Turning a bad website, into an acceptable (hopefully) one

[Mike4424]

I had the idea a couple months ago to sell cars for people. I am always buying and selling on Craigslist but I'm sick of the risk of using so much money, so I thought I could turn it into a service business. I thought this post would be helpful for me, and also show that you can scrap any idea and start over if you feel it just isn't good enough!

I'll show you the website that I used to have, and then the one I have now. PLEASE let me know of anything you feel that can be improved upon in the new version of the website. Ideas in general are EXTREMELY welcome here. Thanks!

Old website

New website

 

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[Mike4424]

By the way, I haven't optimized a mobile site for it yet, so it's really only meant for computers. In the process of trying to get a good mobile site up.

Oh and if you are feeling really kind, go through each page as if you were a buyer (without actually sending any emails I suppose) and see if there is any place you feel isn't good enough!

 

[MJ DeMarco]

1) I think the idea has some merit however in my experience, the hassle of selling a car on Craigslist was not photos, it was dealing with yah-hoos who waste your time, don't show up to appointments, and just general tire-kickers.

2) You need to do a better job at communicating your value proposition. It's there, but kinda flat. I liked the 1-2-3 approach of the earlier website.

3) Your header navigation menu is invisible with one of the darker background photos.

4) "Absolutely" is spelled wrong on your FAQ.

5) Overall I think an improvement, but IMO, it's still a 5/10. The prior site was a 2.

 

[Mike4424]

1) I think the idea has some merit however in my experience, the hassle of selling a car on Craigslist was not photos, it was dealing with yah-hoos who waste your time, don't show up to appointments, and just general tire-kickers.

2) You need to do a better job at communicating your value proposition. It's there, but kinda flat. I liked the 1-2-3 approach of the earlier website.

3) Your header navigation menu is invisible with one of the darker background photos.

4) "Absolutely" is spelled wrong on your FAQ.

5) Overall I think an improvement, but IMO, it's still a 5/10. The prior site was a 2.

Thanks for the response.
I am working on something that would could help people deal with the so called "yah-hoos" but it's hard to think of how to execute it. Also, what exactly do you mean by value proposition? Let the visitor know exactly what they'll be receiving? Or let them know the benefits of the service? Fixed absolutely* and am working on a better header as well.

 

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[D11FYY]

To be honest if you could have just upgraded site 1s attractablility with a nicer looking layout (not changing where things are positioned) and colour scheme it would have been better it is perfect in terms of getting the information of what you do across to the customer simple but effective.

On the newer website the font yeah is nice but its not easily readable something you have to consider. It is way spaced out and the photo of the Volvo is terrible. Your layout on the services page though is good just a colour scheme for your diffrent services would be good.

Also did i notice that you where charging 7% commision somewhere on your website. So that means if you get a $10k car you want $700 for your service?

I actually had this idea my self because when I had my garage I noticed alot of private sellers had really badly written adverts and photos to match. It sounds silly but taking photos of a clean car around noon in some nice angles it just entices the person to look at the ad.
And $100 for a valet im noticing the clean/wax/valet not sure what Americans call it but it is a bit pricey over in the US over in the UK you can get a car washed, waxed, window glaze, interior cleaned (not seats scrubbed), door checks, engine clean for between £35-60.

Best of luck with your venture , I hope my feedback helps

 

[Mike4424]

To be honest if you could have just upgraded site 1s attractablility with a nicer looking layout (not changing where things are positioned) and colour scheme it would have been better it is perfect in terms of getting the information of what you do across to the customer simple but effective.

On the newer website the font yeah is nice but its not easily readable something you have to consider. It is way spaced out and the photo of the Volvo is terrible. Your layout on the services page though is good just a colour scheme for your diffrent services would be good.

Also did i notice that you where charging 7% commision somewhere on your website. So that means if you get a $10k car you want $700 for your service?

I actually had this idea my self because when I had my garage I noticed alot of private sellers had really badly written adverts and photos to match. It sounds silly but taking photos of a clean car around noon in some nice angles it just entices the person to look at the ad.
And $100 for a valet im noticing the clean/wax/valet not sure what Americans call it but it is a bit pricey over in the US over in the UK you can get a car washed, waxed, window glaze, interior cleaned (not seats scrubbed), door checks, engine clean for between £35-60.

Best of luck with your venture , I hope my feedback helps

Thanks for the answer! The commission was only put in place when I would meet with the buyer and sell the car for them. I'm going to reqork the header a bit and make everything a bit easier to read too as well. Maybe reduce font sizes as well. Also the detailing is mobile detailing so I would come to them, there is a slight premium for that convenience, however it lines up with the details in the area being at least $100-$120. Again, thanks!

 

[Mike4424]

UPDATE: I have updated the photos, header, and aspects of some pages but I have to get to work now. Hopefully its easier on the eyes and isn;t bogged down by higher photo sizes.

 

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[ebtor]

Could you be more specific about the inquiry type? (Simple Post+)etc.. I have no idea what the plus would get me.

I should add~ If I didn't go any further than your homepage, I would have no idea.

 

[Mike4424]

Could you be more specific about the inquiry type? (Simple Post+)etc.. I have no idea what the plus would get me.

I should add~ If I didn't go any further than your homepage, I would have no idea.

I do go into detail and have a product comparison on the services page. There is also a learn more button by each service that clarifies exactly what each service will do.

 

[Ninjakid]

I would improve the font. It looks fugly.

Make your logo stand out a bit more.

I wouldn't put the logo and menu on the jQuery slider.

Change the title in the html header. Right now in my tab it just says 'motorhawkwi' which doesn't look professional and keeps making me question existence.

I don't know why, but I hate when I see the colour grey on a website. I automatically think "site that's gonna give me malware". At least your old page had colour.

Overall I think it looks to much like you just glued words to the page with the lack of character in the font. Adding some divs would make it stand out a little more. But I think it's an upgrade from your old site, which looked stuck in the 90s.

 

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[Mike4424]

I would improve the font. It looks fugly.

Make your logo stand out a bit more.

I wouldn't put the logo and menu on the jQuery slider.

Change the title in the html header. Right now in my tab it just says 'motorhawkwi' which doesn't look professional and keeps making me question existence.

I don't know why, but I hate when I see the colour grey on a website. I automatically think "site that's gonna give me malware". At least your old page had colour.

Overall I think it looks to much like you just glued words to the page with the lack of character in the font. Adding some divs would make it stand out a little more. But I think it's an upgrade from your old site, which looked stuck in the 90s.

Thanks for that advice. I'll work on the architecture and add some more divs. maybe turn the grey into something a bit more modern? I'll try a bluish grey tint.

 

[Silverhawk851]

From my experience,
You're above-the-fold is everything.
You need to communication exactly what is it that you do.

A good idea that I would do is take out all the stock images of the cars you have up, create a couple small info graphics and plug them into my slider.
Make it easy to understand.

Also, I always include a Call to Action above-the-fold and at the bottom also. Make it easy for them to sign up.

+1 to @MJ DeMarco , I would test the tire-kicker angle to convert higher. Copy can be improved.

My 2 cents, hope that helps

 

[miked_d]

New site is an improvement but needs more work.

1. The fonts reminded me of looking at Chinese site that don't render correctly.
2. This one may just be - Anyone else have feedback? Move "Collaborations with:" up so it appears above the fold? Even if smaller in size, seeing you work with these major players may instill confidence.

I am working on something that would could help people deal with the so called "yah-hoos" but it's hard to think of how to execute it.

This is the fastlane idea! Make it location independent.

 

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[Mike4424]

New site is an improvement but needs more work.

1. The fonts reminded me of looking at Chinese site that don't render correctly.
2. This one may just be - Anyone else have feedback? Move "Collaborations with:" up so it appears above the fold? Even if smaller in size, seeing you work with these major players may instill confidence.



This is the fastlane idea! Make it location independent.

I'll have to try and figure out how to make it more fast lane eventually! And good advice I think I'll do some rearranging to make it clearer assets ion as you get to the home page

 

[MayaMagpie]

I'm not fond of the green button, and the random red colour in the texts.
Also, the "Buying a car" link on the slider leads to no relevant information. To be honest, I would probably concentrate on the selling side of the business and make the steps clearer. As was said before, the old site had a cleaner approach.
I like the idea though!
Maybe an example or before/after story would be nice, so people can see how much better your ads are in comparison to theirs.