My website

[FatJackSprat]

Link

I am not a programmer and I am certain that the code is a mess.
I also know that my use of images slows it down, but I can't spend too much time on it and when I tried that and it worked I just stuck with it.

It is mainly intended to let people know that I am alive and available. Is there anything about its structure or content that you would change? Also, I have a few popup windows with definitions - are they worth it or are they just a waste?

Thanks.

 

[Josh]

I'm too tired to type a lot so one thing i can tell you...change the background to white or another color. Grey is very dull and unpleasing to the eye.

 

[Appledrop]

*

 

[lobadobadingdong]

Originally posted by: Josh
I'm too tired to type a lot so one thing i can tell you...change the background to white or another color. Grey is very dull and unpleasing to the eye.

yea, that was my first caveat.

edit: I'd also set a color scheme for the whole site, it's far more professional than different colors on each page.

 

[FatJackSprat]

Thanks. I thought it would be different to give each topic a different color and I had trouble coming up with different colors. I'll try something else.

 

[skyking]

good first effort.
1) set a consistent color theme. the changing backround colors are annoying as he!!
2) figure a way to frame your photo. the edges are harsh looking.
3) unstack the real estate, wills and estates, and business law nav tabs. they look funky taller like that. you have plenty of width @1024 x 768. folks are designing for that as a minimum these days.

 

[rh71]

for your clientele / target audience, you don't have to make it complex. I'd stick with a uniform color for all pages and use cleaner/consistent fonts. Get a graphics guy to do a few simple images for your header images and the tabs and you'll be set.

The world reknowned K.I.S.S. method applies (keep it simple, stupid)

 

[mb]

Don't be afraid to use 12 point font, either.

 

[FatJackSprat]

I thought the changing colors would make my site memorable, but I don't want to be remembered because it is annoying. Any color preferences?

 

[skyking]

Site is too dark IMO, but note the one or two pixel frame around photo.
top logo, with white or some derivative below for nice text reading.
same deal, top logo and side nav frame with some funky blue text, but it is on white
reading on white is good, especially for old folks..............
a few hundred for a decent logo is well worth it, IMO
click here to kiss my grits. I hate splash pages and that top nav is too tiny. what not to do, IMO.

 

[mb]

Originally posted by: FatJackSprat
I thought the changing colors would make my site memorable, but I don't want to be remembered because it is annoying. Any color preferences?

Hot pink

Nah, white will do.

Larger font, too.

 

[FatJackSprat]

What should I expect to pay for someone to design a simple website for me?

 

[FatJackSprat]

Originally posted by: skyking
Site is too dark IMO, but note the one or two pixel frame around photo.
top logo, with white or some derivative below for nice text reading.
same deal, top logo and side nav frame with some funky blue text, but it is on white
reading on white is good, especially for old folks..............
a few hundred for a decent logo is well worth it, IMO
click here to kiss my grits. I hate splash pages and that top nav is too tiny. what not to do, IMO.

Thank you very much for these links, they are great examples.

 

[skyking]

i googled "tacoma lawyers" Ignore the referral links of major sites. look for real names in the urls.
A good logo is an excellent touch, it will make your site. You can handle the text and all.

 

[EstoyLoco]

wtf is up with all the damn 3rd person?

This is your site right? you run the practice right?
Make it personal, you put your name on the bottom as the webmaster, yet you wrote everything on the pages in 3rd person. I found it very annoying.

"His Real Estate practice includes"...
"As part of his Wills, Estates & Trusts practice, Attorney Nilson offers"...
"Attorney Nilson also provides legal representation"...
"He has a bachelor of science degree in Psychology "...

Oh also
I charged around $500 for this site
Around $1500 for this site

but I can't spend too much time on it and when I tried that and it worked I just stuck with it.

You may want to invest quite a bit of time as a good online presense can bring in alot of business. For example the photographer informed me that her business has more than tripled and the huge majority are due to customers accessing and contacting through her site. What she pays to maintain the site is a small fraction compared to local ads, newspapers, etc. etc. that she pays and yet the site is providing a better outcome.

Now a days being online is important, even if you dont sell anything direct online. Someone with internet access is going to use just that.
Not to mention if you can hand a possible client a business card with a website on it..
and he goes somewhere else and gets a card.
If you had a well designed site, and the other guy does not... Who do you think he will more likely go with?
It adds to the overall professionalism of your business. So what may seem trivial to you may be very important to someone, enough to accept or reject your services.

 

[KeyserSoze]

My main thing would be the layout of the text. I don't like it. It sorta looks like a school project, that required you to put an image with some text. Be a little creative, maybe place the text in smaller columns, and not running into the image? I dunno if that made sense.

But yeah, hope that was a little helpful.




KS

 

[FatJackSprat]

Originally posted by: EstoyLoco
wtf is up with all the damn 3rd person?

This is your site right? you run the practice right?
Make it personal, you put your name on the bottom as the webmaster, yet you wrote everything on the pages in 3rd person. I found it very annoying.

I can see what you're saying, however, I won't be telling clients that I made the site myself and would actually prefer that they don't know. My name at the bottom is merely a copyright, not a webmaster identification.

I like the photgrapher's site you created and I am surprised that it only cost $500. I would not hesitate to pay that much for a professional looking site.

 

[FatJackSprat]

Originally posted by: KeyserSoze
My main thing would be the layout of the text. I don't like it. It sorta looks like a school project, that required you to put an image with some text. Be a little creative, maybe place the text in smaller columns, and not running into the image? I dunno if that made sense.

But yeah, hope that was a little helpful.

KS

I don't know how to stop the text from coming up against the picture or how to make columns, but I am looking.

 

[EstoyLoco]

Anyways the prices I listed for the Photographer was a part of my University project so I didn't really charge too much for it. The charge was part of the guideline that my teacher had with his web company.

The other site, the owner is related to my wife, so I also charged very little for it.

I'm not really sure what the real world pro would charge.

 

[axelfox]

Sorry I can't give you any help and I don't mean to hijack your thread.

However, is there an abundance of practice guides for estate planning? I'm looking in that area (I'm studying for the Bar right now in CA).

Thanks.

 

[FatJackSprat]

Originally posted by: axelfox
Sorry I can't give you any help and I don't mean to hijack your thread.

However, is there an abundance of practice guides for estate planning? I'm looking in that area (I'm studying for the Bar right now in CA).

Thanks.

First: New and improved (I hope) my website. I tried to follow much of the input. I made a better logo and used uniform colors. I kept the background light grey because I think it's easier on the eyes. I am still adding content, but the format is complete. Any more suggestions will be appreciated.

You can find numerous practice guides for almost every area of law. An area like estate planning will have more information than you could use. Having so much available also means that some of it won't be helpful and much of it will be redundant.

Good luck with the bar.

 

[So]

typo:

His Real Estate practice includes advising clients interested in selling land and homes on their own, commonly known as ?For Sale By Owner? transactions, as well as buyers and sellers working with real estate agents. He also works with real estate investors interested in owning commercial and residential income producing properties. As a licensed Pennsylvania Title Insurance Agent, Attorney Nilson has reviewed hundreds of real estate title abstracts to determine the quality of ownership and discover title defects prior to transfer.

 

[FatJackSprat]

Got it. Thanks!

 

[skyking]

Originally posted by: FatJackSprat

Originally posted by: axelfox
Sorry I can't give you any help and I don't mean to hijack your thread.

However, is there an abundance of practice guides for estate planning? I'm looking in that area (I'm studying for the Bar right now in CA).

Thanks.

First: New and improved (I hope) my website. I tried to follow much of the input. I made a better logo and used uniform colors. I kept the background light grey because I think it's easier on the eyes. I am still adding content, but the format is complete. Any more suggestions will be appreciated.

You can find numerous practice guides for almost every area of law. An area like estate planning will have more information than you could use. Having so much available also means that some of it won't be helpful and much of it will be redundant.

Good luck with the bar.

Can you live with it now? It looks good to me, much better.

 

[FatJackSprat]

I like it much better than before and now that I see the new format, I realize how homemade the old one looked.

Thanks for taking the time to check it out.