Review Requested

[nbrown]

I have been working on my site for a year now and am still not happy with the way it is performing.
Please can it be reviewed and advice given to me on how to increase the speed of the pages.
I would also welcome any constructive criticism which will help me improve the appearance of the website.

www.stovedepot.co.uk

Many Thanks

[Vasili]

Re: Review Requested

It is not about "speed" .... that is a variable that you cannot control, due to the connection type and quality of Visitors themselves: since I have superior connection, I am unable to spy any "speed" issues whatsoever. It is always about traffic and the quality that is being generated and the degree to which you have prepared to engage and convert.

[nbrown]

Re: Review Requested

Hello Vasili

Your comment on the website performance (speed wise) is noted and appreciated.
Do you have any thoughts on the website itself? in particular where presentation and navigation is concerned. I would like an opinion on areas where I could improve the site.

Many Thanks

[Thumpmonkey]

Re: Review Requested

I would probably increase the font size of the copy and maybe double space between paragraphs to make it easier to follow... other than that it looks pretty good.

[nbrown]

Re: Review Requested

I have now altered the text and it looks a lot better.

Thanks for your input

[Carleea]

Re: Review Requested

I'm no expert builder but when I looked at your site it loaded very quickly on my laptop - almost instant, no image delay - and I was immediatley impressed by the look and layout and, more importantly, the products looked great.

C

[AmaDee]

Re: Review Requested

Ok, I think I see what you mean by navigation. You have a great site so far, but it could be better. You have a lot of inventory that you want to have on your site and sometimes that can be overwhelming when you are trying to design. Here are some suggestions:

Have a consistent header and footer throughout the website. Categorize your inventory and have those as your headings on your header and your footer. Example, Stoves, Pipes, Chimney Cowls, Contact Us, etc. On the individual pages, for ex the Stoves page, you can have a sub menu (like the one you currently have to the left of your pages) to break down the different types of stoves that you have. The go menu that you currently have throughout the site is not really working for me. It works on the home page but everywhere else, the placement seems a bit off.

Likewise on the Contact Us page, your sub menu will have Customer Service info, Testimonials or Reviews, things of that nature.

I don't know how you design, but when I do, I design a page called header and a page called footer and link those pages to the rest of my pages using an iFrame. That way, if I want to make a change on an item in my header I do not have to work on each and every page on my site. You can do the same for your different sub menus.

I like what you've done so far with the layout and feel of the site. I hope I didn't confuse you too much. Feel free to ask if you need more detail or further explanation of any of my suggestions.

Happy designing. You've put a lot of work into your site and it shows!

[Vasili]

Re: Review Requested

I don't know how you design, but when I do, I design a page called header and a page called footer and link those pages to the rest of my pages using an iFrame. That way, if I want to make a change on an item in my header I do not have to work on each and every page on my site. You can do the same for your different sub menus.

Using an iFrame for global navigation will lead to many problems with today's newer browsers, and for the last 5 years it has been preferred to instead use the 'PHP Include' method as it has proven more stable, more efficient, does not have the same Parent Page navigation issues as iFrames do, is more "Search Engine Friendly," and simply easier to manage overall.

To create a global Menu that is fully functional with respect to Navigation, you need to create it as a 'PHP Include' as simply described in the easy to implement method especially created for BlueVoda created webpages > "Single Menu Page with Bv and PHP"

However, if you would rather use an iFrame Menu despite the potential issues, you will find the method outlined HERE.

[nbrown]

Re: Review Requested

Many thanks ALL for your input, and I will take on board your advice and make changes to the site.

Cheers

[Vasili]

Re: Review Requested

Hello Vasili
Do you have any thoughts on the website itself? in particular where presentation and navigation is concerned. I would like an opinion on areas where I could improve the site.
Many Thanks

Now that navigation was discussed, the one thing that stands out in my mind is the suggestion that you increase the font size of your Content to make the pages more legible and flow better. Making the font slightly larger will not affect the space required as much as you might think, for by doing so, you eliminate the need to make text bold (which also decreases space required) as it makes things more legible.

If, for instance, your font is at size 9 and bold, I suggest you increase it to size 10 (standard web size, and default for most User systems) and set it to regular.

[nbrown]

Re: Review Requested

Thanks Vasili I will change the font size as recommended, if you notice anything else I would appreciate your advice.

Cheers