the FP, I have been pretty torn about the slider. I'm going to try testing it with actually meaningful images/text. I've sort of been thinking of modeling it after http://www.teammarta.com and how she does her pages, but without completely imitating her.

And these are the reasons I haven't "released" my site yet, so to speak (especially that copyright. No idea how I missed that.)

Can I ask which browser you typically use? I've been testing efficiency with loading and such on GMetrix but I don't think I've been testing all browsers (for shame).

Again, thanks for all the criticism. I'll definitely be looking at tweaking some things.

Best

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Aiyana H.

Hi Aiyana, I like the theme you chose to work with! And I love the slider image with the 'Save time' / 'Delegate' text on it (I was sad when it slid out to another image )

A few suggestions:

- Make better use of your footer area or take it out altogether (I'd definitely take out the widget you have down there - it feels out of place and looks like an afterthought - maybe bc nothing else is down there...)

- Flesh out your services pages so that each item has a short description of what that service entails - better for potential clients trying to imagine what you can do to make their lives easier, better for your site's rank in Google

- I agree that your pages load slowly.... very slowly... and I'm on a super fast connection. I'm on Chrome in this window but use Firefox and Safari as well.

- Instead of dedicating a whole page to testimonials maybe consider rotating them somewhere on your site (maybe this is a good way to utilize that footer area)

- Make sure you cite where you took the text on your FAQ page from with a link back (even if it's Wikipedia)

- While I think it's great that you have the option for people to schedule a free consult with you, I'd still offer a contact form on this page, or make the email link more clear.

- Relative to your free consults, I would recommend making that offer clear on the home page and giving it better positioning.

Nice start!

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Hello Aiyana,

Nice to meet you! Two quick things - your Linkedin link at the top is broken and the photo on the main page doesn't load!

Otherwise, I think your site looks great! Good luck.

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Jessi Ford
NiftyAdmin.com

I don't get the photo on the main page either. I'm on an iMac and tried it on both Chrome and Safari.

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Susan Sheehan - VA Cape Cod
21 Steps to Better Networking

Thanks so much to all of you for the feedback. I really appreciate it.

@Tess Great point about the footer. I did actually have testimonials cycling there as well, but after the WP update (Billie) a lot of things broke on the site that I have to go back into. D: And your point about the services page makes total sense and I'll be looking into that as well. Basically everything you said I've taken into account.

@niftyadmin :O I had no idea about the LinkedIn link. Thank you for that.

For both Susankelly and niftyadmin, I think the slider is something that broke after the update too. I'll be going in to see how I can fix that this week.

As for the pages loading slowly, that's upsetting, so I'll be looking into optimizing it a bit more and see what happens.

Once again, thank you guys for all your input.

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Aiyana H.

Hello Aiyana,

You have some great feedback here.

I am on the fence about 'Drowining in your work' - 'Try a Virtual Assistant'. I think it is the word 'try'. It sounds so temporary to me. It gives me the impression of 'trying' something such as a new food or trying on something for size.

I'd rather that word be something more permanent to imply that working with you is an ongoing partnership. A word like 'Work With' , or 'Strategize With' or 'Partner With' sounds like a business deal ready to happen instead of suggesting to the potential client that they try something that they may or may not like.

Sorry if that sounds weird but that was my first impression.

I also couldn't find the scroll bar with the site. I use Chrome. The only way I could scroll was with my down arrow key so I am not sure if that was me or your site.

Finally, this might be a matter of opinion but I like to see on the page, above the fold, a spot where the client can see themselves. As you have it in 'Services' at the bottom, one has to click to see your services. Why not eliminate the FAQ box and the Contact Box and separate out your services in those boxes so people can click immediately on the categories of services you offer? Move these boxes up so when they come to your site they don't have to scroll down to see where they fit in your business. So when they click on the Administration box that takes them right to a blurb about your services and the solutions you provide in that area.

One last thing I suggest when you have the site together is to create an email sign up list and post that above the fold so people can leave their email address when they visit you. This way you can still catch the tire kickers and nurse those leads through email marketing. Think about offering a free download for an email address.

I think you have done a great job overall. I applaud your work and coming here and asking for opinions.

Best to you.

Janine

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