New Australian Business Directory

business-directory · #1 (**permalink**) 02-05-2008, 05:50 PM

Hello all,

we released our australian business directory a couple of months ago Australia Search Engine and Business Directory and we would appreciate any input you can provide on usability and design.

One of the problems we are having is that just about everyone is searching for businesses and don't bother to look for a product or service. If we move the products checkbox infront of the business checkbox, we get more people searching for products.

My guess is, its laziness, or people not understanding the difference between the 3.

We've been discussing to remove the checkboxes all together and then search all 3 areas and display the number of results, requiring the user to then select which one to view. But this would introduce another step/click.

Any help or ideas you can provide to make our search engine more useable would be much appreciated.

business-directory · #2 (**permalink**) 02-05-2008, 05:51 PM

Actually, I can provide a 6 months free Australia Search Engine and Business Directory business listing for the best top 2 replies.!

chowell · #3 (**permalink**) 02-05-2008, 06:24 PM

Good presentation and very clean.

The way the listings are setup, there's less SEO incentive to submit, but we're all targeting traffic anyway.

There was a security warning on the "Add your business" page, presumably for the Live chat and Hacker Safe logos.

For the Products section, you need to include photos of the products. There's no reason to even go there or buy anything if you can't see it.

davebarnes · #4 (**permalink**) 02-06-2008, 10:13 AM

I had a popup blocked.
Have no idea what it was. Don't care as I block them all.

business-directory · #5 (**permalink**) 02-06-2008, 04:12 PM

Dave, sorry to hear about your popup issue. Personally I think pop up blockers are a total waste. Pop ups are a part of the internet. Only if you frequent sites that are of low quality and of the xxx nature, you see popups all the time, and they become a nuisance, with quality and informational sites, pop ups are part of the site, and in this case you are stopping us from collecting valuable javascript error information.

Chowell, interesting comment, I'd love to hear more about the SEO incentive to submit. As we welcome any suggestions there from SEO experts.

I'll look into the security warning, I think its from the hacker safe logo.

In regards to photos for products, we're about providing information and believe all listings should have the equal chance, and only the content should be the decission factor for a user to visit the product on the clients website. Doing without the photos also leaves are site looking uniform.

Thanks, and looking forward getting some feedback on the SEO part.

James Bull · #6 (**permalink**) 02-06-2008, 07:51 PM

I've only looked a the home page and done a couple of quick searches, so this feedback is limited.

To answer to your original question about people selecting businesses, products or services: take on board all the feedback from here and anywhere else, do some mockups (either on paper or on screen), and test with some people who represent your target audience. Otherwise, you risk relying on assumtions and guesswork.

The solution might be to put the options into a drop-down list, or simply move the radio buttons closer together, or list them one under the other. Or something completely different.

I'd also look at how to make the "within ... km" field more obvious. I missed it the first time I searched businesses using keyword "website" in Postcode 6000. You can imagine what I thought when I saw that the first business on the list of results was 3287 km away in Cronulla.

When I searched business, WA, website, the response was Brookleigh Equestrian Estate...not a good result.

P.S. In case you're wondering why I searched on "website", I was wondering what web development companies I would find. Other keywords might get better results but the comments above still hold.

jencam · #7 (**permalink**) 02-07-2008, 02:56 AM

The design is fine. I didn't get any popups but I do use Firefox at all times.

I'm wondering how you will compete with sensis.com.au - The search engine for Australians.

I am currently looking for a builder to build an extension of a verandah, so I looked up services and typed in carpenter - no result.

I tried deck maker and I got everything with both deck and maker in it, but not what I wanted.

Have you got enough business, services to go with this yet? If not everyone will go back to white or yellow pages.

business-directory · #8 (**permalink**) 02-07-2008, 03:02 AM

Hello,

How are we going to compete? Easy, we are more specialized. We don't clutter results with ads. We work together with copywriters, SEO specialists and editors.. The site is user friendly. We listen to suggestions. We don't have Indians hassling you on the phone for money!

(no offense intended) but we all know what other directories phone you up about twice a week asking you to pay up, not quite in those words, but....

I think if you consider that we've only been going for a bit more than 2 months, you can understand that we don't have what you are looking for. It will take a while before we cover most bases.

I could go on...

business-directory · #9 (**permalink**) 02-07-2008, 03:58 AM

Hi James, thank for the feedback.

In regards to the search result, there are no relevant listing that you would expect in WA, there was only one listing with the keyword "website" in it. Search results — clickfind™

I think there is a lot people miss on the first go, and you can't really win in every area. People will eventually get used to the site and learn more and more. It only took you two or three goes before you the hang of it

PS. there are some web development companies, try browsing Businesses under Computers, IT and Internet / Web design and hosting

Quote:

Originally Posted by James Bull

I've only looked a the home page and done a couple of quick searches, so this feedback is limited.

To answer to your original question about people selecting businesses, products or services: take on board all the feedback from here and anywhere else, do some mockups (either on paper or on screen), and test with some people who represent your target audience. Otherwise, you risk relying on assumtions and guesswork.

The solution might be to put the options into a drop-down list, or simply move the radio buttons closer together, or list them one under the other. Or something completely different.

I'd also look at how to make the "within ... km" field more obvious. I missed it the first time I searched businesses using keyword "website" in Postcode 6000. You can imagine what I thought when I saw that the first business on the list of results was 3287 km away in Cronulla.

When I searched business, WA, website, the response was Brookleigh Equestrian Estate...not a good result.

P.S. In case you're wondering why I searched on "website", I was wondering what web development companies I would find. Other keywords might get better results but the comments above still hold.

James Bull · #10 (**permalink**) 02-07-2008, 04:24 AM

Your home page headline says "Search for a product, service or business in Australia"

OK, I appreciate this a new venture and you don't have all states and categories populated yet.

However...put yourself in the shoes of someone who's found your search engine. They search in WA (or wherever) and find no businesses listed. Instant frustration for them. Instant loss of credibility for clickfind because you don't have the national coverage your headline promises.

Quote:

It only took you two or three goes before you the hang of it

If I were an ordinary user looking for information, I wouldn't have persisted. The reason why I tried two or three times was because I wanted to write a comment here.

Here's a couple of suggestions:

If there's a state without a listing, omit it from the state checkboxes, or grey it out.

Add a sentence or two of explanatory text on the home page to explain which states you do have listings for.

Anyway, hope it turns out to be a great success. If Sensis Yellow Pages put themselves up here for review they'd cop heaps.

business-directory · #11 (**permalink**) 02-07-2008, 04:35 AM

"If there's a state without a listing, omit it from the state checkboxes, or grey it out. "

This is not true, there are listings in every state. Just not for EVERY keyword.

Make sense?
Look we can't win in every situation. If someone can't find something and they are not educated, all we can do is hope they come back.

James Bull · #12 (**permalink**) 02-07-2008, 10:01 AM

Quote:

"If there's a state without a listing, omit it from the state checkboxes, or grey it out. "

This is not true, there are listings in every state. Just not for EVERY keyword.

Make sense?

It does. Apologies. Misunderstood your response before (reading things in a hurry again).

Quote:

If someone can't find something and they are not educated, all we can do is hope they come back.

That's true. But the reality is that they probably won't come back, if they think the site over-promises and under-delivers.

Again, hope it's a success.