I'm trying to market a certain image for my business: - Clean - Professional - Modern - Elite - Fresh Designs A design that reflects the images listed above and a sense that it's pricey (essentially) What do you think about my homepage? How can I improve it to reflect these images? And what came to your mind when you first see it?
You're completely lacking a marketing message at the moment. I'd say start there. Come up with a slogan that says it all, and get it added to the site. Remember, a design alone won't create an image. There's a lot more to it (your portfolio, the copy on your website, etc.), and it all has to convey the same message... so craft your actual message first.
Thanks J I am!!! I have no formal education about marketing. Do you have any books that you recommend I check out? I'm more of arts for art's sake person.. which needs to change! And of course, this is just the front page, it'll be accompanied by my portfolio
hi 8, less is more. the "harder" you work to tell everyone HOW GREAT YOU ARE, the less and less they will believe you. (there are exceptions). i know your work, it's AWESOME. and, i like your new home page - simple, "understated" and professional. could you use a tagline? - sure. (i might hold a small contest for this) - there are some great minds here. for $10 or $15, someone will come up with a BEAUTY! like > unparalleled web design best of luck! mike
I'd suggest starting with a basic "Principles of Marketing" textbook. You can probably pick up a used one for less than $20 over on Amazon.
Thanks for the insight Mike! I think my current design at: www.nufrosh.com has gotten out of hand lol Jenn, I will definitely have a look at those types of books Thanks! Are Jack Trout books any good? I'm mainly looking for more marketing books that can be used with designing (if that makes sense )
Don't worry about anything industry-specific until you have the basics down. You don't need to know all of the basics of marketing, but understand messages and how they're supported is pretty vital. I only read one of his books, and he co-authored it, so I'm not familiar enough with his work (solo) to give a fair opinion on it. I do generally suggest the guerrilla marketing books for any independent professionals, and I suggest looking at books on topics like book publicity, music marketing, etc. (a lot of the same ideas can be tailored to other independent types of work, but you don't often see the same kind of creative ideas laid out for others).
@longhornfreak: It is a splash page.. but it's also a homepage where it leads to every other page so it's function really isn't a homepage @designerz: How can I make it more professional and what makes it look unprofessional? Thanks
Just my two cents: 1. Logo on the splash page (sort of looks like a splash page) sits too low on the page. With so much space above the logo and less below it, it gives the appearance the logo is sinking down the screen. I worked at a photo studio back in the day, and I would work a page into thirds. I would place the logo (if placed on a blank canvas like yours) with, give or take, in the top 2/3 of the page. Whatever the size of the blank space below the logo (in this case, factor your screen size), split that number in half, and place that 'half' space above the logo to give it balance on the page and prevent it from sinking on the screen. 2. I think the gradient that fades to a demarcation line at the bottom of the screen gives the appearance the bottom of the page ends at this point. It looks like a geographical border to me. But, then, you have navigation below that. To me, the navigation gets lost and is disconnected from the rest of the page. I would say trying playing around with navigation above the demarcation so that the page feels more cohesive. 3. I don't see it here, but on your site, the 'nufosh' name has the color green pulled from the leaves into the "N" and the "U". I like that myself. But I don't see you've incorporated it here. Is this an oversight or are you attempting to change your brand? I also see that 3-D look of the leaves as being a bit cartoonish. Have you tried making the two leaves flat or more illustrative? Anyway, those are the elements that I see popping out of me that have not yet been covered. I think, yes, a tag line or something that economically (text-wise) gets the point of your site across would be helpful. Me, I won't click on navigation unless I have an idea of the services or products the site is selling. Good luck!