I have been working on this site for a friend, he is not a paying customer so I have been doing a little here and there when time permits. There is just something about this that doesn't look right, very unprofessional looking. What would you change? http://www.sesran.com/phoenix/
Thanks,
Sesran
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Web Design by Sesran
www.sesran.com
The graphics are all screwed up on my computer. It is like they are only loading half-way.
Without being able to see the graphics I can't give a very good opinion. This could very well be a problem on my side though. The site kind of has a seventies look to it. I personally would lighten the background and get rid of the orange links. Your selling sign repairs not jack-o-lanterns. You are going to need pictures and case studies. Pictures of old and restored signs. Pictures of the workshop. People like that kind of stuff. You shouldn't post prices on the site. With this kind of work prices probably vary widely depending on the work involved. Replace that with a "Request for Quotes" form. Then a more educated price can be given to the customer or the company can do a free consultation on site. Signs are all about selling. You have to do that on your site as well. Make it into a glowing sign for the company.
I uploaded the Graphics again. I agree and had to LOL with the Jack-o-lantern remark. You also stated that "You have to do that on your site as well" Is this refering to my personal site?? How about the flame affect in the Logo, should I keep that or try some other route. I have stuck with the fire colors because a Phoenix is a bird of fire. Any and ALL input will be used, I haven't got much time to put into this site.
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Web Design by Sesran
www.sesran.com
I would, however, making everything a little smaller...people will still be able to read it without problem even if everything is cut in half size-wise...
I would suggest you move the logo to upper-left corner and the company name to its right, without the reflection. Perhaps the slogan can be part of the company name graphics. I am also not crazy about the animated logo idea, but that isn't really a big issue. In addition, i don't think bold texts should be used unless it's to emphasize something, and rather than use italics or underline, consider using a different font colour. Otherwise, it seems like a simple, good design.
Ok, I changed the site taking into account most of the input given. None of the links work at the moment. Some of the things I am looking for is ideas of text color, link color, visited link color, active link color. Also, would you word some of the links differently? How about the overall look? The content I am still waiting for from the site owner. Thank you all for the input received so far.
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Web Design by Sesran
www.sesran.com
I would probably say that you shouldn't use Times New Roman as the font. It's not too bad as black on white, but for white on black... I don't know, it just doesn't look... right!
Personally I would never buy something from you. Why? Here, I'll tell ya:
- wrong use of the wrong colors
-> black is not really the right color when you want to sell a product. It is OK if you want to promote an evenement such as a party, but not as a commercial site.
- wrong font face and font size
-> Times New Roman is OK when you have an educational site or for articles, but not for a commercial site. Additionally you use a to big font size.
- something wrong with the graphics
-> They're far to big.
-> I would recommend to soften the graphics so that they won't looks so 'unfinished'
-> You could do much more with the turning logo. It is in the wrong place there on the right.
When I said "You'll have to do that with your site as well", I meant the Pheonix signs site. If your working on it, it is yours. It may belong to someone else but it is your creation and right now it doesn't sell me on buying Phoenix Signs' services if I needed them.
Hi Sesran,
you ask what I would chage...mmmm quite a bit I think.
1)For starters I thought it was a site about starsigns - I couldn't figure exactly how you were going to change them, but, well, that's not my business really. Anyway, I think you need a pic of the kind of sign you mean to change so that users know what you are on about.
2)I sort of like the title, but it has a bit of a porno edge to it...must have something to do with the flames...not sure really, just initial impressions, (and that is what often counts the most)
3) I agree with the other comment re font. If you want to use a black background, you should use a non-serif font and the size is a bit too big for my taste.
4) I've just re-read the copy on the front page three times,and I am still not sure what kind of sign you deal with, you need to make it far clearer - a pic would be good,
5)On the "contact us" page the vertical page alignment changes - why - it is distracting
6) email link goes straight to email - it should go to a form
7) Your links are the wrong colour, I feel like a broken record, but BLUE links are good for the usability of your site and any other colour is just plain evil...
8)I think I'm going to have to side with Johanns on this one - I wouldn't buy anything from you, but if you did electrical work, I'd be interested (mainly because my ceiling light just fell off the roof - don't you hate that when it happens...no really I'm not making it up...it really did just fall off!)
Anyway, I digress and please accept my apologies for a bit of verbose blathering, but it is Saturday night in Bangkok and I just wanted to check my email, and I've ended up in Sitepoint, AGAIN!!!!!
I think the new layout is better than the orriginal. However, I still do not like those rotating images at the top of the page. I would also recoment making buttons for the navigation on the left. I don't know what it is, but it seems a little akward. The combination of black and white (w/ blue hyperlinks) is alright, but I do not think it goes well with the "fire" color.
Where it says "previous work" you might want to have a thumbnail image of the project so people can see it.
I think it is a better improvement from the first!
First, let me apologise for the yadda yadda yadda message I posted last night - I should have just gone to bed.
1)The new version is an improvement, but I think the black columns don't work. Ditch the right hand column and create a link on the left along the lines of "previous work"
2)The "phoenix signs" sign is better than the old version
3)The rotating icons look a bit Roman now - especially atop those black columns.
4)I think you need to put a bit more thought into the overall colour plan of the site.I think the left hand column should be a colour that complements the "phoenix signs" sign. black really doesn't work - moreso with blue links on it
5)Blue links are better
6)Perhaps ditch the columns all together and run a background bleeding image in a complementary colour with the links atop that - I know it is an overdone design element, but it does tend to look OK.
7)If you did something like this, you could have a graphic on the right hand side - I'd suggest tall and eliptical and faded of the sign's your friend works on.
8)The columns are too claustrophobic.
DR GONZO WROTE
6)Perhaps ditch the columns all together and run a background bleeding image in a complementary colour with the links atop that - I know it is an overdone design element, but it does tend to look OK. SESRAN REPLIES
Can you give me a url of an example of this? I think I know what your talking about, but need to see it to be sure.
Thanks, Sesran
The link color should be changed to something more fitting with the color scheme. I would also suggest to get rid of the white background, and replace it with something closer to orange or red. Perhaps you might want to use more tables and small texts, if you want a more professional look. I don't know about that advice, but it generally works.
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Add some cellpadding so that your center text does not run into the black bars on the sides. I'd still reduce the text size a bit and the text needs refining, althought I realize it is probably just temporary stuff put up to give us a basic idea of how it will look.
Reduce the text size of the links on left. Again, they are running right to the edge of the cell which bothers me, but decreasing their size slightly would fix that without compromising readability.
The blue links are all right here. I normally believe that text colors (including link colors) should be determined by the overall color scheme rather than a traditional convention. Especially when they are underlined, most people now are intelligent enough to figure out they are links even if they are not blue. I realize that it makes it slightly more difficult to tell which links one has and has not visited, but this is far less bothersome to me than a color that sticks out like a sore thumb and was used simply because it is the traditional convention. But I rant for no reason because blue is okay here. I think it actually helps counteract that "Porno" effect that someone referred to earlier.
I like the rotating Phoenixes alot, but they are somewhat distracting because right now they are the most interesting things on the page. I would definitely go ahead and add some images of sample work to the home page. As others mentioned, this will have the additional benefit of clarifying what the company does.
Just a few comments. Hope you can use them. Good luck with the site.
You are going to need pictures and case studies. Pictures of old and restored signs. Pictures of the workshop. People like that kind of stuff. You shouldn't post prices on the site. With this kind of work prices probably vary widely depending on the work involved. Replace that with a "Request for Quotes" form. Then a more educated price can be given to the customer or the company can do a free consultation on site. Signs are all about selling. You have to do that on your site as well. Make it into a glowing sign for the company.
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