February 2, 201016 yr Hi there, I have tried to change my tables based index page to a CSS based page. See the current page HERE See my CSS based Page HERE The trouble is, it still looks like it is based on html tables . My problem is that I am a 'technician' and coder with virtually no design skills at all. Comments on the new design with regard to design/marketing would be much appreciated.
February 3, 201016 yr I think there is just too much information crammed in. Try trimming it down and adding some white space. Padding FTW! Th colour scheme isn't very inspiring either though. Props to you on making the change though!
February 3, 201016 yr Author I think there is just too much information crammed in. Try trimming it down and adding some white space. Padding FTW! Th colour scheme isn't very inspiring either though. Props to you on making the change though! Thanks so much for the response. I know you are right about the whitespace because I see it on other sites although sites like Ebay and B&Q are also crammed with information. I just wanted the home page to have a round-up of what is available on the site. I suppose it means more links and more web pages. unfortunately, won't this mean more clicks to get to what you want to know? I also want to get more 'curves' into the design. PS. you can tell my age as I had to look up Props and FTW for meaning on the Web.
February 3, 201016 yr Hehe I'm not so young myself Actually the thing that grates most on your website is all the dodgy little pictures everywhere. May try and invest in a smart icon set instead, get rid of the testimonials (not a big fan of those in general), get a consistant colour scheme going and get everything lining up with a nice lot of space between the elements.
February 3, 201016 yr Hi TopShopper I find the background pattern too distracting - it makes it difficult to focus on the text and using blue for the main text colour gives it a slightly dated feel. Why not have a look at what other shopping carts sites look like to get some ideas? I think this one works quite well - it has a good balance of information and uses nicely designed icons. There is an amazing range of icons on iStockphoto, and they're not too expensive.
February 3, 201016 yr Author Hi TopShopper I find the background pattern too distracting - it makes it difficult to focus on the text and using blue for the main text colour gives it a slightly dated feel. Why not have a look at what other shopping carts sites look like to get some ideas? I think this one works quite well - it has a good balance of information and uses nicely designed icons. There is an amazing range of icons on iStockphoto, and they're not too expensive. Yes, I have looked at different shoping cart sites and they are all very different - which makes it difficult to choose from. Thanks for directing me to "Mal's" site as this is one I like. Ah well, onwards and upwards.
February 3, 201016 yr Author OK, so I've made it more tidy and I have ditched the blue font. Also ditched the testimonials. Any better? See the current page HERE See my CSS based Page HERE
February 3, 201016 yr PS. you can tell my age as I had to look up Props and FTW for meaning on the Web. LMAO! I LOLed on that bit! Hey, no need to Google! LMAO = Laughing My Ass Off, and LOLed = Laughed Out Loud EDIT: And about the website: Don't mean to come at your design skills, but I think this website deserves a facelift, starting with the logo. It is the appearance and brand that sells the product. The identity has to be just as rock solid as the design of the website. Now I am not trying to sell myself, but I think you should look for a professional designer and UX Expert (UX = User Experience) to do the job for you. I can guarantee it will be worth it in the end.
February 3, 201016 yr It's a massive, massive improvement. But you've got a phobia I've seen many a time - Bigfatmarginophobia. Take your teeny-weeny 10px edges on everything and WHACK THEM UP. Try 50px for size. You probably won't like it... then you can put it down a bit and you'll be close Next have a good think about typography - what are the most important words on the page? Now emphasize them. Use spacing, bold, italic and colour wisely to improve the readability of your text. People scan the page. I looked at your design for long enough to make these comments but cannot remember a single word that appeared on the page. Edited February 3, 201016 yr by ErisDS
February 4, 201016 yr Author It's a massive, massive improvement. But you've got a phobia I've seen many a time - Bigfatmarginophobia. Take your teeny-weeny 10px edges on everything and WHACK THEM UP. Try 50px for size. You probably won't like it... then you can put it down a bit and you'll be close Next have a good think about typography - what are the most important words on the page? Now emphasize them. Use spacing, bold, italic and colour wisely to improve the readability of your text. People scan the page. I looked at your design for long enough to make these comments but cannot remember a single word that appeared on the page. Thank you so much ErisDS. mrchristoph earlier said about 'whitespace' but I didn't twig that it could be done by margins. Sorted out the headings and unified some images. What do you think now? See the current page HERE See my CSS based Page HERE
February 4, 201016 yr Improving! But I think the software box needs some breathing space. Try to give it just as much margin-right as you've given the content. Cheers!
February 4, 201016 yr Author get rid of this its making my eyes bleed: Awww, that's my pride and joy. So what exactly don't you like? Tacky perhaps?
February 4, 201016 yr Author When I view this page in IE6, the widths of the left float and right float colums reduce to the width of the images. Anyone know anything about this? I'm using 'IE Tester' to view it.
February 4, 201016 yr Author Improving! But I think the software box needs some breathing space. Try to give it just as much margin-right as you've given the content. Cheers! Hi, did it by shifting whole box to left by 20 pixels.
February 4, 201016 yr Hi, did it by shifting whole box to left by 20 pixels. Looks better don't you think? But now the bottom is touching the text! Looks like you have some more pixel pushing to do!
February 4, 201016 yr Author Looks better don't you think? But now the bottom is touching the text! Looks like you have some more pixel pushing to do! Sorted Thanks.
February 5, 201016 yr Author Hi I think it is alot better but your logo could do with modernation to fit in with the new site. I too agree that the background is distracting. I also think your navigation needs to be more simple be removing the 'wood' type effect background. I think the main image 'easy' computer keyboard could be better implementing, a faded blurry edge is so cheesy. it's still a million times better though. char OK, that's two people that have commented on the background and the cheesy 'easy'. So what type of background would you suggest and how could I update the cheesy 'easy'. Any thoughts on the Logo? Thanks Mike
February 5, 201016 yr Hey, you can take a look at this (the attached image) old thing I made when I worked for a studio. If you look closely you can see a really faint image in the background. I would suggest that type of effect for the cheesy easy or maybe just a stock image of a keyboard? Here and here is some logo inspiration. Hope that helps spark a couple of ideas!
February 5, 201016 yr Author Hey, you can take a look at this (the attached image) old thing I made when I worked for a studio. If you look closely you can see a really faint image in the background. I would suggest that type of effect for the cheesy easy or maybe just a stock image of a keyboard? Here and here is some logo inspiration. Hope that helps spark a couple of ideas! Thanks for that. The logo stuff is excellent although I could have done without the music on the second site. Yeh I see now, what I've got isn't really a logo is it. Just a mess.
February 5, 201016 yr There's music on the second site?! I guess I missed it And regarding your logo, there's always room for improvement. I always see that a face lift of the identity as well as a website, boosts up sales. Or maybe it's just my personal experience?
February 5, 201016 yr Author OK, a completely new style of background which forms a banner at the top. I think I like it. What do you think? Original Here Latest HERE Hmmm, seems like it works OK in most browsers but IE7 and IE6 mess up the alignment.
February 6, 201016 yr It's definitely a huge improvement on your original design. However I think your Navigation could do with a slight re-design, try a really subtle gradient or the 1px lines effect ( see here ). Other than that nice work
February 6, 201016 yr Author However I think your Navigation could do with a slight re-design, try a really subtle gradient or the 1px lines effect ( see here ). Thanks for the link. Yes I will have a go at that. I like the 1px lines. However, won't be until Tuesday now I think. Anyone any thoughts on the IE6 and IE7 problem?
February 12, 201016 yr Author Just uploaded new site. Thanks for all your help. Still a long way to go but new site is 1000 times better than old one. Home Page . At least it is CSS based so can change layout and colours easily in future.
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