Before: www.webshout.com.au After: http://tinyurl.com/mm4sh8 Although i'm still half way there in developing the code for the new version (I even need to implement WordPress for the Useful Articles section). I'm happy with the design... so I though I'd get the opinion of my beloved DP members
The first thing that stands out is the bright green. It distracts from the rest of the text and is hard to read on top of white. Second is the flash navigation. It would be nice to have a static fall back for people without flash (such as mobile users or 64-bit browsers). Lastly, there are a couple issues with the banner. The text is a different font than the rest of the page and is not anti-aliased. Also, it provides no information about what you do.
thanks for your feedback allen... i've been considering to darken the green text... it's just that it's part of the logo color scheme. There is a secondary navigation in the footer, but I am also considering having a javascript to replace the flash for a normal text navigation if the user doesn't have flash, and if the user doesn't have both flash and javascript, then they can use the footer links... although the page content probably won't load... hmm, you've given me something to think about... can you tell me more about the issues with the banner... yes, i've used different fonts in the header banner to make it look distinct from the rest of the body... and yes, it doesn't include much information about what the website is about, but i'm hoping that the people who will be visiting this website will already know what they're looking for and they're in that "web design" mind set.
I prefer the first one but overall the design is lacking, try to choose more appealing fonts and colors.
lol nice, i like the girl kicking the monitor ahaha. I kinda like the first sites colors better though.. Your title tag has php short tags in it, may be appearing wrong!
I echo what everyone else has said. Overall your new design is too busy. It's better to have more formal html code instead of fancy flash navigation that may not open up in all browsers. I would also try more nutral colors so that it looks more professional.
hey, nice make over 1 bug, in firefox title is shown as, "<? echo $title; ?>" and for articles, 1 suggestion, instead of showing "Sorry, but you are looking for something that isn't here", you can add some dummy articles, so that user can stay on ur site for more time
i probably mentioned this before, but i'm still in the process of coding the website... so both the title and useful-articles aren't ready... I plan on installing WordPress for the Useful-Articles page. Imbo, flash works on 99% or more web browsers, it's only if the users have flash disable would they not be able to navigate using the primary navigation... and for those people I have a secondary navigation in the footer which they can use. This secondary navigation helps me fix potential SEO problems, those with flash problems, those who are disabled.
Nice background on 2-nd link, not sure if it's suit the whole theme of your company - but looks nice. Have you create it by your own ?
Both pages took well over 30 seconds to load, but I let them sit there so they finished up. One the second design, that green killed my eyes, it's early and dark here. Ow.... Otherwise good overall job
I like the new site, but the sliding contact box is a bit distracting. Have you considered a jquery based slide down on click contact box? anchor the contact us button and slide down on click to show the contact form?
Yea, i know... unfortunately it's part of my logo color scheme, so I want to include it within the content... but I might have to reconsider. Thanks! Hahaha, nice joke... why don't you try to "create a better design" and if it really is a better design... I'll buy it of ya!!! Hi latro, I've made the sliding "Quote Form" box distracting on purpose. I believe when it comes to pursuading someone to fill out a form, nagging can be a powerful tool. So I guess i'm "hoping" that customers will fill out the form as they might thing this might stop once the form is submitted Hey, that made me realize, I probably will need to get the box to disappear after a quick/simple thank you message.. ahh, so much more work is involved with this redesign then i originally assumed
I like the old version better. Sorry. Not that either of them are that amazing but the first is better IMO. On the new one: The JS menu annoys me. A nice CSS based menu with a good hover effect would make it look better and be better for SEO. Actually, most of the site annoys me. Moving between pages not having a state refresh? That'll be killing your accessibility for a start. The "get a quote" thing scrolling as you scroll down is just annoying and in your face (distracting from the main content), if someone wants a quote then i'm sure they arn't too lazy to scroll to the top of the page :/ The URLs on your "examples" page should point to the site in question.