Finished my website at DVinfo.net

Chris Davis · March 19th, 2006, 05:42 PM

...almost. I still need to replace some of the "temporary" images. You can probably spot them pretty easily.

Take a look: www.famousdavispro.com

Please offer suggestions, even if it's just to point out misspellings and poor sentence structure.

Jim Michael · March 19th, 2006, 05:52 PM

The flash site acts like it's loading and then I get a black screen on a Linux box running Opera that is probably flash 7 or 6 compliant, so I'm probably your worst customer :) Maybe the javascript isn't determining the flash version supported?

The HTML site looks sharp. I see some wrapping that you probably didn't intend on the footer, the 'us' in 'contact us' wrapped to another line in the middle of the page.

Chris Davis · March 19th, 2006, 06:16 PM

Thanks, I haven't had a chance to test it on anything other than Windows/IE. I will be testing it on other platforms when I get to my office tomorrow.

Robert M Wright · March 19th, 2006, 06:49 PM

I just gave it a quick look (on a Win98 machine, with Firefox). I like the general appearance. It would probably be a very good idea not to loop the music infinitely, so as not to annoy viewers (once is plenty - I wound up muting my audio). I'd also turn down the volume (anyone that was previously listening to something soft on their computer, could easily get blown away by that). Thumbnail images, throughout the parts of the site I looked at, that appeared to be links, did nothing when clicked on. As I mentioned, I like the overall appearance. Looks quite professional. Just needs some polishing up.

Chris Davis · March 19th, 2006, 08:25 PM

Ok, the music will only play once now (about 15 seconds), and the pictures no longer appear to be links. They were links early in the project, but that changed, and I forgot to change the pointer style.

There is a volume control at the bottom of the window, but I'll see about setting that to a lower level. I may even edit the music down to 5 seconds or so.

Peter Jefferson · March 19th, 2006, 11:02 PM

10 kids??
Dude.... now THATS an effort and worth applauding!

As for the site, i like it, personally i think its a bit thin on wedding imagery, and maybe some info on the DIFFERENCE between your business and the one down the street, but you have all the necessary info there to establish the fact that you provide that service.

Being a website, IMO it should be more than just a brochure. You now have the means to educate your clients in the difference between a "wedding video" from joe blogs down the road, and a "wedding Presentation" from your company because these days, so much more work goes into video than any other service that the clients (IMO) need to be educated, especially considering your prices.
YOUR business has to have something.. anything, to hook the client and nail their attention and "want to know more" factor RIGHT THERE, and for what youre charging, i havent noticed any differentials between your service and the other business's who your competing with.

The site itself looks great, the logo is a bit big IMO and some of your texts are moving from point to point which can get a little confusing, especialy when comparing packages.

Now the reason i say this is that the layout of your package desriptions, and the information you provide on the service isnt clear. It appears that youre trying to discuss one thing to open up discussion on something else, and IMO, u dont want to spend to much time in discussions, as this takes away from Post Prod time.
Believe me when i say that when u hit the 30 wedding a year mark, you WILL need to rework how you market your product and establish a more efficient time saving sales/info method. When u hit the 40 wedding a year mark, again youll be more pressed to do get teh actual work OUT than it is to get teh business in. Then when u hit the 50 mark, you wont have ANY time for anything else except planning and executing the shooting and focussing on the edits. You might even need to allocate someone to only manage the admin side of things.

Either way, it IS a nice site to my eye and i DID want to read more but to me, there just wasnt enough in there to hook me in the mindset that you have something "special" for me compared to anyone else.

Im sure your business does have something special to offer, i jsut dont know about it yet ;)

Mike F Smith · March 20th, 2006, 03:42 PM

The flash site loaded good for me. The general feel is very good. I didn't like that when I moused over images they did things but then when I did a mouse click nothing happenes. You probibly are going to do something with the images but if not it bothers me. I think you could do a little more at the splash screen. It's at the top of the browser window an that doesn't seem as square and level to my screen as I think your business is.

very nice,

Mike

Chris Davis · March 20th, 2006, 05:06 PM

Yeah, the little animation around the images seems to throw people off. I showed it to a few people in the office, and they also thought the images must be links, since "something" happens when you move the cursor over them. Reluctantly, I'll change that.

I think I'm going to cut the amount of text down. It seems like I'm trying to say too much, without really saying anything at all.

Also, what say you about the "three-in-one" business model? Is it confusing? Does the fact I offer three services (Business video, web design and wedding video) cause them to detract from each other? Should I create a separate site just for weddings? Weddings are not my primary business emphasis, but I enjoy them and would like to continue it. I'm sure I'll limit myself to no more than 15-20 weddings a year.

Travis Cossel · March 21st, 2006, 06:47 PM

I would have a 2nd site for your wedding videography. Maybe 25% of my business is wedding videography, but I made a 2nd site just for it. The reason is that brides want to feel special. If they go to your site and you're talking about corporate videos and websites and such, they instantly feel less special and may even feel like you're trying to be a jack-of-all-trades.

I think it's perfectly fine to have all of your business services listed on one site (video, websites, whatever).

Michael Campanella · March 24th, 2006, 02:40 AM

This is my first post on this site ...

Nice page, very well designed, I like it very much. I have only one comment, a lot of the effects on the Flash version could have been replicated quite easily in the HTML version using simple CSS. Especially the links (like in your navigation menu, footer). Also have you might want to consider adding in some simple PHP script to create server side includes. This one the structure of your side is only loaded one time, and then the content is loaded in separately. It really simply once you see it done, and is good for those few people out there still on dial-up.

I'm not sure your experience with it, but I could explain it fairly quickly in a PM if you are interested.

Thumbs up on the design I like it very much.

Chris Davis · March 24th, 2006, 08:47 AM

Thanks for the suggestions. Yes, do know what you're talking about. I spent most of my time on the flash site, and the HTML was handled more as an afterthought. I'll probably spend more time on the HTML later.

Now before I accept too many accolades on the design - I have to admit it started out as a template, so I can't take too much credit there.

Mike Rinkunas · March 24th, 2006, 09:10 AM

That site looks very nice, music was a bit loud but that is a minor point, however the only suggestion i have is to try to reduce the amount/size of content on the page - I personally like sites that don't have vertical scroll bars. Everything is clearly visible from the begining, this way no one can say 'oh, i didn't see that'.

The flash banner at the top is great, and provides good navigation, but it could be reduced by 10-25% and still have the same effect...

Also i never would have guess this was a template, where did you find it?
~Mike

Edward Slonaker · March 24th, 2006, 09:31 AM

VERY nice! Impressive design (even as a template). The mouse-over effects on the images is a little confusing; I thought they were linked. But, overall, great job. Will there be a demo wedding clip (flash video) sometime?

Chris Davis · March 24th, 2006, 10:02 AM

Yes, a demo video is forthcoming (both for weddings and business video.) The template is from TemplateMonster.com. I used to be very anti-template, but now I realize that a good template can save hours of development (and save the client hundreds of dollars.) There's still a part of me that feels like it's "cheating", but all the client cares about is the cost and the finished product.

Thanks for all the suggestions. Due to the input here, I'm going to:

1. Cut down on the amount of text.
2. Remove the mouse-over effect on the images.
3. Create a separate site just for weddings (brides want to feel that they are your ONLY focus!)
4. Try to find a way to separate myself from the competition.

Richard Bender · March 27th, 2006, 09:13 AM

I like it. Like the choice of flash or html. Everyone has their own taste on sites. Some say less is more and some like it packed. Yours looks good.

March 19th, 2006, 05:42 PM	#1
Chris Davis Trustee Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Willmar, MN Posts: 1,400	Finished my website ...almost. I still need to replace some of the "temporary" images. You can probably spot them pretty easily. Take a look: www.famousdavispro.com Please offer suggestions, even if it's just to point out misspellings and poor sentence structure.

March 21st, 2006, 06:47 PM	#9
Travis Cossel Inner Circle Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Miami, FL Posts: 2,933	I would have a 2nd site for your wedding videography. Maybe 25% of my business is wedding videography, but I made a 2nd site just for it. The reason is that brides want to feel special. If they go to your site and you're talking about corporate videos and websites and such, they instantly feel less special and may even feel like you're trying to be a jack-of-all-trades. I think it's perfectly fine to have all of your business services listed on one site (video, websites, whatever). __________________ Black Label Films www.blacklabelweddingfilms.com

March 24th, 2006, 09:31 AM	#13
Edward Slonaker Major Player Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Hell's 6 acres in S. Texas Posts: 203	VERY nice! Impressive design (even as a template). The mouse-over effects on the images is a little confusing; I thought they were linked. But, overall, great job. Will there be a demo wedding clip (flash video) sometime? __________________ Edward Slonaker El Pilon Productions San Patricio, Texas www.elpilon.com

March 19th, 2006, 05:52 PM	#2
Jim Michael Major Player Join Date: Dec 2005 Posts: 895	The flash site acts like it's loading and then I get a black screen on a Linux box running Opera that is probably flash 7 or 6 compliant, so I'm probably your worst customer :) Maybe the javascript isn't determining the flash version supported? The HTML site looks sharp. I see some wrapping that you probably didn't intend on the footer, the 'us' in 'contact us' wrapped to another line in the middle of the page.

March 19th, 2006, 06:16 PM	#3
Chris Davis Trustee Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Willmar, MN Posts: 1,400	Thanks, I haven't had a chance to test it on anything other than Windows/IE. I will be testing it on other platforms when I get to my office tomorrow.

March 19th, 2006, 06:49 PM	#4
Robert M Wright Inner Circle Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Minnesota (USA) Posts: 2,171	I just gave it a quick look (on a Win98 machine, with Firefox). I like the general appearance. It would probably be a very good idea not to loop the music infinitely, so as not to annoy viewers (once is plenty - I wound up muting my audio). I'd also turn down the volume (anyone that was previously listening to something soft on their computer, could easily get blown away by that). Thumbnail images, throughout the parts of the site I looked at, that appeared to be links, did nothing when clicked on. As I mentioned, I like the overall appearance. Looks quite professional. Just needs some polishing up.

March 19th, 2006, 08:25 PM	#5
Chris Davis Trustee Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Willmar, MN Posts: 1,400	Ok, the music will only play once now (about 15 seconds), and the pictures no longer appear to be links. They were links early in the project, but that changed, and I forgot to change the pointer style. There is a volume control at the bottom of the window, but I'll see about setting that to a lower level. I may even edit the music down to 5 seconds or so.

March 19th, 2006, 11:02 PM	#6
Peter Jefferson Inner Circle Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Aus Posts: 3,884	10 kids?? Dude.... now THATS an effort and worth applauding! As for the site, i like it, personally i think its a bit thin on wedding imagery, and maybe some info on the DIFFERENCE between your business and the one down the street, but you have all the necessary info there to establish the fact that you provide that service. Being a website, IMO it should be more than just a brochure. You now have the means to educate your clients in the difference between a "wedding video" from joe blogs down the road, and a "wedding Presentation" from your company because these days, so much more work goes into video than any other service that the clients (IMO) need to be educated, especially considering your prices. YOUR business has to have something.. anything, to hook the client and nail their attention and "want to know more" factor RIGHT THERE, and for what youre charging, i havent noticed any differentials between your service and the other business's who your competing with. The site itself looks great, the logo is a bit big IMO and some of your texts are moving from point to point which can get a little confusing, especialy when comparing packages. Now the reason i say this is that the layout of your package desriptions, and the information you provide on the service isnt clear. It appears that youre trying to discuss one thing to open up discussion on something else, and IMO, u dont want to spend to much time in discussions, as this takes away from Post Prod time. Believe me when i say that when u hit the 30 wedding a year mark, you WILL need to rework how you market your product and establish a more efficient time saving sales/info method. When u hit the 40 wedding a year mark, again youll be more pressed to do get teh actual work OUT than it is to get teh business in. Then when u hit the 50 mark, you wont have ANY time for anything else except planning and executing the shooting and focussing on the edits. You might even need to allocate someone to only manage the admin side of things. Either way, it IS a nice site to my eye and i DID want to read more but to me, there just wasnt enough in there to hook me in the mindset that you have something "special" for me compared to anyone else. Im sure your business does have something special to offer, i jsut dont know about it yet ;)

March 20th, 2006, 03:42 PM	#7
Mike F Smith Regular Crew Join Date: Oct 2005 Posts: 156	The flash site loaded good for me. The general feel is very good. I didn't like that when I moused over images they did things but then when I did a mouse click nothing happenes. You probibly are going to do something with the images but if not it bothers me. I think you could do a little more at the splash screen. It's at the top of the browser window an that doesn't seem as square and level to my screen as I think your business is. very nice, Mike

March 20th, 2006, 05:06 PM	#8
Chris Davis Trustee Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Willmar, MN Posts: 1,400	Yeah, the little animation around the images seems to throw people off. I showed it to a few people in the office, and they also thought the images must be links, since "something" happens when you move the cursor over them. Reluctantly, I'll change that. I think I'm going to cut the amount of text down. It seems like I'm trying to say too much, without really saying anything at all. Also, what say you about the "three-in-one" business model? Is it confusing? Does the fact I offer three services (Business video, web design and wedding video) cause them to detract from each other? Should I create a separate site just for weddings? Weddings are not my primary business emphasis, but I enjoy them and would like to continue it. I'm sure I'll limit myself to no more than 15-20 weddings a year.

March 24th, 2006, 02:40 AM	#10
Michael Campanella New Boot Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Stockholm, Sweden Posts: 11	This is my first post on this site ... Nice page, very well designed, I like it very much. I have only one comment, a lot of the effects on the Flash version could have been replicated quite easily in the HTML version using simple CSS. Especially the links (like in your navigation menu, footer). Also have you might want to consider adding in some simple PHP script to create server side includes. This one the structure of your side is only loaded one time, and then the content is loaded in separately. It really simply once you see it done, and is good for those few people out there still on dial-up. I'm not sure your experience with it, but I could explain it fairly quickly in a PM if you are interested. Thumbs up on the design I like it very much.

March 24th, 2006, 08:47 AM	#11
Chris Davis Trustee Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Willmar, MN Posts: 1,400	Thanks for the suggestions. Yes, do know what you're talking about. I spent most of my time on the flash site, and the HTML was handled more as an afterthought. I'll probably spend more time on the HTML later. Now before I accept too many accolades on the design - I have to admit it started out as a template, so I can't take too much credit there.

March 24th, 2006, 09:10 AM	#12
Mike Rinkunas Regular Crew Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Allentown, PA Posts: 134	That site looks very nice, music was a bit loud but that is a minor point, however the only suggestion i have is to try to reduce the amount/size of content on the page - I personally like sites that don't have vertical scroll bars. Everything is clearly visible from the begining, this way no one can say 'oh, i didn't see that'. The flash banner at the top is great, and provides good navigation, but it could be reduced by 10-25% and still have the same effect... Also i never would have guess this was a template, where did you find it? ~Mike

March 24th, 2006, 10:02 AM	#14
Chris Davis Trustee Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Willmar, MN Posts: 1,400	Yes, a demo video is forthcoming (both for weddings and business video.) The template is from TemplateMonster.com. I used to be very anti-template, but now I realize that a good template can save hours of development (and save the client hundreds of dollars.) There's still a part of me that feels like it's "cheating", but all the client cares about is the cost and the finished product. Thanks for all the suggestions. Due to the input here, I'm going to: 1. Cut down on the amount of text. 2. Remove the mouse-over effect on the images. 3. Create a separate site just for weddings (brides want to feel that they are your ONLY focus!) 4. Try to find a way to separate myself from the competition.

March 27th, 2006, 09:13 AM	#15
Richard Bender Regular Crew Join Date: Feb 2006 Posts: 40	I like it. Like the choice of flash or html. Everyone has their own taste on sites. Some say less is more and some like it packed. Yours looks good.