I agree: both professional and “friendly” inputs are important. The professional ones give you the low-down on how things are supposed to be done, while your customers sometimes have better insight into you and your your website works.

I’ve had some friendly input into my own web design process, and plan to get one or two professional ones once it is finished.

Thanks for dropping by — hope to see more of you!

~Graham

Great article!

It could be said; if you have done your marketing research correctly for a business, then your sales should flow.

Going directly to your customers is a good method of getting the best opinions, although I feel that getting pro opinions is also extremely important, especially if you need a website review done - sure the customers can tell you how they percieve you and your product, but they can’t give you the best advice on improving your web designs, so that this can be optimised for full sales potential.

Anyhow, I enjoyed your article and you have a great site too!

Ciao ciao,

Andy

Yes, it is one thing to see an image you like in someone else’s company, and another trying to (a) decide what image you want for your own company and (b) trying to accomplish that. I’m having a few hiccups crafting my own image — hence this series of articles.

But then there is the truism that no matter what perception you are trying to portray, your audience is likely going to see something different anyway, as the Men with Pens (and I’m sure others) have learned. This somehow makes it easier AND more difficult at the same time.

I think it’s good during that long and winding road to get outside feedback, which I plan to address in more detail later in this series.

Thanks for dropping by!

~Graham

Customer feedback is so important, but as you point out, knowing where *you* want to go is critical. There’s a continuum between where you are (current perception), where you think you are (you always think people “get” you better than they do), and where you want to go.

Once folks figure out what that road looks like, they often discover they’re on another road entirely!

The road between what customers think today and what they’ll think tomorrow is based on what you’re doing, not what you wish they’d think. Merging the two paths by doing what you need to, to be perceived the way you want to, is a heck of a long and winding road.

Great post laying out that road!

Regards,

Kelly

Kelly’s last blog post..Inspiration Points: Maximum United Experience

Yes, as I mentioned I’m sort of blogging through some renovations here myself. I plan to add a couple of well placed call-outs to draw more attention to what I do. I’m sure you and the gang are working on the same!

I love the fact that you were able to simply poll your readers. So simple yet it isn’t done very often (I think FWJ might have done that at some point…?)

Anyway, looking forward to your new design myself!

~Graham

Here’s an even more relevant link of how perception influences the whole game: http://menwithpens.ca/how-a-great-reputation-can-hurt-your-business

We’d discovered that our copywriting and design business had turned into “Men with Pens are the Revolution theme pros”. Huh? Where’d that come from? How’d that happen? It was a great reputation, but the perception wasn’t one we’d tried to create. We even contemplated how to correct the situation.

So we wrote a post saying, “Hang on a sec…”

Here’s another example of how people may be completely clueless of the services you offer: http://menwithpens.ca/our-small-business-or-reading-with-your-monitor-off

We had a full website with everything listed on it… and no one read it. They made assumptions on what we could do based on what they saw at first glance. The comments include lots of, “Wow. I didn’t even realize you guys did that.”

Our new site design unleashes in a week or so. I wonder what people will say about us then?