Newbee..Need your thoughts

[Linda's On-Line Advice]

Hi Everyone! I'm new to the forum and trying to get my On-line Therapy and Advice business underway. I'm a Licensed Clinical Social Worker trying to stay home with my kids but still stay involved in my career field. What better way to help people from home then through the use of the internet. I've created my own website but am interested in what other people's first impressions of it are. Is it confusing? Difficult to manuver? Too much info? Not enough? Colors not right? Any suggestions would be helpful. I would appreciate some constructive critisism on things you like about the site or things you would change. It's hard for me to critique myself and look at the site objectively. Thanks for your help! Visit me at www.lindasonlinetherapy.com

[thefitpet]

Hi Linda,

I am by no means a web site guru, but I will share my thoughts and I hope you find something that will help. I never thought of using the internet for counseling but I don't see why it wouldn't work. If I needed your service I would be more relaxed receiving counseling from the comfort of my home.

The site itself is very clean (uncluttered) and easy to navigate. I have built a couple of sites that were product oriented so I am used to having more images. In your case, I'm not sure if adding more images would help or not.
If possible, you may want to add text links at the bottom of every page linking to every other page.

You have used your keywords in the text of your Home Page, that's good, but I question the use of these 4 keywords and if they would be of benefit:

affordable, confidential, reliable, convenient

How are you promoting your site? Other than this forum. Are you using pay-per-click? Have you submitted to any of the directories?

Just some food for thought. Best of Luck!!!!

[captkirk]

Hi Linda,

Welcome to The Free Ad Forum.

Make yourself at home, read a few threads, and start a few of your own.

If you have any questions, concerns, or comments don't hesitate to let us know.

Again, Welcome Aboard! :)


Until Next Time, Stay Upbeat and Positive! :cool:

P.S. Lets Have Some Fun On Our Journey To Success! :D

[Linda's On-Line Advice]

Thank you "thefitpet". I appreciate you taking the time to look and respond. I have had some business coming in and the client feedback has been really positive but what I'm bringing in doesn't cover the pay-per-click fees I'm paying out. I know you need to put money out to get a business going but funds are low and I'm afraid to sink a lot of money into advertising and find I'm going in the wrong direction. I mean do you advertise in newspaper, magazine, local stuff, on the web, mail, etc. I'm just not knowledgeable enough to know what would work best and don't have the money to just try all kinds of different things. I do find many will Email me with a situation or problem and when I Email them back with information on how my services work, including the fees, they don't respond again. Does the fee seem to be clear on the site and people are just seeing if they can get something for free or have I not made the fees clear? I don't expect payment until I at least respond. I know people must be sceptical and want to make sure they get a response before they submit payment. What are some good ways to advertise without going bankrupt??

[captkirk]

rHi Linda,

I had the same situation with pay-per-click until I started using FREE advertising such as:

1. Free Classifieds
2. Traffic Exchanges
3. Advertising Forums
4. Forums
5. Safelist
6. Downline Builders
7. Ad Boards
8. Etc...

I would suggest that you join as many forums as you can and include your website in your "sig file" and List it as your "website" in your forum profile.

Exposure is the key! :)

[bestcoach4u]

First, let me thank you for joining the forum. You question and the responses you've gotten have been useful to me too.

I'm not a web designer but had done a lot of technical writing and created lots of forms. I love the idea of having your INTAKE Form on line. That's so much easier for all concerned. I also thought your fees were very reasonable.

I do have a couple of suggestions. Again, they are only suggestions so keep what you like and toss the rest.

1. Your home page with the font in read is difficult to read. "Red" isn't easy on the eyes and some men are color blind and can't see red. (Which doesn't mean they don't get angry. ;) )

2. You have lots of information in your paragraphs. I'd suggest you break the paragraphs into smaller sections so there is more white space on the screen. If too much text appears on a page, readers tend to skip over it because they think it will be too much work to read it.

3. You also might want to stick to a consistant color scheme so you'll create a professional and unified image. Having the first page red and the second blue doesn't add anything to your site except to show that you know how to change colors.

Hope this helps.

Wishing you success beyond your wildest dreams!