First timers with new website

Get some feedback on your site or ad from other rental owners and techies. Also a library of online resources so you can make DIY improvements to your web presence.
gadgetmonster
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Joined: Thu Sep 15, 2011 7:52 am
Location: South Loire Valley
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First timers with new website

Post by gadgetmonster »

Hello all

We purchased a property earlier this year in the Loire Valley and have spent most of the summer getting it ready for renting.

I have just completed the website at www.lestroispetitesmaisons.com and wondered if you would be so kind to give some feedback.

Thank you

Paul[/url]
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Harborfields
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Location: West Boothbay Harbor, Maine
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Post by Harborfields »

"Three small houses" but only two gites? Bit of a disconnect there. I was expecting "The Outside" button to take me to the third accommodation, and was wondering why it wasn't named in a fashion similar to the other two.
gadgetmonster
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Joined: Thu Sep 15, 2011 7:52 am
Location: South Loire Valley
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Post by gadgetmonster »

Harborfields wrote:"Three small houses" but only two gites? Bit of a disconnect there. I was expecting "The Outside" button to take me to the third accommodation, and was wondering why it wasn't named in a fashion similar to the other two.
Hi Harborfields and thanks for your reply.

Yes we thought this may be a tad confusing. The third cottage is being kept as our own and will not be rented. This is for two reasons. 1) Its not in a state to be rented and 2) we felt that 3 gites sharing the pool would be too much.

We have tried to explain this in the introduction but will revisit it and try and make it clearer. I can also see what you are saying about the third button - time for a re-think.

Thanks again for your comments.
www.lestroispetitesmaisons.com - Please like our Facebook page (link at the bottom on the website) and we will like you back :)
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Harborfields
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Post by Harborfields »

gadgetmonster wrote:We have tried to explain this in the introduction but will revisit it and try and make it clearer. I can also see what you are saying about the third button - time for a re-think.
Well, guilty in that I didn't read! I liked the overall look of the site, the picture at the top, saw those three big buttons, noticed that the bottom one wasn't like the other two, wondered what "The Outside" cottage was like and why it was named differently than the other two, and went there.

One possible solution might be to go ahead and have a third button for the third gite, just show an exterior view and say that this is the owner's cottage and not available for rent at this time. You might indicate whether as the owner you're there on site full time or only occasionally. Or not, just an idea.
gadgetmonster
Posts: 15
Joined: Thu Sep 15, 2011 7:52 am
Location: South Loire Valley
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Post by gadgetmonster »

Harborfields wrote: One possible solution might be to go ahead and have a third button for the third gite, just show an exterior view and say that this is the owner's cottage and not available for rent at this time. You might indicate whether as the owner you're there on site full time or only occasionally. Or not, just an idea.
A very good idea - thanks for that :)
www.lestroispetitesmaisons.com - Please like our Facebook page (link at the bottom on the website) and we will like you back :)
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CSE
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Location: Galicia

Post by CSE »

There are some errors:
Hers is the report for the first page.
Check your other pages with this service too.
http://validator.w3.org/check?uri=http: ... aisons.com
the CCS report also finds errors. (Most of them to do with the slider widget. Maybe the widget is written for a different CCS format to your website).
http://jigsaw.w3.org/css-validator/vali ... ons.com%2F
I would also suggest you go over all of your images as some images do not have alt text and others that do have little meaning for search engines. (things like 150x100).
The metatag “description” only has the letter a in it. Some pages do not have much information added in the metatags.
You have not declared the written language of the website.
I may have missed this but I cannot find a fav icon, do you have one?

As for presentation the website loads fast and cleanly.
For marketing I would certainly add prices in Euros; maybe dress a few photos with flowers or something.
Are three pricing seasons necessary?
Never try to out-stubborn your guests.
gadgetmonster
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Joined: Thu Sep 15, 2011 7:52 am
Location: South Loire Valley
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Post by gadgetmonster »

Hi Ian and Irene

Thanks for that - I have fixed all w3 errors (Facebook was a pain) but the css may be a problem. Meta tags now complete as are alt tags. I will come up with a favicon to finish off.

How would you handle adding Euro prices as the rate changes pretty much daily - would you just round up to the nearest 5 or 10?
www.lestroispetitesmaisons.com - Please like our Facebook page (link at the bottom on the website) and we will like you back :)
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CSE
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Post by CSE »

gadgetmonster wrote: How would you handle adding Euro prices as the rate changes pretty much daily - would you just round up to the nearest 5 or 10?
We only trade only in Euros so we do not have a clue...I think this is another question you could pose on another section of this forum.
Boy those changes were done quickly, well done.
Never try to out-stubborn your guests.
Hells Bells
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Post by Hells Bells »

I only trade in Euros, after all that is where my property is and where I need the money for the expenses. My booking calendar does a conversion though. It is possible to embed a currency convetor into a page on your website?
gadgetmonster
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Location: South Loire Valley
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Post by gadgetmonster »

casasantoestevo wrote: Boy those changes were done quickly, well done.
I'm a software engineer so used to working with HTML - thanks for pointing out the errors :)
www.lestroispetitesmaisons.com - Please like our Facebook page (link at the bottom on the website) and we will like you back :)
gadgetmonster
Posts: 15
Joined: Thu Sep 15, 2011 7:52 am
Location: South Loire Valley
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Post by gadgetmonster »

HelenB wrote:I only trade in Euros, after all that is where my property is and where I need the money for the expenses. My booking calendar does a conversion though. It is possible to embed a currency convetor into a page on your website?
I'm pretty sure XE do one so will have a look.
www.lestroispetitesmaisons.com - Please like our Facebook page (link at the bottom on the website) and we will like you back :)
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