I've worked at perfecting my website by making many changes of late. I would love to tap into some of the expertise on here. In short, the site is not well listed on Google at the moment.. most traffic comes from adwords. Any SEO advice would be appreciated.. also, and even more importantly, my sales conversion rate is not what I want it to be. I'm looking for some brutal honesty.. what turns you on/off initially? Is the art well displayed? etc..

site: www.InuitArtPod.com

Thank you very-much!

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phil@inuitartpod.com

www.InuitArtPod.com
Authentic Soapstone Inuit Art Shipped Worldwide from Ottawa, Canada

www.HammockUniverse.com
Hammocks, hammock stands, chairs & accessories

There's too much to take in at once. It's all very clutered. Try to think about the order you want a visitor to recieve information.

For instance, it seems to me that the key thing is for them to like the products, so the products should take up most of the page. You then want to make sure that anyone interested in making a purchase can easily see prices and how to buy.

At the moment you make it too hard for them, and distracting them from the product with unnecessary information.

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www.GatewayLeeds.net
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Hi

Am going to focus on art since lots of others will feeback on search. Love the art but the presentation of them seems to take away from their activity. Its shame to put a bear in a frame, they should be free to roam.

Simple simple simple is what we have to get back to for your site.
1. Logo - nice igloo - try putting url under igloo in b&w instead of wrapping over it. Blue clashes with rest of site.
2. Layout
- Try and use 1 lead image about double the size you have now, but make sure you optimise the graphics for web so its not heavy to load.
- Use 2-3 secondary product images that you want to feature, all the other products go to product pages.
- Layout 50% main image, 30% secondary images, 20% shopping admin, currently its 80% admin and 20% images.
- Less focus on prices - people paying over US700 for something unique like this dont need discounts in their face - they love the product first - price should be less important
- feature the artist - we like to see who created it and have a face for them so we can see its for real
- Less fonts , less font colors - use 1 colour and 2 sizes only
- Colour scheme - more black, less olive green (dull color for web presentation sorry)
- frames for pictures - remove the frames give space to images and let them breath - make the bears feel more spacious - add a picture of canadian mountains or something to add context or real life bear
- product page layout - instead of 2 across have 1 across and larger images
- check images are optimised for web - they seem heavy to load

Thats enough from me before you get sick of my feedback, try looking at this http://www.timbuk2.com/tb2/retail/catalog.htm
site for layout ideas or read Jacob Neilsen. The guys use a nice big lead image across the page that shows the product being made - can you show soapstone being carved. notice the price is nowere in site yet.

The layout and copy is suited to discount toasters and knockoff Viagra - right down to the pseudo-monials (Alex M., Andrew D.).

The site creates coginitive dissonance which is destroying the value creation potential of the product.

Redesign the site with a layout suited to handcrafted arts. Add copywriting which builds the value to the $800-$1000 level ....or start looking at bigger markdowns in your future. Add more about the piece, have a little blurb about the artist. Better copy of adequate length gets better pagerank, and even links.

Check out The Franklin Mint -- including the details pages.

Check out j. peterman catalog. Check out Lotus White. Check out anybody doing value-added visual merchandising.

The techniques for creating visual merchandising -- a blend of smart business and smart design -- are almost nonexistent on the web. What we have is the equivalent of the open back end of a van. Great for selling knock-offs and tawdry cheap trash, but not for creating value.

The web design does not do the beautiful artwork justice. Your web site looks more like an inexpensive ecommerce site pushing the investment value over the beauty of the carvings. Put together a web site which features the art work more, with all the information on the pieces presented almost as an afterthought.

Regarding SEO: have you done any keyword research to find the best possbile keywords to use in your title and the rest of the page? The title is the most important text on the page for the search engines and should not be wasted on your domain name which is information the search engines can find elsewhere on your web site. You also need to build good quality inbound links to achieve high rankings for your selected keywords.

During travels to Alaska and Canada, my wife and I purchased similar works of art. When I glance at the pieces which are now displayed in my home, I appreciate their beauty and craftsmanship, and recollect the circumstances under which I acquired them. I lift them and reacquaint myself with their craftsmanship as I show them to friends. I never think about the price I paid.

When bought these items I held them in my hands, felt their smooth surfaces, hefted their weight, and imagined the actual animals in the wild. I read about the culture and heritage of the artisans and about the specific artist for that piece.

As a buyer I considered the beauty, craftsmanship, material, the animal and its pose, my emotional reaction to the piece. Price was a consideration only after I’d grown to appreciate the art, and then it well was down the list. I didn’t care about getting a bargain; I just didn’t want to get ripped off.

Your site cheapens the product by featuring price first and foremost. By posting discounted prices in large, red type, I immediately question the kind of business you are running. If you are really selling handmade, authentic art, then that should be what you feature. I don’t think I’m an atypical buyer. My considerations are your buyer’s considerations. Read your own testimonials. Are they talking about the great price they received? No, not one addresses price.

My wife and I have a graphic design and marketing business http://www.cowlesgraphicdesign.com When I interview clients they always want to talk about what they’re selling. I need to know that, but it’s more important for me as a copywriter and designer to know what their customers are buying. Your customers are buying more than a piece of soapstone. Put yourself in their place. Relate to what they’re buying and then you’ll know how to sell it to them.