Comments on: Watchband.biz website critique

By: David Airey

David Airey — Tue, 24 Apr 2007 19:41:36 +0000

Michael,

Many thanks for stopping by, and for requesting the review of Watchband.biz in the first place. I hope it is of use for you.

Sean,

I agree with you about the white on black.

By: Sean

Sean — Tue, 24 Apr 2007 18:28:08 +0000

The left navigation actually makes me dizzy looking at it. White text on black background is a big no-no in any sort of design. IF you MUST use white on black, make the white text bold since the black actually “sucks” away the white text.

By: Michael Kares

Michael Kares — Tue, 24 Apr 2007 18:24:54 +0000

The design and SEO has been made the site owner, not a professional, and on top of a JS heavy content management system. I am well aware of the lack of “elegance, exclusivity and simplicity” (agreed, Asgeir). So you all, why not send me a quote for a new design. After all, I would be happy to freshen up the site.

By: David Airey

David Airey — Tue, 24 Apr 2007 18:02:37 +0000

Asgeir, yes, subtlety is my strong point. ;) I agree that more emphasis could be placed on trust-building .

Thanks for letting me know you enjoy my logo posts. I’ll come up with some more soon.

Cheers ilker.

Terinea, thanks for your feedback too. You make very valid points. I didn’t have time to go into more detail so your input is extremely welcome.

By: Terinea Tech Tips

Terinea Tech Tips — Tue, 24 Apr 2007 16:11:40 +0000

The first paragraph of text the hyperlinks are invisible until you roll over them. Now I presume they have done this because they aren’t really meant to be clicked on, more a SEO aspect than functional and design one. On the subject of SEO the URL’s are not search engine friendly. The site would almost benefit from friendly URL’s.
Eg http://www.watchband.biz/watchbands-rubber-synthetic
rather than…
http://www.watchband.biz/pi-509976714.htm?categoryId=26

By: ilker

ilker — Tue, 24 Apr 2007 12:05:37 +0000

Great review!

By: Asgeir Hoem

Asgeir Hoem — Tue, 24 Apr 2007 11:01:37 +0000

“The Watchband.biz logo isn’t the worst I’ve seen”. That’s subtle :-D

Yeah, the overall look and feel of the site is heavy indeed. The logo in Impact(?) is not doing anything to help this, either.

The target audience has not been addressed at all, and my guess is that the designer couldn’t care less. People buying a 202 dollar watch band of alligator skin are people who are more conscious about aesthetics than others, and this could - should - be taken advantage of when designing a site like this. Elegance, exclusivity and simplicity.

To build trust, the Visa, Mastercard and FedEx logos could be more visible. Considering the footer navigation, you’re right. The sizing page, for instance, should be shown earlier.

David,
I enjoyed your logo posts. Stuff like that seems to be pretty rare, so keep up.

- A