Hi all,

 

I have been developing Andysweb for sometime and am gradually making it more standards compliment and make it more of a business website.

 

There are a few 'holes', essentially in the SEO department I think??

 

So, I would appreciate any constructive comments.

 

Oh, do read my geeky blog I know we are all Geek's at heart!

 

Thank you in advance.

 

Andy

You do have a few SEO holes. Here are some things to look at:

 

-It is harder for spiders to crawl table-based designs - try CSS/HTML

-Your links are one big image - try a CSS-styled list layout

-URL names should be descriptive and use keywords - try "web-design-london.html" instead of "web.html"

-Your header tags do not use keywords effectively

-Copy editing is your friend ("Andys Web" should be "Andy's Web", among other things)

Expat beat me to it!

You do have a few SEO holes. Here are some things to look at:

 

 

 

-It is harder for spiders to crawl table-based designs - try CSS/HTML

-Your links are one big image - try a CSS-styled list layout

-URL names should be descriptive and use keywords - try "web-design-london.html" instead of "web.html"

-Your header tags do not use keywords effectively

-Copy editing is your friend ("Andys Web" should be "Andy's Web", among other things)

 

 

 

Hi, Thank you for the suggestions. It is very good of you to have a look and put forward your helpful suggestions.

 

I have used Div tags instead of tables where I could but will have a review to find any more of the pesky blighter's!

 

For the side menu, would separate image based buttons be effective instead of using image maps. I want to be able to retain the 'smooth font' effect I have from using an image for the button?

 

 

The entire Andys Web, apostrophe issue is a nightmare, i have been plagued by this! So you think I should use the apostrophe where possible - ie in text and when I can't I can't.. I was justify the absence of it as I was thinking this is the companies name 'Andys Web'. As opposed to saying Andy's Web.

 

Thank you again to you all

 

Hi, Thank you for the suggestions. It is very good of you to have a look and put forward your helpful suggestions.

 

I have used Div tags instead of tables where I could but will have a review to find any more of the pesky blighter's!

 

For the side menu, would separate image based buttons be effective instead of using image maps. I want to be able to retain the 'smooth font' effect I have from using an image for the button?

The entire Andys Web, apostrophe issue is a nightmare, i have been plagued by this! So you think I should use the apostrophe where possible - ie in text and when I can't I can't.. I was justify the absence of it as I was thinking this is the companies name 'Andys Web'. As opposed to saying Andy's Web.

 

Thank you again to you all

 

 

 

Not trying to be harsh. It's reminds me of a Myspace page. I don't think that's what your going for. When your in this business you need to make your page the best site you've ever made because if a client sees your site and it looks like a myspace page they might not like that style and go somewhere else. It seems as though you've got a general idea of design and layout but I'd do some more reading on CSS/XHTML and get away from tables. It might be hard for you to learn it but it will pay off and will make your life easier in the future. I has made my life so much easier. I won't go near tables anymore.

For the side menu, would separate image based buttons be effective instead of using image maps. I want to be able to retain the 'smooth font' effect I have from using an image for the button?

 

If you have to use images for the menu, yes, separate is better. Make sure to specific the button names with the "alt" tag.

 

Still, CSS buttons would be better.

 

The entire Andys Web, apostrophe issue is a nightmare, i have been plagued by this! So you think I should use the apostrophe where possible - ie in text and when I can't I can't.. I was justify the absence of it as I was thinking this is the companies name 'Andys Web'. As opposed to saying Andy's Web.

 

Andy's Web is grammatically correct. Despite what corporations like Woolworths want you to believe , an apostrophe is always necessary with possessives, either obvious (Sharon's dog) or implied (Woolworth's... store). Andys Web is not correct and shouldn't be used at all, regardless of whether it's a company name. *Removes English geek hat*

 

That being said, you should be consistent with your usage... either consistently wrong or consistently correct. Using both makes "Andys Web" look like a typo.

Andy's Web

 

I think your sie design is nice and simple, and I dont know where Goldstein got the idea of a myspace page lol it looks nothing like it, and to be honest your looks a damn site better than his

 

As other suggested, change the menu... I would get rid of images ocmpletley, you wont lose much "smoothness" using text and CSS, and I would suggest you added an effect on hover so it is more clearly a link

 

The only other issues are:

 

I feel the bookmark button looks out of place, may just be the colour... could you not add this to the footer?

 

also is there anything you could add to your left column under the menu, so there isnt a huge gap.... maybe your latest projects or a couple of testomonials?

Just from a copy point of view. There are a couple of things I would look at.

 

Firstly, the copy seems overly fragmented and, although short and sharp is generally good, you do need to ensure some kind of flow. It's like having an overly busy design - the reader cannot settle into anything and is less likely to follow you through to a response. Try replacing some of the bulleted text with short paragraphs (I know that sounds like it goes against copy writing advice - but trust me!).

 

Secondly, there's some random capitals going on... e.g:

 

 

 

Custom Web Design and Web Development

 

- We don't use Jargon!

 

- This is ‘Your Website’, Your Needs Matter!

 

- For large websites and eCommerce, your site is hosted on 1 & 1 hosting who are the World No. 1 Web Host

 

A New Website is an effective way of expressing yourself and your Business.

Again, thank you for all of your useful and constructive comments.

 

I shall be implementing alot of changes asap..

 

Thank you again.

 

Andy

Aww, you added the apostrophe! That warms my lil English geek heart.

Try using gif instead of jpeg, it has ugly artifacts

Aww, you added the apostrophe! That warms my lil English geek heart.

 

 

Yes, you right it looks so much better now..

 

Andy