Layout and Web Design Feedback

[daveeeo]

Hi everyone,

I’m looking to seek your opinion on a website design that I currently have for a project I’m working on. If possible I’d love to get your opinion from a web perspective because my designer is predominantly print-based, yet I think they have done a great job on the design below.

Any advice in relation to web design is greatly appreciated :)

Things to consider when looking at the design:
– Target demographic is 18-36 year olds
– Lives an urban lifestyle
– Appreciates the simplistic/light design
– The website will incorporate elements of social networking whilst providing a specific service for the user (can’t go into too much detail yet).

My apologies if the blurred sections in the image limit your feedback, but I can’t reveal too much of this website for now.

Thanks in advance!

Website Design Here

[Luminated]

It’s definitely simple and light and I really like the lack of any rounded corners, although I’m not sure the color choice will appeal to the urban young demographic. The salmon pink definitely stands out, but not as a color that I’m not sure will draw that audience in…perhaps more female than male would appreciate it (I’m male). I imagine something more striking could be of benefit, though, regardless.

As far as specifics:

– The top right “user account” section I don’t think needs the bars…less is more, and just having them as vibrant colored links I think will open the design up a lot and still draw the attention it needs…as well as not using unnecessary design elements (ie..the bars are not functional, just aesthetic…but they aren’t aesthetically pleasing, either)

– The navigation is very minimal and thus I think spread too far…I think compacted and right aligned would be awesome

– Love the Get Started area…the arrow greatly helps…but once again, the color scheme is very feminine and feels almost ‘baby-like’…especially with the baby blue along side it

– Love the map section…

I think that’s it…once again, the design achieves its minimal and urban/hip expression, but the colors are hard to digest (for me) and there are some elements that seem to be there just to break up the white space. It’s been my experience that when you remove these elements and find a cleaner way to approach the desired goals of these areas, you will find a better way.

As a final note, I just wanted you to see this site, which is an urban store in the Americas geared at a similar demographic:

http://www.urbanoutfitters.com

Ironically, there’s a t-shirt on the homepage (at least now there is) that uses the same Salmon Pink! So perhaps this color truly is in and I’m just getting too old…even at 29!

;)

But regardless, experiment!! You might find something better.

[chrisburton]

I think the color salmon is actually quite appealing if you use it correctly.

[daveeeo]

Thanks for the feedback so far.

I’ll definitely play around with the top right section to see if I can use the space more effectively. Once logged in it turns into a mini user dashboard with icons and labels. But maybe if the icons are very concise I can remove the label (ie. one icon is for messages).

[Luminated]

I was actually thinking Icons would be an ideal solution there!

And just clarification; I also like the salmon color and think its a dynamic color indeed, I was just thinking in terms of the target demographic.

[chrisburton]

The color salmon would be fine to use for an urban demographic because the color is currently a trend in fashion.

[robst]

Hi Dave,

Others have commented on the simplicity of the design which I like as well. It has a minimalistic look which I find especially appealing. Accents of salmon color, blue, and grey are nice additions to the site that provide diversity. Again, if there was a salmon color background across the banner, I think that would have been too much.

However, the one thing that really sticks out at me…is “rectangle-itis” or “box-itis” however you want to say it. The layout feels a bit claustrophobic because of all the boxes. I’m not saying or encouraging rounded corners (although, I have nothing against rounded corners) but if you can de-limit the amount of boxes on the layout, I think you’ll have a more fluid layout that “breathes” and is more appealing.

Thanks for reading! :)

[daveeeo]

Guys I’m loving the feedback.

It’s great to have fresh ideas being thrown our way considering we’ve been looking at this design for quite a while.

I think we can agree that ‘less is more’ (as you said Luminated), so I’ll play around and try remove any elements that aren’t necessary.

Cheers!

[Luminated]

@Christopher – I already covered that in my initial post

[chrisburton]

@Luminated: although I’m not sure the color choice will appeal to the urban young demographic.

I noticed.

[OniLinkCR]

Love the layout mate. I think that at this point we would be splitting hairs as to what to include or not. I think the design is great and you ought to keep it as is.

[Author]

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