TRENZ direct Pre Launch Site Review

[asa_carter]

Hi

Please review this site I am about to launch. Hopefully it should be ready for the 20th.

www.trenzdirect.co.uk/index.php

Please note the following:

- There are some sample products in Fashion Accessories.
- Front page only has place holders.
- I am not totally happy with my logo so I may change this. Any idea's? The TRENZ font must stay the same though.
- Any suggestions on how to improve SEO would be very welcome. This is an area in which I have no experiance.

Please be critical as I want to make it the best I can for launch.

[asa_carter]

anyone?

[Paella]

Why did you choose such dark color scheme? Your site is for moms and dads who are happy with their baby...it is selling different stuff for small children... so as for me it's too dark, colors don't suit well to the theme (of course it's my personal opinion, sorry..)
Apart from this point, I like the design. But you could really spice it up a bit by adding some images to it.

Good luck!

[asa_carter]

Hi

Thanks for the reply. I agree with you about the colour scheme.

I do like the colours I have used within the page content but I think the background colour is too dark. Can anyone suggest a hex colour that they think would work?

Where do you mean add images? The front page is not finnished and just contains place holders for images. Images for the items are pulled from the DB and I am slowly adding these over the next couple of days. Do you mean add images somewhere else?

[Paella]

Where do you mean add images? The front page is not finnished and just contains place holders for images. Images for the items are pulled from the DB and I am slowly adding these over the next couple of days. Do you mean add images somewhere else?

As for images, I meant to add some to your Slides, just to make it a bit brighter.
but I like pictures of your products, they are of good quality.

Good work!

[toolatedave]

I like the layout, which is very clean and clear, but the dark background colour, the dropdown menu colour, and the "neon" logo look more suitable to a nightclub than a children's clothing store. I'd definitely lighten them up.

I guess you know that the main menu and the content in the pink box don't appear with javascript turned off, though the site is still navigable using the bottom and side menus. The blue boxes were empty even with javascript turned on.

The title and description tags seem a bit brief - it might be worth mentioning in both that it is a children's clothing store.

The overall design is well thought out, though, and it should look really good with a bit of tweaking to the colours!

[Scarlet.C]

Apart from the already mentioed dark colours and neon logo, I don't really know what else to say!

It looks very 'clean' and professional and very well done.

You should be careful about product image sizes though as some of your images are a bit distorted, I understand it's still in development though so this may just have been overlooked so far.

Your navigation is easy to use and easy to find items of interest, I see you're in the UK too, your site already knocks spots off some of the big brand sites I've shopped on!

Well done!

[asa_carter]

Thanks Scarlet

I really apreciate those comments.

Yeh I'm aware of the product image problems. Are you referring to the clothing images? I had a go at taking pictures for the first time yesterday and my skills in this area still needs some work.

I am using my 2MP phone camera and placing the items on a whiteboard. Then I transfer the images to the PC with bluetooth and use the magnetic thingy tool in photoshop to cut out the background shadows. I just got photoshop so i'm still learning how to use it. Is this the best way to take images?

I'm having a bit trouble finding a suitable background colour. I dont really want to go blue as this is for boys, and pink for girls etc. Should it be a really bright colour, or a darker shade of a light colour? I dont seem to be able to find anything that works with the rest of the site.

[Scarlet.C]

Maybe try a pale grey for the background?

As for the images...I wouldn't know how to use photoshop as I only recently bought it myself lol. Have you not got a digital camera instead of a phone camera? Even if the megapixels are the same they always turn out better from a 'real' camera in my opinion.

[asa_carter]

Not really. I have a 4MP HP camera but the batteries last about 20 shots.

It would cost a fortune in batteries to photograph my entire shop.

Maybe Santa will bring one next year? I do like the bluetooth feature in my phone though. Makes it much easier to transfer stuff.

[asa_carter]

I have updated the colours. Do they work better now?

I also added a hover image to the 'add to cart' buttons.

I think i'll keep the logo as it is. It's probably the best I can do in the time that I have available.

toolatedave: Yes, I'm aware of the JS issues. However, none of the features on the site that use JS are mission critical. A user will still be able to add products to the basket and make a purchase. Like you say, there is alternative navigation in the footer and the pink box on the front page is just an ad. The only thing semi-important that doesnt work without JS is the 'sort by:' manu bar.

[keyshey]

actually i really like the site!
looks very professional

just one thing, im not sure if its just happening w/ my computer
but when im going through the navigation at the top, the blue background takes a bit of time to show up on some of them (like as if its loading or something)

but its not that bad though, sometimes its not even noticeable

great job!

[Scarlet.C]

I like the grey background better than the red, and that's not just because I suggested it

[Scarlet.C]

I think i'll keep the logo as it is. It's probably the best I can do in the time that I have available.

The logo does look good, very professional as it is already, just because it's 'neon' like doesn't make it bad It's not overly neon though or nigh-club like anyway.

[Cynthiab]

I love the Save 10% on Playboy products right next to the baby strollers. That leaves me very confused.

[babrees]

I like the design and layout, easy navigation.

I dislike the huge bouncing images. If you want to change images please make them smooth - I was getting seasick <G> Would also prefer to see more cheerful images in this movie

Confused about playboy being on a site for childrens stuff. OK, I see it's make up so for mums, but still not sure if it fits smoothly with the rest of your products. But that's just me!

[asa_carter]

Hi

It is a childrens clothing and accessory store. I think some people still have an old fashioned view of playboy. I think girls see it as fasionable brand rather than anything else but some parents see it as otherwise.

The pram images are placeholders for four featured products. They could be anything. The playboy image link is a promotion link. At the moment this is playboy but it could be for anything in future. The bouncing images are staying for the moment.

Anyway... I have changed the front page about a bit and added some colourful navigation links. Does the front page look better now? Is there anything on this page that could be improved further still?

[ThEMakeR]

You have obviously put a lot of work into the site and it shows in the presentation. The dark header and footer act as a frame, in my opinion, and draw the eyes to the colour of the main content (things your selling).

I'm not too sure about the logo and would personally think about changing it but there's no rush. A logo can make or break a potential sale, apparently, so try to make it better if you can.

I notice in the meta tags you haven't put a lot of detail. The more keywords and detailed you are the better chance you have of getting a good rankings on search engines. The description of your site has to be quite short and sweet but with enough info to draw a customer to you.

Good luck with the design/re-design of this site. Overall its good but could be better.

Oliver M