New Site Facelift

[Zacman]

Hey everyone,

I tend to be reluctant to ask for reviews here since I moderate this category, but I would like some feedback on the new header design I just gave one of my sites, as well as any other suggestions anyone wants to give.

Here's a page with my old design:

(right click and open in new tab for convenience )

A Page With Zac's Old Design

And here's my new design:

Zac's New Design

I've this site set up on a fluid width css driven template so the header image is actually two that expand and contract depending upon the visitors browser settings. It's why I keep a white or transparent background for the header images.

I tend to lean toward clean and crisp with my graphics as opposed to flashy and loud, but I am thinking of adding a shadow or mirror to one degree or another to the center banner in the header.

Whatcha think?

Thanks,
Zac
P.S. "The Paul Harvey" of IM came from #1 my love of Paul for decades, as well as my constant review of IM related programs, resources, etc. I've checked, no CR infringement.

[GT Bulmer]

Hi, Zac:

I like your new header. I think 'people' pictures always get attention, and adding your own photo makes excellent sense for branding purposes.

Here is something to consider, and this is more of a personal preference than a firm industry standard. How about moving your photo to the right side and the generic people graphic to the left? The reason I suggest this is because people are conditioned to read from left to right, so doing this would create a natural flow of their eyes: They see the generic photo that has no text; then the website title telling them what the site is about; and finally you, and your tag line, as the site founder.

Of course, chances are, when they land on the page they might look at your photo on the right first and then the header (newspapers will sometimes place photos on the right side of the right hand page to get readers' attention when they're flipping through the pages). If they do look at your photo first, they will then still glance at the generic photo, then the title, and back to your photo and tagline, which you want to impress on their minds.

That's just a thought and how I personally reason it out.

One other thing I noticed after taking a quick glance is your 'Copyright' dates at the bottom of the page. You could update that to 2011 or 2011-2012 or something like that.

I like the layout of your page and the kinds of offers you present. Nice and clean and easy to navigate. Good example of a great marketing site!

GT

[Evan]

Hey Zac, congrats on the new layout!

I don't know who Paul Harvey is but if it speaks to your audience that's great. I like the personal picture and the effects behind it. I thing your logo is also nicer than before.

Your stock picture is better than the two you had before but I'm wondering if you can't make it more personal and get rid of all stock photos completely?

Since you're the face of the page, the more you can make it personal to you, the better in my opinion.

Good luck, can't wait to see the next version!

[Zacman]

Thanks GT and Evan,

GT, I know what you mean about the left to right concept. I think I'm going to replace the far right image with a digit report I'm working on in the future. I'll make it clickable etc. Definitely some visual real estate I want to capitalize on.

Evan, the late Paul Harvey was a much beloved radio broadcaster here in the U.S. He was actually the pioneer of talk radio. Millions listened to his comments on nearly all AM radio stations for nearly 50 years. He also had a "rest of the story" comment on unusual happenings which aired every afternoon.

He always ended every broadcast with a pleasant, "Good Day!"

Although he wasn't generally political with his broadcasts, he most definitely paved the way for icons such as Rush Limbaugh etc.

One of the things I liked about Paul was he turned down 90%+ of potential sponsors only excepting clients who had products or services he felt he could genuinely give his stamp of approval.

It's that kind of integrity I want to display on my site. Only promoting products, services, and resources I genuinely believe will benefit my visitors.

I've even started ending some of my reviews with "Good Day!"

Thanks for the reviews guys.

Good Day!
Zac
P.S. I agree with getting rid of all stock photos. I hope the image of my digital report will solve that problem.

[GT Bulmer]

Hi, Zac:

You have a great handle on your planned site improvements. A great example for other entrepreneurs!

Although I wasn't much of a radio listener at the time Paul Harvey was most active, I am familiar with his voice and his style - especially his distinct "the rest of the story" feature. In certain circles, I know he was widely popular here in Canada as well.

GT

[Trent Brownrigg]

I actually like them both. Well done on both pages. However, I do think the new one is a bit better. Nothing stands out to me as needing changed or problematic. I'd maybe have one or two less SBI banners if it were me. You might have gone a little overboard on those but that's nothing major.

[Zacman]

Thanks Trent,

LOL, yeah I know, I was seeing which ones preformed better, but I think I'll just put them on a rotator displaying one at a time etc. I concentrate on my body content for the most part so I tend to neglect the bottom part of the left column particularly, bad habit...

I do get a bit over passionate about SBI since it is one of the main reasons I've enjoyed a degree of success online.

[Evan]

Hi Zac - love the story about Paul Harvey - I have heard some of the "the rest of the story" broadcasts but didn't know it was him and didn't know the story about the advertising.

You might want to make that link clickable and tell readers about Paul Harvey and why you're modeling his philosophy - if they don't know much about him you can still educate them and build trust and credibility with your audience.

[Zacman]

Evan,

That's a great idea. Might even put a link to it on the menu below "Zac's LInks" or my about us page.

Might even warrant doing a keyword optimized page on Paul specifically etc.

Thanks,
Zac

[Evan]

Happy to help - looking forward to the next version!