5 ms·

Thanks for the input. I should point out that it's not 20 minutes of my time. I spend around 15 minutes recording the video, then go through the site and reflec

Thanks for the input. I should point out that it's not 20 minutes of my time. I spend around 15 minutes recording the video, then go through the site and reflect on some of the issues I initially encountered, and explore the site in greater depth (I realize that this isn't mentioned on my site). Then I organize my thoughts and findings in pages that are meant to be easily referenceable. After that, I talk to the client for 20 minutes as well. The fact is, I am not a big usability expert. I have given a couple talks on the subject and written a few blog articles on the subject (one of which A List Apart was interested in publishing). I've also done a number of usability tests for companies that I have worked for. Therefore, my thinking is that a more feasible approach in the short term is to show that I actually produce good results. Establishing that I'm an expert is something that will take time. Thankfully, I enjoy usability and will enjoy establishing expert status. In the meantime, if you have any suggestions for otherwise convincing people that they should go with me, I would appreciate it. It's interesting to me that nobody really cares about the "usefulness guarantee".

nsrivast 18y ago
Maybe you should put it above the fold, or at least before you name your price. But hey, I'm no usability expert either.
- nonrecursive 18y ago
  Yeah, the order of elements is something I'll have to play with.
wheels 18y ago
Your usefulness guarantee isn't reassuring because it says, basically, "If you find my help completely useless you get a refund," rather than, "If you find my help not worth $450, you get a refund." Also the block on "how usability helps" basically says nothing. It might as well just say, "Usability is good!" You're going to have to fork over a lot stronger value proposition than that before getting someone to pay for the service. Don't just get reference customers; get reference customer numbers. "With Really Cool Customer Foo, signups went up by 128% within two weeks." The selling yourself bit, I'll be a little harsher (in hopes of helping), it basically says, "I've done this for some of my buddies sites and they think it's neat." Again, not a strong value proposition. Just cut that part out if you don't have a better case to make; that portion actually makes you sound less qualified that I would have assumed by default.

nsrivast 18y ago

Maybe you should put it above the fold, or at least before you name your price. But hey, I'm no usability expert either.

nonrecursive 18y ago
Yeah, the order of elements is something I'll have to play with.

wheels 18y ago

Your usefulness guarantee isn't reassuring because it says, basically, "If you find my help completely useless you get a refund," rather than, "If you find my help not worth $450, you get a refund." Also the block on "how usability helps" basically says nothing. It might as well just say, "Usability is good!" You're going to have to fork over a lot stronger value proposition than that before getting someone to pay for the service. Don't just get reference customers; get reference customer numbers. "With Really Cool Customer Foo, signups went up by 128% within two weeks." The selling yourself bit, I'll be a little harsher (in hopes of helping), it basically says, "I've done this for some of my buddies sites and they think it's neat." Again, not a strong value proposition. Just cut that part out if you don't have a better case to make; that portion actually makes you sound less qualified that I would have assumed by default.