Finally started my website. Thoughts?

[theag]

If you sell 4 figure watches, your website shouldnt have a "free website" footer.

 

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[MJ DeMarco]

Another suggestion...

Build out your story. Be honest and authentic. In your "about" section you keep saying "WE"... your site's name is dubaiwatchguy... implying it's just YOU, not WE. Why not be honest and share your genuine story instead of putting up a front?

And dump the ads. You're selling luxury watches, not trying to generate 40 cents in daily revenue from G00gle adsense. Again, screams amateur and hobbyist, not someone serious.

 

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[RichyV]

A bit of feedback in regards to your email: Get a domain email ASAP eg. sales@dubaiwatchguy.com

@hotmail.com is very unprofessional, selling high end luxury goods you need to wreak of professionalism.

Good luck!

 

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[Karen]

Hey Sean, just had a look. Great work for two days! From a branding perspective if you aim for the luxury e-commerce sell I would suggest to focus your energy on creating a consistent premium frame throughout your page: name, layout, color coding, images, etc.

Some remarks & suggestions:
- Name: signals young brand, more discount type of offer
- Layout: If your not too hugely into webdesign I'd go for an ecommerce solution that offers layouts designed from guys that now how to translate the luxury feel through margins, typography and elements. You made the page with weebly right? If you do have the time in may I would choose a solution (eg Open Cart) that offers external high quality layouts.
- Color Coding: there are a couple of classic luxury type color combinations, check out one of those pages and copy (find them on https://www.thebestdesigns.com/)
- Images: agree with miked_d, high resolution, high detail..
or hire a freelancer and let them recreate a page like http://www.corum.ch/en ... btw awesome image examples for attention to detail.

Looking forward to your progress!

 

[mayana]

I won't repeat the other suggestions, but no one mentioned that a lot of the text is actually pretty much "copied" from other sources. I don't think you really need to have all of that description about Rolex, anyway, but I would DEFINITELY reword it ASAP because it will kill your SEO (possibly even on local searches - someone else might be able to tell you for sure about this).

Did someone mention a sharper version of your logo? That was the first thing that I noticed. I also prefer the pictures that have a white background.

Since you do a lot of watch deals face-to-face, and you say that you plan to mostly sell local for now anyway, why not just take the shopping cart off, and have something like "Make an appointment for a viewing" or something like that, to make it feel more exclusive - at least until you get a really nice website done.

I don't think I would spend thousands of dollars on an item from that site, but I might make an appointment to buy it from you in person.

 

[AlterJoule]

nope

For someone who has built countless websites , diagnosed with ADD, coded for secret entities, blah blah blah....Your answer sucks.

He's asking for advice. If you have nothing of value to add, kindly move on.

 

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[Jacquesvh]

If you aren't very tech savvy with websites, I would suggest finding someone who has experience in E-Commerce to partner with you. Their share goes towards the marketing setup, branding outline, hosting etc and you do the supply, engagement and the rest of the administration to get it off the ground.

I wouldn't spend $10,000 on someone who hosts a Weebly site to be honest.
- You need a self-hosted platform
- Stronger brand presence that is uniform
- SSL certificate for your website to ensure safety for your buyer
- More products unless you're going for limited edition sales which could be an option
- Adding the Why people should buy from you, what are your current credentials etc.
- Secure Credit Card Checkout - Stripe integration

Those are just small things to start off on, not even mentioning terms and conditions, privacy policies, refund policy, incorporation, tax charges on sales etc.

One of the guys above made the statement of Starting an email list. It's fundamentally one of the most important things you have to do in e-commerce.

Pivoting idea could be to become a watch source for wealthy clients. I phone you, I need X watch and you find it for me.

Good luck mate!

 

[miked_d]

A few thoughts:

1. More pics for the watches.

2. Are the watch pics you have ones you took? The backgrounds are all different. It looks to me like they are pics you found on GIS.

3. Your name tells me you are one man show. Not sure if good or not.

4. The top of your home page is taken up by your logo and white space. Use less white space. Show more product above the fold.

5. Start an email list. Send alerts for new models.

 

[shangbang]

A few thoughts:

1. More pics for the watches.

2. Are the watch pics you have ones you took? The backgrounds are all different. It looks to me like they are pics you found on GIS.

3. Your name tells me you are one man show. Not sure if good or not.

4. The top of your home page is taken up by your logo and white space. Use less white space. Show more product above the fold.

5. Start an email list. Send alerts for new models.

I think this is spot on.

I would also like to add the typeface used in the content part of the site feels off should experiment with a few more. Should give off a feeling of trust and luxury.

On mobile you logo is no where to be seen and the typeface is different, at least iOS Safari it is.

Like others have said, your probably better off going with Wordpress for this, a possible eComm plugin http://www.woothemes.com/woocommerce/ is very good, themes an all.

Good luck!

 

[Ma Co]

Good work! I like the overall style: minimalistic, elegant and clean.

What can you optimize?

1. Sharp, high res logo is a must! I'd rather remove it and show the site name in plain font

2. Reduce a big part of the white space at the top (logo area) and

3. Remove the "Welcome to ..." text and ....

4. Replace it with your USP statement in a headline! Why should people buy from you? Why not close the page instantly and go to someone who is already a trusted watch vendor?

5. Built trust. For example:
- Show some testimonials
- Show a face: customers, staff, you, ...
- Add a contact phone number


Good stuff, keep on fine tuning!

 

[Ma Co]

Hi Sean,

How is your site going?

You might find this valuable:
"Main ingredients a small business website should have":

Basic but pretty descent info, in my opinion.

 

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[Sean Corroon]

Hi Guys,

I finally purchased my own domain to start selling online. I have quite a few ideas yet to come through which wont begin until I finish my final year of college as i just don't have the time right now! What do you guys think of my website? Ive only just set it up two days ago and haven't done much with it!

If you guys have any constructive on how to enhance it and make it look more professional I would be glad to see what you suggest! Its still in its beta stage and Im not going to upgrade it to a business account until I have the rest of my products ready to sell!

website: www.dubaiwatchguy.com

Regards,
Sean

 

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[Sean Corroon]

"Please browse are".......Typo?

Thanks ! sorted it !

 

[Sean Corroon]

A bit of feedback in regards to your email: Get a domain email ASAP eg. sales@dubaiwatchguy.com

@hotmail.com is very unprofessional, selling high end luxury goods you need to wreak of professionalism.

Good luck!

Thanks mate! Thats the first thing I was going to do as soon as I upgrade to my business account to start selling. It all costs, so therefore I would like to be earning money with the straps etc I will be selling on my ebay account and on the website to cover the costs of it!

 

[Ninjakid]

Actually I kinda like your site design. Clean, simple, not puking jQuery all over the place.

But from an eCommerce perspective, I think you need more than 5 watches to convince people to frequent your site.

 

[Jake]

Needs way more pictures. Depending on your primary market you may want to change that it's quoted in dollars or UAE Dirhams..or add a converter that auto converts pricing and lists them

I'd try to mimic the way user DAVIDSW on the rolex forums presents his watches / photos. go to the for sale section over there and he won't be hard to find. Up close quality photos from all angles. Nobody wants to purchase a used watch to find a giant scratch on it that was "mistakenly" left out of the photos.

They're luxury items. Present them as such and display the boxes / papers / tags / cards..don't just say you have them.

Best of luck from a fellow watch guy

 

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[David Wills]

I think that your website needs some powerful images as well. 'Get an impressive first impression' (maybe hire a professional for that).

Also, if you can somehow remove the weedy logo. If I am going to buy a watch that cost £4K through internet, I expect a top quality website.

Just as an ideas, impressive design for being a 2 days job.

Good luck mate

 

[Kingsta]

My cousin sells watches to football players here in England and I don't think they would be impressed by a website like that. A high end watch website should look professional and look like its had thousands of pounds spent on it.

Also you need to have a good media presence on like Instagram, FB, Twitter...Look at watchanish for example.

BillionaireClub is also another good shout but for these guys you need a larger collection. If you're interested in exploring this more feel free to contact me.

 

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[MikeRaymond]

From the off I feel you should either; Edit this code out - <div class="banner-wrap wsite-background wsite-custom-background"></div> or make the divider shorter? It adds a massive gap to your website that really isn't needed?

Also add a favicon to your website - Favicon Generator

I don't have any real experience with selling watches but what I would like to say is - I am a little sceptical about spending £150 online for a watch, never mind thousands.

 

[Winning]

Site is very clean and good for two days work. I would change the favicon to your logo, and like @miked_d said take up less whitespace and show more product on home page.

Off page improvements: Build a social following. Shows credibility, especially in an industry where you are selling high-end items. Customers want to see some sort of social/authority proof.

 

[Anthony Mathapo]

1. The appearance should be appetizing; image sliders and attractive imagery.
2. A fresh angle is also needed to draw attention to your site; make it a brand by having something like a blog, podcast or anything that extends your personal brand.
3. You should have a clear objective from the beginning on what you want to achieve with your site: competition is hectic.

 

[NaPal]

Don't let registering a domain and throwing up a website on Weebly give you a false sense of success. Leave that for once you start getting sales and then scale.

I've fallen too many times myself on this. yippy I have a domain! yippy I have a business name! yippy my website is up! damnit I have no sales.

With that being said.....I am currently using Weebly on one of my startups and my wife is building the site for me

P.S. its very easy to remove the Weebly branding in the footer.

 

[LateStarter]

I realize that it may be hard to hear all of the criticism and negative feedback about your site but just don't be discouraged.

This is all great feedback and intended to help you build your success! The people in this forum know their shit and this is gold that they've given to you for free!

Instead of your clients thinking these things and moving on, you're being told where the faults lie now and how to correct them before you ever have the chance to lose a customer!

You CAN do this! Make it happen!

Build, test, revise, test, ...repeat, repeat, repeat... and then after a hell of a lot of hard work, critiques and experience...go live.

THAT's the value of this forum.

 

[Ronnie]

Drop weebly, go with WordPress, it's free.

Buy a premium theme and set up a payment system. (you can literally find out how to create a WordPress site using Google and could have a site set up in a day)

Check this theme out

http://themeforest.net/item/the-luxury-darklight-responsive-wordpress-theme/9210438

 

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[Sean Corroon]

Wow the responses from some of you guys are fantastic ! I didn't expect such genuinely helpful decent answers.... As Latestarter stated this is exactly why I joined this forum to correct the mistakes before I even begin.
I have had 0 experience with setting up websites and had to google some of your suggestions to see what they are. I know it looks extremely amateur compared to others but I'am a complete amateur right now! Ive removed the weebly advertising at the bottom, made the logo larger and I wasn't able to add a favicon until I pay weebly for a package. From some of your suggestions I may leave using weebly but I'm not sure if I can still keep the .com domain?
I have written all the suggestions down and I will capatalise upon them once my finals are over in May. If anything doesn't become of this at least I will have gained a helpful insight into web developing and how to market myself better.
I thank you all for your great ideas time and suggestions!

 

[miked_d]

Keep working on it. Don't wait until May.

Your advertising as Dubai watch guy but you won't be back there until May. Defining your location is only good if you are actually there. Will you be going away for school again in the fall?

On mobile you logo is no where to be seen and the typeface is different, at least iOS Safari it is.

Mobile is important. Make it work.

I may leave using weebly but I'm not sure if I can still keep the .com domain?

The domain is registered in YOUR name (I checked). You own it.

 

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[Sean Corroon]

Keep working on it. Don't wait until May.

Your advertising as Dubai watch guy but you won't be back there until May. Defining your location is only good if you are actually there. Will you be going away for school again in the fall?



Mobile is important. Make it work.



The domain is registered in YOUR name (I checked). You own it.

Hi Mike thanks for your great input,

This is my final year in education abroad which is why I was going to just take a break and brush up on learning a bit about e commerce and web designing on the weekends. I will be back in Dubai at the start of May and will have plenty of time to get to grips with everything. My Dad was the one that introduced me to weebly as he does video editing and uploading etc!

I havent enabled a business account and therefore my website isnt actually functional yet as no one is able to buy anything. If you tried to purchase a watch I dont think it works! Weebly wants 20 dollars a month for fully intergrated e commerce etc with a contract for two years I think it is ! Being so busy in college I just find it hard to have much time to make it what it should be!
I have tried to make it look good on mobile (you should of seen it before) but im still learning how to work with weebly which I may change in the future.

 

[Sean Corroon]

I won't repeat the other suggestions, but no one mentioned that a lot of the text is actually pretty much "copied" from other sources. I don't think you really need to have all of that description about Rolex, anyway, but I would DEFINITELY reword it ASAP because it will kill your SEO (possibly even on local searches - someone else might be able to tell you for sure about this).

Did someone mention a sharper version of your logo? That was the first thing that I noticed. I also prefer the pictures that have a white background.

Since you do a lot of watch deals face-to-face, and you say that you plan to mostly sell local for now anyway, why not just take the shopping cart off, and have something like "Make an appointment for a viewing" or something like that, to make it feel more exclusive - at least until you get a really nice website done.

I don't think I would spend thousands of dollars on an item from that site, but I might make an appointment to buy it from you in person.

Great point! I will implement that now. Does anyone know how I may sharpen up my logo?
I have removed the hotmail address and implemented a contact form which looks much better !
You guys are seriously great help I think an hour here and there spent on small changes will make improve it immensely come May time.

 

[Mark Anthony Le]

Why should I buy from you and not from another more credible watch retailer?

Being a watchmaker myself, I'm very skeptical when purchasing watches online without verification of authenticity and credibility

 

[Sean Corroon]

Why should I buy from you and not from another more credible watch retailer?

Being a watchmaker myself, I'm very skeptical when purchasing watches online without verification of authenticity and credibility

I have been selling watches in Dubai face to face for quite some time now just as a hobby. Its a business as you would know that is built up by gaining credibility. This will come as time goes on and customers have experience with dealing with me. Building an online trusted customer base wont be easy but will assemble as time goes on.