Website feedback required
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- 19 Responses
- bkpatterson
Hey everyone, I've just recently started freelancing as a graphic designer as my main bread and butter and I was hoping you could provide me with some feedback on my updated website? Usability? Anything missing? Anything overkill? Anything!
- idiots0
Payment required for consultation
- ukit20
The text is quite small. The whole thing would work better with larger and more varied, more expressive text treatment.
Also, why is Terms and Conditions in the main nav? No one's going to read that. Ironically the whole thing comes across like boilerplate legalese because of the tiny text.
- bkpatterson0
Thanks ukit2. Good point about t&c in the main nav... I will move it down to the design brief template area and I will try the text at a slightly larger type size, Im one of those suckers for clean design.
- inteliboy0
Agree, work on the typography - text is small, feels a bit fiddly and early 2000's.
I'd loose the grey line under the logo. Perhaps use a zig zag line instead like the footer, or at least get a more playful style happening to match your brand.
- inteliboy0
Also get a consistent grid happening, give your copy space to breath if you like clean design. Will work wonders for a site like this.
- bkpatterson0
agreed inteliboy. Im wrestling to break out of the corporate style I normally design for. The logo and business name says fun but then everything else is just drab. I re-work things again.
- mikotondria30
Same here re the text. Bump up all your text-sizes by 50%. The top identity bar, for want of a better term - the horizontal section at the top containing the logo is having trouble relating to the next section - the nav. Give it, or the nav, a different color background - the double-edged line is causing confusion. Space it out, take it too far even, then dial it back in. Couple of textures and maybe a small shadow to seperate the main central content up and over the background will draw the eye to it. The focus is the video - is there anyway you can have a screenshot from it where the current black hole is ? Maybe have the play arrow over it, and just fire some js that hides that and shows the video in place and starts it playing, or use a video player that will accept an initial image parameter...the name of one I used escapes me and I can't even recall the site I used it on, sorry : |
Just to reinforce your brand, also, you might try subtly using one of the green tones in the design somewhere, just a touch here or there, or a something in the background.
It shouldn't take you long to tune this up; like I always say to clients - it's the last 5% of time that sees the last 50% improvement in how something comes together - the hard work doesn't shine through til you polish it. Obsess about the tiny details of margins and color and pixel perfect placement and it all resonates and becomes more than the sum of its parts. Also know when to stop :)
HTH
- bkpatterson0
- That's more like it. Do you even need the horizonal rule if you give the whole nav a different bg color ? "Lines are lazy " :Pmikotondria3
- Nathan_Adams0
One thing that makes me curious watching your showreel,
It says you've used the song Gong by Sigur Ros, who have granted permission to use it for non-commercial use only. However, doesn't using it to promote your business make it commercial use? I assume you intend the showreel to attract paying clients.
- BabySnakes0
is that a Happy Tree Friend?
- dbloc0
video on the home page needs a thumbnail. The blank black box looks like a mistake or a broken video
- bkpatterson0
Good Point Nathan... Thats a law suit waiting to happen! Once upon a time my video was purely for presentation purposes but recently that's changed. Thanks for the blatant slap in the face:)
- Fax_Benson0
Why not start with the folio page? The current homepage is mostly footer and a black video box. I'd open with the folio page and have a 'latest projects' slider at the top instead of the reel.
- Benja820
its a bit boring to use at the moment, could do with some interactivity. Hover states at least
- monospaced0
Identity crisis!
Why the diarrhea green baby anime cat thing? Does that represent good design to you? To me it is quite the opposite. Let the work speak for itself, and here's a CRAZY idea: use yourself as a mascot. Yeah, it's insane, but often times your real name speaks loads more about you than a cartoon.
Also, there is absolutely no need whatsoever, not on the homepage or anywhere, ever, to write what software you used to create something, let alone add the logos for them. Please, do yourself a favor and ditch the Apple and Adobe logos. Clients don't give a flying fuck and potential employers can make that assumption already.
Good luck.
- monospaced0
also, this is terrifying:
"If you are not completely satisfied with the outcome of Brendan's work, he will continue to work with you at no additional charge until you are*."
- Yeh, fucken hell - I bet you only do that a couple of times until you realise why no one else does :). Maybe 1 allnighter...mikotondria3
- "terrifying" - indeed.ben_
- hahahaha Why would you say that. FFS.pillhead
- vaxorcist0
the photos seem weaker than the rest of the site on:
http://www.onecreativecreature.c…The music for the video... was it used with permission? That sort of thing is a red flag for media companies in the US, not sure about Australia?
http://www.onecreativecreature.c…
seems very wordy, the main idea is "I will respect you, and not treat you like shit"
- k_temp0
I feel like the gray area is the footnote, since it bleeds off the bottom edge without scrolling, I assume that content is the end. Mainly because most of the stuff (contact, follow us, disclaimer etc) are always on the bottom (footnote). But then, when I scroll down i encounter another footnote with the address.
Wouldn't be better to put them all together.
And why do you repeat Follow Us (twitter, youtube, etc) twice? Just have it once and move your address into the gray area.HOME feels tight, i'd give more space between the white background and gray background, again it's because i assume that's a footnote. Also, because of that assumption, SERVICES and WHO-WE-ARE gray box is distracting me; i prefer the white background like FOLIO.
cheers!