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Drive-By-Shooting Sundays: The Writer’s Manifesto
He killed the engine and silence filled the air, marked only by the sharp tick of a cooling motor. The streets were quiet, the arid evening air still and undisturbed.
“Last week’s hit went too smoothly,” James remarked calmly, gazing at today’s victim. She was oblivious of the observation, unknowing that every inch of her appearance was being raked over by expert eyes.
“Ain’t always that way.” Harry gave the sights of the M1D a last polish before tucking the cloth in the glove compartment. “You going to sit there all day?”
“Nope.” James cocked the Glock confidently. “Let’s do it.”
Today’s drive-by consult is for The Writer’s Manifesto, the blog of freelance writer Monika Mundell. Here’s a glance at what was live before the hit:
(click image to enlarge)
The first impression is blue – a lot of blue. The solid blue banner punctuated with bright orange blocks overpowers the blog and makes it appear garish. Readers might click away without looking further.
Reduce the banner height and the size of the font used in the title text to be more appealing and subtle. Change the orange icon for a white page. A better color scheme overall could be shades of slightly darker blue to reflect more professionalism. Use the orange as a subtle accent color or, alternatively, try a deep red.
The photo’s a nice touch, but it should be right aligned and the background color changed to a more flattering one. Alternatively, have the photo and bio on the About Us page.
The search bar in the navigation blends in far too much with the background and is nearly invisible. Navigation itself seems clear, however, there is more navigation down on the right sidebar. Move this and integrate it with the main navigation.
Consider separating the About and the Contact pages, as they are for two separate goals. The sitemap page could be replaced with an archives page to help keep readers on the site. “Web home” is a title that has little relevance to visitors, so maybe rename it “main website”.
The sections of text links below the navigation lack underlines and appear as blocks of readable text. Since the mind is trying to read as whole and not individual lines, the goal of having readers click through to the posts is lost. Use the underline feature for links for better user-friendliness.
Also, having these text links at the top of the page may distract a reader from enjoying the latest post. Where should the reader go first? Guide the reader through the site by featuring what you want the person to do in logical succession. It might be a good idea to put the text links at the bottom of the page instead.
The Recent Comments section colors clash with the blue of the theme. Consistency is important, so change the colors to match the overall theme better.
The What Others are Saying section is a nice gesture, but it also drives traffic away from your site – not good, that. The links displayed are irrelevant to the current post and simply fill up space. We suggest removing this.
The RSS logo floats on its own in the middle. We’d move this to the right side so that it doesn’t distract the reader from reading the main post. Also the right corner is a more web-consistent location for RSS buttons.
The RSS icons seem to have two alignments going on – the big feed button is left aligned and the smaller email subscription and RSS are right aligned.
Below the RSS button is a duplicate RSS icon and a duplicate email icon. These could be removed to save space and reduce clutter.
The advertising banners are way, way below the fold. Move these up higher to attract both advertisers and click-throughs.
The free report opt-in report should be visible above the fold as well, with compelling, benefit-rich wording to encourage opting in. Why should we download this report? What will it do for us?
The “Skype Me” section is a cool idea and potential money-maker, so bring this up to a more visible location as well or remove it completely to save space.
The Job Ad widget, the Rank widget and the MyBlogLog widget add nothing to the blog and don’t really give value for reader, so remove them and save the space. Reduce the clutter.
You have great writing, so don’t distract the eye with a whole bunch of visual assault. Reduce some of the clutter of widgets that don’t add value to your blog. Clean up your navigation and consider reducing the amount of categories that you have as well.
Move the RSS over to where people are accustomed to seeing it, move your free report opt-in up, and bring your advertising column up as well. You may want to have advertising banners for different services, not like ones.
Move the photo to the About Us page with a background more flattering to your complexion.
Move your latest post content up more on the page so it takes center stage. Consider putting recent post links in the sidebar or below the most recent post.
Our strong recommendation would be to start over from scratch with a brand-new theme that has a more professional color scheme, a more appealing banner and a layout that is more user-friendly for visitor expectations. It would involve less time than completely reorganizing the layout that you have for a more effective, navigable and user-friendly site.
“That was messy.” Harry had a grim look on his face as he walked swiftly back to the car. There’d been a struggle, and he hoped no one had seen the hit go down.
James didn’t look any happier. “It’s a dirty job. Someone had to do it.” He grabbed the door handle, yanked it open and slid into the driver’s seat. “Besides… Isn’t a little nip and tuck half the fun?”
Harry arched an eyebrow. “What’s the other half?”
James grinned. “Getting to see the results of the makeover.”
If you’re ready to order your free hit, reserve your drive-by consult in the comment section and we’ll schedule it onto our waiting list. Come on. You know you want to.
Can’t wait? Move to the head of the line for dirty deeds done dirt cheap. Contact us for the fastest, simplest consult on the ‘net and get your drive-by today.
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Good one you guys. I’m adding you to my little update list on where to go for great blog construction tips.
Incidentally, HARRY, I did try and get a hold of you to help me with my blog via the contact sheet. What happened? I needed YOU!
Ellen Wilson’s last blog post..The Birds Are Singing!
@ Ellen – Spam filters? The info contact form usually *never* hits spam, though… info at menwithpens dot ca
@Ellen: Usually if you don’t get a response within an hour, the email was intercepted by spam. I’ll go check the folders and see if it’s there. If not, go ahead and send me an email: harry at menwithpens dot ca.
It must have been eaten by the spam monster; it was a few weeks ago. But from now on I will directly email you. I don’t need any help right this second, but I probably will in the future. Thanks. E
Ellen Wilson’s last blog post..The Birds Are Singing!
Hey guys,
If you are looking for more fodder, I’d love to get a drive-by. I like what I have so far, but I’m always open to objective (and brutal) feedback.
I’ll start boarding up the windows…
~Graham
Graham Strong’s last blog post..Part II: How to Get Yourself Off Email Blacklists
@ Graham – You can run. But you can’t hide. Consider yourself on the list.
*tips down the shades* We’re comin’ for you, bro.
@ James & Harry – nice review. I always enjoy seeing how people review websites and I review plenty myself in help forums.
Not sure if you guys like commentators to take part in the drive-by but when I saw the post I quickly hopped in my car and bolted for the seen of the crime.
I clicked over to Monika’s site, took a look and scribbled a few notes, then came back here to read the review.
Here are a few things I noted:
- there is a lot of “stuff” on this site. Maybe consider a 3-column template similar to Copyblogger to separate ads on one side and site links on the other.
- I didn’t even realize until after I read this post that the bold black text near the top were links. Those links should be consistent with other links on the page.
- “Web Home” didn’t speak much to me, like you mentioned. For my forum the main site’s link says, “eVentureBiz Home Page.” I think that’s more clear.
- Way too many categories, like you said, and they should be moved to the top (or near). As a site visitor looking to see what’s in it for me on your site, I’d rather see your categories than who the recent commentators are. Recent commentators tells me nothing about why here, why now, why you, and why this.
- I didn’t even notice there was a search bar until I read this post. I’d suggest making the entire horizontal menu a different color which “pops,” and doesn’t blend.
- In my opinion, no visitor should ever see a page written for our pal the Googlebot. That is a wasted menu link. A sitemap is good for both people and search engines. I created a sitemap which has no link for my readers to view it and then created a sitemap that is usable for my readers. If you’re interested Monika, I can send you the link for the sitemap wordpress plugin I used for visitors.
- I use FireFox. In the far right column there’s a table that says, “What Others Are” and then I can see there’s another word but it doesn’t show. The blue tab is not thick enough to see the second line where that word is.
- The subscribe to RSS is way too big. If it can be shortened (or moved like you said), then the Free Ebook subscription can be in initial landing page view, which is ideal.
Hope the second drive-by is ok to do here. Monika, I have to agree with these guys in that it would probably be a little easier to go with a new template. Personally, I like blog templates that match the main website, but that’s just me.
John Hoff’s last blog post..Budgeting 101: A Smart Plan That Keeps You Safe & Allows For Wealth Building
@ John – It seems you see exactly what we see (which is a little confusing; I thought you had different points to bring up?). Good to know that we have like minds!
Oops! Sorry. Apparently I just typed out what was on my paper. That wasn’t my intention. Hello!
But you know, had I known I was gonna do that I just would of copied and pasted your post into my comment section. hehe.
John Hoff’s last blog post..Budgeting 101: A Smart Plan That Keeps You Safe & Allows For Wealth Building
After licking my wounds and getting patched up in hospital I’m back with a vengeance. Hehehe….I have to say that taking a hit from you guys is damn hard work and the drive by didn’t go down as expected.
Wearing a full bullet proof vest also didn’t help to protect me against the assault. Sniff. I tell you, those bullets bloody hurt too.
However, I totally see were you are coming from. Perhaps I got a bit too settled with my navigation and got slack. I also noticed some of these things lately and was wondering how to approach this best. I did however also love my colors. Damn, it looks I’m the only one though.
Do you guys offer a returning client reduction. LOL
*she knocks on Harry’s door and screams “where are you buddy? I am bleeding here*
@ John: I appreciate your input since it doubles up what the mob was saying. It is always good to get honest input since up until now I got nothing but compliments.
I rather prefer a good hammering so that I can better my blog. Cheers!
Monika Mundell’s last blog post..25,000 Words And A Week In A Freelance Writer’s Life
@Monika: Did I hear someone call for a medic? Hush now, everything’s gonna be alright *gives her a shot of morphine, and tears open a package of bandages with his teeth* Good ol’ Harry will have you patched up and back on the front lines in no time.
*blinks… jaw falls open…*
Dude. The women are going to your head. I’M the schmoozer here. Behind the scenes, remember? BEHIND THE SCENES!
Sheesh.
@ Monika – To be very, very honest, we were twisted up in knots about posting this one. It took me days to hit publish. But we did because 1) you’re better than this and needed to hear it and 2) there are way more f-ugly blogs out there that need to hear it worse than you do, hon. You’ll make the world a better place by being a heroic role model.
Plus, it’s a grand sign of your bravery that you recovered from the… mm… mild accident. And share the morphine, please.
Wha?? I’m just doing my job, couldn’t just leave her bleeding on my doorstep, could I?
*packs up his first aide kit muttering under his breath: Fine, I’ll just go back to wrestling with web pages…women going to my head…not likely…just being a nice guy and all…*
Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain…
@ Monika – you should have seen my first version of my website. I created it all from scratch myself, no template. I spent days, no weeks, designing it and spent countless hours with a cup of coffee and Fireworks (my graphics program).
All my family and friends loved it. I was so happy. Like I mentioned before I surf a few forums and review websites, now was the time for mine. With my chin up and pride running on overdrive I confidently submitted my site for review.
The first few people with little web design and marketing experience all loved it, then the flood came in. “It’s ugly. It’s boring. The colors make it look like Halloween . . . ”
Yeah, talking about crushing. I then realized that even though I know how to design websites and fiddle around with graphics, I’m not an expert. So I found a template with good bones and to this day I’m still messin’ with it.
Hope Harry patched ya up good!
John Hoff’s last blog post..Budgeting 101: A Smart Plan That Keeps You Safe & Allows For Wealth Building
@ John – Ah, the syndrome of “too close to our work.” It’s very easy to pick apart someone else’s site and see the problems. It’s quite another thing to look at our own work and do the same.
@ Harry: ahh, thanks for the patch. I needed that, it works wonders for my ego.
*she hands over some morphine to James* “there you go my friend, I’m fully recovered now. Back to work”
@ James: LOL, it was funny you hesitated to hit publish. I’m glad you did, even though I took a huge knock, but hey. I do have big shoulders so no hard feelings at all.
Thanks for the nice words. I’m trying anyway.
@ the mob: I will be in touch lads. Please give me a few days to mull over what I want exactly and then we can get this baby rolling.
@ John: thanks, I know exactly what you mean. It took me ages to get this design how I wanted it and like it was for you, I got nothing but praise everywhere I looked. I even had people asking me whether they can have it too. Oh my….I guess they can now.
Since I have no opposition to growing, this drive by came at a good time and I’m already excited about my new theme. (Even though I have no idea yet which way I want to go). Plus I guess I have to stick with my portfolio site make over. That one is of such high quality that it let my blog down now. Hahaha….. serves me right for getting the best to do the job,
Monika Mundell’s last blog post..25,000 Words And A Week In A Freelance Writer’s Life
@ James – Exactly. Knowing and doing, two different things.
John Hoff’s last blog post..Budgeting 101: A Smart Plan That Keeps You Safe & Allows For Wealth Building
I only discovered you guys this morning. First comment.
Ewwwwwwwwww, you are brutal. But every post I look at seems like a party, although Monika seemed like she started with the hangover & then everything got better.
Queensland, BTW. Getting into winter, have to wear a shirt to work soon. Maybe even shoes, if I can find ‘em.
Mark Dowling’s last blog post..Welcome Sunshine Coast Daily Readers!
@ Mark – Glad to have you here, and this thing about shoes and shirts optional makes me want to cry, considering our 10 foot snowbanks have only melted down to about 7.
And we love Monika, no worries. But we tell it like it is.
@ Mark: LOL, a fellow Queenslander. Great to see you here. Yes, I have recovered and now I’m busy scheming my new look.
Monika Mundell’s last blog post..Creating BANS Clone Sites The Easy Way