First page bounce

[cumulus]

Thanks again to everyone who has taken the time to look and comment. Much appreciated.

I've 'de-greyed' the small gallery on the front page somewhat (difficult as the whole house is done in shades of white), and done my best to make the opening sentences a bit warmer ... I don't want to put a lot more text on the front page, sorry, but I agree I still need something stronger to compel people to go on.

My adwords are pretty specific to Caen actually - most of my guests arrive from search something like 'b&b near caen' (one downside of this is it attracts lots of one nighters for the ferry). I agree very wide search terms are a waste of your money, and of the clicker's time.

I see where people are coming from with the room naming, but personally, it puts me off - I mean, would you name the rooms in your own house "I'm just going upstairs to Jane Austen darling ...." It just seems so contrived.

My stats are all over the place now with all the laymyhatters burrowing down onto every page, I guess I'll just have to let it settle down for a week or so.

One consolation - my bookings so far for the summer are actually v good and ahead of forecast !!

[Nemo]

Thanks again to everyone who has taken the time to look and comment. Much appreciated.

I don't want to put a lot more text on the front page, sorry, but I agree I still need something stronger to compel people to go on.

I see where people are coming from with the room naming, but personally, it puts me off - I mean, would you name the rooms in your own house "I'm just going upstairs to Jane Austen darling ...." It just seems so contrived.

One consolation - my bookings so far for the summer are actually v good and ahead of forecast !!

An interesting response! We gave our opinions but in the main it appears you do not agree with us - perhaps I phrase that a little harshly, but hopefully you see where I'm coming from. Not a problem, we can agree to disagree.

The main thing is your last sentence - you are getting the bookings you want despite a terrible first page bounce rate, so maybe it doesn't matter to you anyway....

[cumulus]

I do agree with a lot of what has been said in terms of 'what', and, as I have mentioned, I have found your observations really helpful:

Page too minimal
Bit too much fact, not enough emotion (I guess I'm falling for the old trap of selling features not benefits)
Need for brighter, happier pictures
Warmer, more inviting text, bit more of it as well on the homepage

I just have a slightly different opinion on the 'how' that's all

I'm sure I will incorporate a lot of the ideas raised here over the next few weeks as I tweak the site

By the way, if anyone has seen the Ingmar Bergman film 'Fanny and Alexander' you will recall that the action takes place in two principal locations,the warm cosy friendly family home, and the stark, cold home of the evil stepfather .... sadly I think I prefer the evil stepfather's decor.... although not I hasten to add the evil stepfather himself. This may explain the grey tone of the pictures I guess.

Thanks

[Nemo]

No problem - but do remember that sunshine sells holidays even out of season and you must get plenty of that!

Do post back and let is know if your bounce rate improves in the weeks to come after the LMH influence wears off a little! It's always nice to get a follow up when we have been asked to help.