Help!!

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.
Foxandsot
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Location: Pervolia, cyprus
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Help!!

Post by Foxandsot »

Hello

I'm trying to build my own website, apparently the thingy I bought said any idiot can do it :D . Does anyone want to have a look at it and see if I am on the right track. It is far from finished (neither is the house!) but I think the text sounds like it's come straight out of an estate agents property details. I'm finding it hard to give it the personal touch and make people want to holiday there.

Any help would be greatly received, I know that it is crap at the moment so I won't be offended, promise :wink:

Thanks

Michelle
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debk
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Post by debk »

what is the website address?
debk
Foxandsot
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Post by Foxandsot »

Ooops :oops: You can already tell it's going to be rubbish, can't you!!

www.villatatiana.com

Thanks
Fraise
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Post by Fraise »

No, it's not rubbish but obviously until the villa is built it will be hard for you to actually get a feel for the house,at the moment it is just a building site!! Once you can get in to furnish you can take piccies of a table set with crockery,glasses,wine and flowers ( or whatever).It is hard to describe something that doesn't exist yet !! Hang on in there, you're going in the right direction :lol:

www.thepetitmanoir.com
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enid
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Post by enid »

I love the colours of the site - it looks very classy. I didn't find the text too impersonal but there are lots of pointers to writing good copy in LMH. I thibnk yu are right to start your wen bow - I would use it as a jourtnal for family and firends during the development process. When you do decide to use it for publicity you don't have to have the whole thing finsished. At first we used photos ofthe outside of the property, the region and just one bedroom that we finished completely for the purpose. It's a great start :)
Hells Bells
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Post by Hells Bells »

I started my site about 6 months before my apartment was completed, and found by the time winter came it was showing up in google searches, and I even had some bookings for the february holidays. It gave me plenty of time to sort it out, tweak the text, and update everyone on it's progress. We had one couple book for our first week in January, just because they'd found the site and were really excited about it. They obviously followed our progress very closely though. It looks great by the way!!
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Normandy Cow
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Post by Normandy Cow »

I agree with Enid about doing it as an online diary and I would go one step further and suggest you start a blog which you could then develop into being your main website once your house is ready. I have just started creating a blog for our house using Wordpress and I am retrospectively building up a diary of all that has happened over the past 3 years - it has been an absolute doddle to set up (I only started it about a week ago and it is nearly done) - but it would be easier for you to do in "real time" so to speak.
Just go to www.wordpress.com and sign up to start your blog.
Foxandsot
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Post by Foxandsot »

Thanks for all your comments! I'm afraid that if I was to do a blog, it would be full of expletives, the amount of issues we've had just over the kitchen is quite amazing!! I do get lots of family and friends asking how the villa is coming along, so I guess I could give them my site address and they can find out for themselves!!

So am I correct in thinking that on the whole I'm not doing too bad?? As Fraise said, it is really difficult describing something that doesn't yet exist!

Thanks again

Michelle
cedwardbrice
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Post by cedwardbrice »

I think your site has a good look but your navigation options are too mnay for the average person. Think about how you can simplify this or use your home page to set up your pitch and then when they enter the page for the property deatals have a different menu screen

Think about selling the lifestyle first and foremost on your home page. I see way too many sites where everyone goes straight to pitching the home and then only pitch details in terms of feature and fucntion.

Sell the drem of your villa and the create things the guest can do and enjoy while their in your home.

Pictures, pictures, pictures will be key...but also have some photo's of the area that sell the lifestyle. I would reasearch some of the higher end resort sites in the area and look at their navigation bar and menu options as well as design look and feel.


You may also want to add layout info of the home, as well as some map info with general location. I use mapquest with a general location, plus a sateliite view with approaximate location of the property. This really gives folks a great sense of your location.

Your really brave to show the home in its unfinshed condition. But I do relaly like one posters idea of creating a diary of the build...always remeber you selling the property..so if installing a fireplace show the construction but also add..."a lovely fireplace to enjoy your nights by" etc etc. If your set on showing the home (maybe only show artisits rendering if you have it) during construction you may want to add a offer for those guests that book during your build...i.e 15% off our inuagural rental season if you book before xx date.

But site looks good...I ws expecting a lot worse. Good luck.
Mi casa es su casa - My house is your house

website:www.breovacationrentals.com

Blog:http://vacation-home-rentals.blogspot.com/
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enid
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Post by enid »

I have just started creating a blog for our house using Wordpress and I am retrospectively building up a diary of all that has happened over the past 3 years
Looks like we are living a parallel life Catherine - I am doing the very same thing - well Ali is setting up the blog - she's writing her own template in wordpress that I'm then going to pinch- and I'm going to write the history of our experience then. I know I should have kept a diary while we were doing the work but honestly I don't think I would have had the energy to sustain it and some I've read are very monotonous. This way I shall just do the landmarks. As Michelle said there would have been a lot of expletives too!!
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