New Blog Design!
One of the New Year’s resolutions I set for myself was to have this blog redesigned and today I am pleased to announce the new look DavidWalker.tv!
It’s been a few weeks in the making but now it is completed I am delighted with the result!
I believe the new design will enable me to take my business forward in 2010 and I share a few notes I have made here to help you if you are considering revamping your own blog.
Encourage More Opt Ins
The main focus of my blog is to encourage as many people as possible to opt into my mailing list as possible and it should be your primary focus too.
Forget messing about with Google Adsense to earn a few cents here and there or putting up banner ads that nobody is going to click, do whatever you can to get people onto your mailing list!
Remember, your blog is where people come to find out more about you and where you provide high quality free information but it is your email list where you build deeper relationships with your subscribers and it’s where your business makes money.
I plan to do a lot more guest blog posting during 2010 and when people read my post and find my blog via the author bio section, the first thing I want them to see is my offer of a free blogging report.
The section of my blog’s homepage “above the fold” will essentially act as a squeeze page with links to more great information and recommended products underneath.
The inner pages will also have an opt in form at the top of the sidebar to encourage opt ins should people arrive at my blog anywhere other than my homepage.
I am tracking both the homepage and the sidebar opt in forms separately and will post how each of them perform at a later date.
A Note on the Designers
I hope you like the overall design and I expect you want to know who did it for me?
I had always been impressed by Semmy Wijayanto on the Warrior Forum (find him in the “Warrior’s For Hire” section) who produced stunning designs for minisites and their associated products such as ecovers for reports, audio and video.
He and his team came up with the design and programmed it into a functioning Wordpress blog for a very reasonable price.
However, where I believe they fell short was in the refining of the blog design in terms of the CSS. I don’t think this is really what they specialise in, it’s more graphic design than programming.
While I loved the design overall I wasn’t happy with the CSS. Fortunately more digging on the Warrior Forum lead me to another Wordpress developer in Michael Formby who in turn introduced me to my saviour Jesse Distad who specialises in custom Wordpress theme design.
I have Jesse to thank for the tweaked CSS you see in front of you and I recommend him for any custom work requirements you have.
A Better Blog Experience
The new blog design is superior to the old one in that I now believe it gives the reader a better experience overall.
The CSS is set up so the content is much easier to read and the H1, H2 and H3 tags are more prominent so the text is broken up a lot better than before.
These tags are now set up correctly which should assist with my overall search engine optimisation and enable more people to find me than previously.
Recommended Products
This will be a section on the homepage which presents the latest products where I have offered an honest and unbiased review.
Unlike other bloggers who “review” products without ever using them in order to cynically generate some affiliate commissions you can be assured I only review products I have either just tried out or continue to use on an ongoing basis.
An example of this is Josh Bartlett’s flagship software, Easy Video Player, which I will use more frequently in this blog to give myself a more professional image
Better Integration with Social Media
I love the idea of integrating blog posts with the most popular social media websites – it enables the reader to share content they find useful and enjoy and helps out the blog owner by bringing in new visitors.
I have installed a new bookmarking plugin called Sexy Bookmarks which you can find underneath every post.
I chose this plugin because it enables me to integrate my blog content with the social media sites I want. I had found in the past that some plugins didn’t support certain bookmarking sites, while others did and I ended up having to install two plugins rather than one which did the job.
This “one stop shop” will hopefully encourage readers to share my content across their favourite social media sites and help me to spread the word about DavidWalker.tv!
Still to Come…
There is still room for improvement and I will revelop the sidebar tabber to make it look better and enable readers to see who is commenting and what my most popular posts are.
I want to promote my other social media accounts, namely Twitter and my Facebook page but in Facebook’s case this isn’t as easy as just pasting in the fan widget javascript because Internet Explorer does not like it and causes a page load error (why are Microsoft so crap at this stuff?)
If anyone has any suggestions about how to resolve this then please let me know!
What do you think? Do you like my new design or do you think I have wasted both my time and money making these changes (I hope not!)
Let me know what you think in the comments section below!
Adrienne Lee (1)
Lesley "Wes" Wils... (1)
Mark Geisler (1)
Mike Bell (1)
Russ Davis (1)
© 2010
50 comments… read them below or add one
Hey David,
Excellent looking site now,(not that it didn’t look good before)
I was going to ask you who did the design so thanks for sharing. I think it will be great for getting more subscribers on your list the way it is set up, as you say it is when the people join your list that you build relationships.
The money really IS in the list.
Talk soon,
James
James Howard´s last blog ..Cool No Cost Signature Creator Tool
there are a lot go great features…I especially like the share the wealth section.
I do not care for the top section with all the boxes on the right side. I understand each one has a purpose, but maybe less is better.
over all nice
Great new design!
And, Thank You for sharing this information
about who it was that helped put this design together.
As always, your posts are highly informative, educational, and
precise in their content.
Thanks again for sharing!
Dax L’Amour, Ph.D´s last blog ..If You are Desperately Struggling to Make Money By Christmas
Hello David,
I like the new design. A very clean look with clear, sharp graphics and of course, good content, as always.
I really do need to get more serious with my own blog and you may just have inspired me.
Thanks mate and all the very best for 2010.
Richard
Richard Black´s last blog ..Michael Rasmussen’s “Mini Site Profits Exposed” Video Series: How To Create A Mini Site That Runs On Autopilot And Makes You Money While You Sleep!
Hey David,
In my honest opinion, I love the new look, same great content you provide as well.
I would be really be intersted to know what impact having the opt in as the main focus on the first page has on your list building
One comment, I wasn’t sure how to leave a comment at first, but found my way here.
Talk soon
Sean!
Hi Sean,
I will see how the new design performs for a month or so and then write a blog post with the results!
David
Hey David,
This looks GREAT!
Much cleaner & easier to navigate..great call on the space above the fold for your opt-in. This is something I’ve been considering doing myself..you’ve definitely inspired me.
Great job~
Kim Doyal
The WordPress Chick
Kim Doyal´s last blog ..StudioPress Tip-Thumbnails on Category Pages [video]
Great design – you know your point with the ads that no one clicks on I was of the same mind. One or two ads are ok I think but htey dont really tell you a lot about the author – which is what a blog should be all about.
I thought my blog lookd ok until I saw this!
I only have so many hours in a day and I have to move the list building forward but u have definately planted a seed in my mind about the need to re vamp my own blog at some point.
Peter Davies´s last blog ..Video Marketing Product Review
Hi David,
Nice crisp and clean look.
You should do well now with the new design.
Kudos to your designers and your work on content.
Looking forward to great things in 2010.
Best,
Paul Klein
Paul Klein´s last blog ..Success! Making $907.52/Week using Twitter
Love it,has great content.You’ve really inspired me to start my blog which is one of my new year’s resolutions. Thanks.
Sarah Watson
Hi!
New design looks brill! I really like the way your 3D photo in header graphics stands out. Given I have not set up a blog yet, I was wondering should focus be more on the free report rather than your 3D photo? Just a thought. David, when I create a blog, I would love to be able to implement subliminal classical music to my blog on activation when I am being visited.
Susan Richards´s last blog ..asdf
Hi Susan,
I am glad you like the design.
I think I have got the balance between my photo and the free report graphics in the header image OK, though?
The photo will help my personal branding and the free report graphic shows, well, that the visitor can get a free report!
It will be interesting to see how the new design fairs.
David
Nice design, very clear, easy to read, not sure if I like the big opt in box above the first post. My concern is that someone in a hurry might assume that they have just landed on a capture page, if a visitors eyes are first attracted to the colour and graphics of this big opt in box, as mine were, they might not bother to scroll down and read the first post.
This is just my personal opinion and I may be completely wrong on this, it will be very interesting to see if the new design increases your subscriptions. I hope it does, in which case I will be more than happy to concede that I was nit-picking!
Wishing you success.
Peter Wright´s last blog ..An example of good service and a warning
Hi David,
Congrats on the launch and thanks for the kind words (and the link) lol.. It was my pleasure to help you get this wrapped up. Also, thanks for the great content you put up, I have spent a fair amount of time checking out your site in the past few days, good stuff.
Jesse
Thanks Jesse!
This blog wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for you and I really appreciate the work you put in.
To anyone reading this – if you need Wordpress/CSS work done then Jesse is your man!
David
Well, it definitely looks…different
. You could change the title color of your Stop Slogging Start Blogging ebook, the orange is a little bit harder to read on this grey background.
BTW, I also changed my blog appearance, what do you think about it?
Davor Gasparevic @ Internet marketing ebooks´s last blog ..The Internet Marketing Dictionary
Hi Davor,
I agreem, a slight redesign for the free report may be in order.
My advice regarding your own blog is ditch blogspot and get set up properly with your own domain and hosting. It will help your business massively in the long run.
David
Hi David,
The new design looks great, I really like it and think it will improve the opt-in rate on your blog for sure!
I’ve used semmy’s services too, he was the guy that did my ebook cover for me, his prices are very cheap considering the high quality of his work.
I will have to get him to do me a blog theme later down the line, because I’m very impressed with what he’s done here for you.
Paul
Paul Lear´s last blog ..2009, The Year It All Began…
Hi Paul,
Thanks for the comment!
I will use Semmy again for minisite and ecover design work because he has a very talented team – I just hope the blog redesign has the desired effect!
David
Hi David,
Generally, I like the new design, but have the same question as Peter W – might the fact that there is no “content” above the fold lead to a lot of bounces from people assuming they’ve come to a squeeze page only when what they’re looking for is content?
It depends on your traffic sources – but one of the advantages of a blog is the traffic you get from google hitting the keywords in your posts. Generally speaking, those folks are expecting to see content when they arrive.
The only way to tell is to test, of course, so it will be interesting to see your results. I’m wondering if you can split test your new homepage vs one that looks more like your inner post pages (i.e. with the optin on the sidebar).
Best of luck,
Ian
PS – At the risk of having a “Tesco moment” – you look a lot more ginger in your photo than you do on your videos!
Ian Brodie´s last blog ..Focus, Focus, Focus
Generally speaking, search engine traffic will land on inner pages if they are looking for specific content. First time visitors, those linked to from elsewhere or regular visitors will land on the home page, in most of those cases they will either know where to go or they are just the visitor you want to opt-in while there are there anyway
Hi Ian,
It’s only the homepage which has the large opt in form. Anyone arriving from social media sites, search engines, other links etc. to inner pages on the blog will be met with the content they anticipated finding.
People will arrive at my homepage again via search engines but also via guest posts on other blogs and article directories where they will already have been “pre sold” on a free report being available so it shouldn’t come as a great “shock” when it’s one of the first things they see.
Obviously, I cannot please everybody all of the time but this blog’s main function is to generate leads for my business. If it achieves that, then I am doing the right thing!
RE: my hair – the photo was taken while on holiday in Turkey and it was at sunset with the sun behind me. There is definitely a ginger tinge going on but that is only really visible on occasions! My “normal” hair colour is what you see on my homepage video
David
Hi guys,
I’m not sure I agree with you about search engine traffic ending up on inner pages. Your stats may be different to mine, but slightly over a third of all traffic from google ends up on my home page making it by far the most visited page from search engines. Typically in a SERP, both my homepage and an inner page will show up for a keyword. The stats seem to indicate that people are clicking the homepage as often as they’re clicking the inner page.
Ian
Ian Brodie´s last blog ..How To Get More Referrals: A Get Clients Video Tip
Looks good. I like the uncluttered design. It’s easy to read for these old eyes – the text is nice and black not ‘gray’ like so many I see.
It’s much better looking blog now easier to read or navigate and I’m sure that you will keep up the great work.
I want to use this comment to thank you for very useful newsletter which is helping me a lot in improving my blogging.
I wish wealth and prosperity to you and all your readers!
Hi David. I also like clear and clean outfit. I agree Ian B. and Peter W. about big opt-in box and after all there is one top right corner. I think better place is below the content. And cause the content is top quality it will make everybody opt in.
David, I have purchased materials from you and have received your “stuff” for about a month. (Don’t you love the word stuff?) I can tell how much work you have put into this blog and it looks good to me. I personally feel you have too many photos of you on the home page and 2 of them–the banner across the top, and the one on the left–have you in the same shirt. You might consider showing an action picture of you working: behind your desk, on the phone answering emails and so on. The pix on the Story page were fine. I am retired from being a stock broker and a mortgage broker so I don’t need to tell you what the last few years have been like. I am working on getting 4 different blogs up and going; am beginning to think I may be dead 10 years before that ever happens. Seriously, it is a bear and a half. If you or anybody can tell me how to handle (and sort) all the emails I would appreciate it; it is daunting. The website above is one that I am promoting. Hope to be back at you within 2 weeks with a blog of my own writing. My best wishes for a prosperous New Year; it is a tough economy but you will come out on top. Regards, Sally
Hi Sally,
The smaller image on the left hand side of the homepage changes whenever a new post is added. This post is about the blog redesign so it has an image of the redesign to accompany it!
There is a video of me “in action” also available on the homepage.
I would concentrate on just one blog otherwise you are in danger of spreading yourself too thinly. Would you prefer to have one quality and highly successful blog, or four crappy ones?
Just a thought…
David
Just got your email and came to take a look…like it! BH would too…
You are right on target too..build your list, or if ya feel ya have too then use another blog for your adsense, or other revenues.
I’ve just gotten started on my first serious blog…been working on my own design, just hope it turns out as good, or better than yours…heh.
Have a Blessed Day!
Hi David
I personally do not like the first page your link took me to. It looks just like a short squeeze page and appears to have nothing but links on it.
The second link you gave looked more like a blog as it had the post on it, if I came to the first link you gave and landed on the first page I would not think it was a blog at all.
These comments are disagreeing with some of the earlier ones but the main thing is if it gets you more optins then it is a success if not it is a failure.
Richard
Hi Richard,
Thank you for your input.
Blogs are evolving and I would argue there is no “right” or “wrong” way to design them. Sure, the opt in form won’t be to everyone’s taste but there are links below the form to my latest and featured content.
I will keep you updated on how the form performs for me!
David
Hey David. The initial feeling was I had landed on a squeeze page. If this is the effect you’re after then that’s great. I find it a little busy, perhaps a little more seperation of columns.
The design itself is sharp, the header conveys the message and brand well, and I’m told by my partner Kate that grey is this years pink.
Keep up the good work.
David, I am posting this as you requested.
This is not the usual “say something nice” evaluation; it is a thoughtful, honest reply.
I think there are lots of people like me that are being drowned in gifts (this refers to email offers in our inboxes, first of all); I think this has gone way too far, and we are having to close our eyes and unsubscribe really nice, helpful guys like you just so we can survive, let alone try to get any work done! Think about it and see if you can make a plan that would be helpful while taking far less time.
There are two more things I think need to be addressed; it seems that nobody edits their writings, taking away from a professional look. (Check your blog).
And the second thing is your image; it is too much “in your face” and at the same time is not really a clear picture, so I think it is back to the drawing board with it.
Most people have much better vision than I do, but the font needs to be a good contrast and sharp for easy reading.
These are mostly general comments that I think would be good to include in a checklist for all of us.
Nadine
Hi Nadine,
Thank you for taking the time to leave this as a blog comment for me, as I thought it was too good to be sent as an email for my eyes only!
Your point about the email is a difficult one because I (like many other people) run my blog as a full time business, I don’t have a real “job” (nor do I want one) so I have to do what is necessary to make a living online. I try to strike a balance between content and offers via email but if you are unhappy with it, then I cannot stop you from unsubscribing.
I take on board your point about checking the blog posts. This is something I need to improve. However, it is easy to spend hours and hours perfecting blog posts when you could be doing something which actually makes money but I agree that silly mistakes are not really acceptable if you want to be seen in a professional light.
I like the photo I have used (and it’s one of the few decent ones I have) so it’s going to stay…
David
This new blog looks nice, clear and comfortable when I enter here,and the most important thing is that our readers can get less distracted while reading your news or content!
Evan
Hi David,
Yeah. I like the new design too – especially the way the sunlight is encasing the crown of your head in a halo – LOL.
Well done mate. See you in Vegas next week.
GazzMan
TEMPLE
Gary Simpson´s last blog ..Self Improvement Giveaway 4
Hi Gazz,
Thanks for dropping by – the halo effect was completely unintentional and I had never noticed it that way until you mentioned it.
Looking forward to Vegas, will be great to finally meet you in person!
David
Hi David,
I really like your new blog. I can actually see it! Your first blog was too dark and I couldn’t see what you’ve written, but this one is a lot better. Way to go!
Dana
Great new look! What’s the ballpark of how much you paid?
Gabe | freebloghelp.com´s last blog ..Do you really know how good your site is?
Hi Gabe,
If you search for Semmy in the “Warriors for Hire” section in the Warrior Forum, his rates are on there.
I had to pay a little extra to get Jesse Distad to tidy up the CSS but overall the project was very reasonable.
David
Thanks! I’m going to swing on by today.
Well David, I must say that the new look here on DavidWalker.tv is GREAT, I really like what you’ve had done, and while I liked what you had before this really does make the site look a whole lot better!
To further expand on what I posted on Twitter, about the optin form that sits slab bang in the middle of your screen when you visit the homepage! – For a potential new visitor, they’ll most likely just like to read what you’ve got to say, comment, and if they like what you have to say, then quite possible subscribe! – Hitting them with that optin box could do more harm than good, if I was you, then I’d make all that GREAT content the center of attention! (Hope you see where I’m coming from?)
Now what else, if anything, would I change? – In answer to that, I think you’re missing some Post Meta, as in when the article was posted! – Might just be me, but when I visit a site and can’t see when the article was published, it just puts me off reading, I like seeing how old the content is!
Just a couple of thoughts there David, overall I like what you’ve had done as I say, but a couple of edits would be quite nice in my eyes, just what I’d do anyway! … Speak soon!
Hi Mark,
Thanks for taking the time to get in touch via Twitter and also via this comment.
I believe the majority of my traffic will be to specific blog posts, whether it’s via search engines or social media sites, so the content WILL be the main focus in that respect.
I have seen other really successful blogs adopt the large opt-in box on the homepage approach (I didn’t invent it!) so it must “work” therefore I am willing to give it a go myself.
I agree about the post meta and I will try to get that implemented soon.
Keep in touch.
David
I’m glad we agree about the Post Meta!
… And while I don’t disagree that most of your traffic will probably land on individual blog posts, it might not be the kind of traffic you’re after at the end of the day resulting in nothing bar another visitor!
Yes, the same can be said about people landing on your homepage, but what if it was the right kind of traffic? They want to read your content first, they don’t want to be hit with the larger-than-life optin form, it could very well put them off! – I’m not saying it doesn’t work, maybe a rework somehow to showcase some of the content at least, without needing people to scroll down?
That’s what blogging and comments are all about though, discussions, debates, amoung many other things! (Says he who’s not blogged for a while!) I look forward to many most posts, and keep the good work going!
Thanks
Mark
Hi David!!
Really nice new design.. I’ve always been impressed by your blog and this takes it to new levels. I’ve just recently changed the design of mine so I know it can be time-consuming and stressful to get it ‘just right’.
But it’s definately a great job and a brilliant new look.. all ready for 2010!
Have an amazing January!
Marc
Hi David
Your design looks to be slightly different from the screenshot you have but it looks much better
I have to go check out this Semmy dude. He’s done a great job for your theme.
Best of luck in taking your business forward!
Shaleniie Devi
David
Here I am at last better late than never,
Sorry pal getting behind on my blog commenting.
I have to say I love your blog its fantastic im infact very jealous lol.
Very very nice design.
You moving forward David in leaps and bounds mate im very impressed.
Well see ya in Vegas pal.
Cheers
Marcus
PS Has your hair turned red?? or maybe slightly ginger.
marcus passey´s last blog ..Marcus Passey’s list building competition Come & win 150-200 subs for your list!
Hi David,
Awesome new blog design, i’m very impressed! Like you say, i’m sure you will generte more optins with the prominent optin form. Very eye catching design.
Cheers,
Paul
Paul Hooper´s last blog ..A Reflection on 2009, and How You can Succeed in 2010
Hey Dave,
It has been a little while since I visited.
In saying that I love the new look. Almost like moving into a new house….
Keep up the great work & I look forward to what is to come.
To Your Success,
Rob
Rob Willis´s last blog ..Let’s Get Serious!
Hey David,
I am lovin’ the new blog design. It is the “Cheryl Cole” of all blogs, nice on the eyes and easy to look at. It looks a lot more professional with the sharp, crisp and clean graphics. I will be setting up my own blog up soon, here’s hoping mine looks as good as yours.
Cheers mate,
Lee Scott