Our new site went live today too.

[grampa dan]

Each year I take the time to take a close look at our website, refresh and redo as necessary.

In looking at the analytics we discovered few people were taking the time to look at more than a few of our old 80 page website. I liked the look and results of some of the blogs I was doing so we decided to make out web page look more like those. It's now only nine or ten pages long, but each page is long and is simply scrolled to view. Since the pictorial content is huge it loads in black and white first and then fills in with the higher rez pics. It's a different solution but one my web guy came up with and I think it works well.

I pruned out some old material, added some new stuff and reformatted it for the new look. I built the site in Photoshop, then gave it to my web guy to code and activate. He flipped the on switch today.

Take a look and let me know your thoughts.

www.imaginationcorporation.ca

-grampa dan

 

[Craig Sjoquist]

Just plain awesome .. well of course the work .. but the website is hugely better then before, it invites you to explore.. which is really the whole point in a website besides a online portfolio.
also it is loading well etc.

 

[Locals Find!]

I really really liked it. I actually explored every page. I love the way the pictures change color. Your eye is drawn by the black and white changing to color very cool.

I actually wasn't happy for my fast connection they loaded so fast it was a blink before they were color.

Makes me hate my own site even more.

 

[Deaton Design]

Love it Dan. Actually, the content is so cool, it wouldnt matter how you laid it out.

 

[surf city]

Dan,
It really draws you into the world that you are all about.

 

[GAC05]

Nice all around.
Didn't you guys take 1st place in the 2010 portfolio contest in one of the sign trade magazines?
Congrats on that and the new look of your site.

wayne k
guam usa

 

[TheSellOut]

Very nice Dan! I agree that you could display your work on a blank page and it would speak for itself, but the way you have it laid out is great and emphasizes it that much more!
I think the way it loads from b&w to color is neat and works very fast. And I like that it is only 10 pages loaded with inspiration and awe!

Nice work as always!

Happy Holidays!

 

[Dan Antonelli]

Better than your old site for sure Dan. Work of course, is always fabulous.

Biggest weak point remains very poor SEO, which is a shame because your desired search terms are very niche, and presumably, would be easier than most to get good organic rankings.

The logo placement, and then text to the left crashes almost to the tag line, and does appear to just be a little awkward where it's laying. AT first glance, I initially thought the darker blue bar behind it was a mistake or a break in a table (I see site is CSS built though).

I just wish the site had a little more of your personality, and was built around some type of theme, or the navigation was more wholly integrated. And I would love to see case studies based on specific projects (ie. for Theme Park X, we produce over Y signs, etc.) - and then have the ability to look through BIGGER photos of the work. It gives a more comprehensive vantage point of how you can do ALL the signs for theme park, etc.

 

[SignManiac]

Dan it works for me and even better, without the flash I can actually browse it on my iPad.

 

[RJ California]

Took a quick look around on my iPhone and it looks great and loads fast. I like that your work is the focus rather than splashy flashy stuff.

 

[Steve C.]

Dan it works for me and even better, without the flash I can actually browse it on my iPad.

I like it too! I may be old fashioned, But all the movement and flopping is just
fluff. I really prefer sites with out it. JMHO.

 

[grampa dan]

thanks.

I appreciate the kind words and the suggestions too.

While there is plenty of information on the new website I didn't want it to be too wordy. I understand about SEO but hate the obvious wording and repetitiveness I often see to achieve it. It often sounds fake in my view and obvious as to what the writer is trying to achieve. I wanted the site to be written in my own words and style.

So many sites are so businesslike they lose all personality in my opinion. I wanted our site to reflect our unique way of doing business. We are small town folks who still do business on a handshake.

Our previous site, though horrendously long worked well for us. It brought us work we needed and functioned as a virtual portfolio which was it's primary purpose. It's my hope that with the new format people will be actually able to get through the information this go around.

-grampa dan

 

[visual800]

COAST MOUNTAIN STEEL IS MY FAV! I dont know why it just sticks out, loves hte rust and everyhting!

 

[John L]

Dan, The site is fantastic. Very well done!

 

[shakey0818]

Great job Dan.Once again i found myself exploring your website for awhile and thought all the improvements were awesome.

 

[TheSellOut]

To touch on Dan's point about seeing "BIGGER" pictures. I had the same initial thought but now thinking about it, last night I went through your entire site and looked at every square inch. That is something that I likely would not have done if I could have been easily distracted by larger pop up windows of your work. Even without the larger photos you can tell the quality and imagination that you put into your work!

 

[Dan Antonelli]

I appreciate the kind words and the suggestions too.

While there is plenty of information on the new website I didn't want it to be too wordy. I understand about SEO but hate the obvious wording and repetitiveness I often see to achieve it. It often sounds fake in my view and obvious as to what the writer is trying to achieve. I wanted the site to be written in my own words and style.

That's all good Dan, but if no one finds the site, it really doesn't matter what it says. I'd rather they find the site, and then let the work speak for itself. Bear in mind, most people only read a fraction of the content on any site - they want to see the work more than read about the work.

 

[grampa dan]

What is good traffic on the web?

thanks for the kind words.

Dan Antonelli and I long bantered in regard to SEO optimization. His point about the clients needing to find me vs content will undoubtably continue.

The question is... what is considered good traffic? How many hits each month would be good? I'd love to hear Dan's view on this... What percentage of hits/enquiries against solid leads is reasonable? Answering calls and doing estimates takes valuable time.

Then there's the question... how bad do I want to get hits from someone who is surfing on the web....

The fact is most of our business comes from referrals or from someone seeing our previous work. The website is primarily a virtual portfolio for us. I wish it to be little more.

We are at a point where we keep plenty busy. I have no desire to expand our staff or operation. I would argue I don't need to be any busier. I only want to be there for the folks who let me do my thing at the price I need to make a good living . Weird business model perhaps - but it works for us.

Each business should have a website that suits it and each will be as different as the businesses themselves.

-grampa dan

 

[CheapVehicleWrap]

thanks for the kind words.

Dan Antonelli and I long bantered in regard to SEO optimization. His point about the clients needing to find me vs content will undoubtably continue.

The question is... what is considered good traffic? How many hits each month would be good? I'd love to hear Dan's view on this... What percentage of hits/enquiries against solid leads is reasonable? Answering calls and doing estimates takes valuable time.

Then there's the question... how bad do I want to get hits from someone who is surfing on the web....

The fact is most of our business comes from referrals or from someone seeing our previous work. The website is primarily a virtual portfolio for us. I wish it to be little more.

We are at a point where we keep plenty busy. I have no desire to expand our staff or operation. I would argue I don't need to be any busier. I only want to be there for the folks who let me do my thing at the price I need to make a good living . Weird business model perhaps - but it works for us.

Each business should have a website that suits it and each will be as different as the businesses themselves.

-grampa dan

Think quality.. or targeted traffic rather than quantity. One single targeted hit could change EVERYTHING about your business and lifestyle. BTW, great job on the work and site.

 

[SignManiac]

Think quality.. or targeted traffic rather than quantity. One single targeted hit could change EVERYTHING about your business and lifestyle. BTW, great job on the work and site.

I have to agree with this statement. At the moment, and for some time since I rebuilt my site, I could not handle any more leads generated by my website.

If I were to generate any more traffic to my site, I would not be able to take on the additional work without having to hire additional employees, which is exactly what I don't want to do.

In fact, I'm able to turn down a significant number of request and cherry pick the jobs that I want to do. So there is no benefit for me to improve me SEO over what I generate now.

I imagine if I were a new start up company I might be in need of heavy traffic, but since I have a large client base and have been established for a long time, my reputation has more to do with selling my work than a pretty website or number of hits it can get. But I do understand how important it is to get traffic to your site.