Website makeover

Alison Rakoto

Over the years I’d worked with enough websites updating content that I thought I could build my own. With the help of WordPress & Elegant Themes, I almost did: I made an attractive enough site that sort of got my message across; unfortunately, my Google analytics told another story. People who landed on my site left almost immediately. And, when I shared my site with folks, it rarely made a sale, so I knew I needed help.

I met Marie-Anne virtually through the Digital Nomad Girls group, and after watching her interaction and discussions regarding user experience and content strategy, I realized that I’d possibly found my savior. Someone who could restructure my content to make it make it pertinent, user-friendly and user-focused, while also getting the tone and branding right, cutting down my content while keeping the spirit and essentials.

Marie-Anne did just this, she organized and streamlined my content so that people know exactly what I do. Now my site has both good UX and it’s pretty! I’ve received dozens of compliments on my new design — even my mum finds it functional — a huge compliment and sign that Marie-Anne did a proper job! I am thrilled.

Alison Rakoto

LinkedIn Strategist & Career Coach

Alison is a LinkedIn strategist and career coach. She contacted me through an online community we both belong to, and told me she wanted to give her website a makeover. Her main concern was that it wasn’t easy enough to use, and she was aware that she needed work on her Services page.

In her words, “My dream would be someone who can look at the overall UX and see best how to present the info I have to my audience so the pages flow and people can actually figure out how to order a service or get in touch with me.”

So we got to work.

First steps

Using the information that Alison gave me through my questionnaire, and the conversation we had following my UX audit of her website, I started by looking at what exactly she is offering her clients.

I sorted her services into 3 distinct categories, and created clear USPs (unique selling points). This way users on her homepage can immediately understand what she’s selling and why it’s great.

BEFORE

AFTER

Finding the flow

We know that people are likely to have some idea of what service they want from Alison by the time they land on her website. For this reason, it’s best for them to have easy access to her services from whichever page they land on.

There are CTAs (calls to action) strategically placed across each page so that the user has the chance to click through to where they are most likely to want to go after reading or scanning through each section.

Headings and subheadings that speak for themselves allow the user to scan the page rather than having to read each section to find the information that interests them most. This makes their journey across the website much faster and smoother.

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HEADINGS AND SUBHEADINGS

CTAs ON THE HOMEPAGE

Consistency is key

Communication and writing are key to Alison’s profession, so I wanted to make sure her voice still came through across her website. I gathered and re-used her own words (from her old website, from the questionnaire, and from our conversations) as much as possible.

Together with the key aspects of her new branding (compass and travel imagery), these contributed to the creation of a consistent voice that is distinctly Alison’s.

At the same time, it was important to refine the copy according to the new structure, so as to have only the information that is needed by the user in each area of the website. Previously, there was a lot of interesting information repeated across different pages. With a clear new structure, it is immediately obvious to the user where they should click to find any particular piece of information that they might be looking for.

LinkedIn and beyond

I thoroughly enjoyed working with Alison on her website, and it opened my eyes to a whole new world regarding LinkedIn. You can imagine my delight when I heard back from her that she was getting great feedback about it through LinkedIn (of course) and that even her mum now finds it nice and functional. Alison now reports that she’s getting requests from more diverse clients — which she was aiming for — and that she feels her website reflects her brand much better.

So here’s to making more meaningful connections through online communities, and to finding work you love.

Go back to my portfolio

See my website makeover package

Alison Rakoto – full website makeover