# I'd appreciate some eyes on this...



## vermontpainter (Dec 24, 2007)

We are on the tail end of a blog site overhaul. Kind of at that stage where I've been staring at it for too long. 

There are a couple of things still needing final touches...header/logo/title finalization, etc.

But I'd appreciate some "user experience" feedback as far as navigation, layout, functionality. 

Click here 

Thanks


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## daArch (Mar 15, 2008)

You know I would give my opinions, but I am still not sure of the purpose of a blog. 

Are they to give little spinets of easy to find information or to assault the senses with so much content that the person is confused as to where to go ?

The latter seems to be the rule to all blogs I look at, not just yours. 

There is one minor design suggestion I can offer without getting into the purpose and usefulness of blogs. If I were to go to your blog site without knowing what your field was, I would gather, from the side borders, that you were some kind of woodworker. But that is minor, I suppose. 

I did not read any content because I was sure it was all written with your normally stellar style.


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## vermontpainter (Dec 24, 2007)

daArch said:


> You know I would give my opinions, but I am still not sure of the purpose of a blog.
> 
> Are they to give little spinets of easy to find information or to assault the senses with so much content that the person is confused as to where to go ?
> 
> ...


This is not a "why blog?" topic. 

This is a check out the damn blog as a paint industry enthusiast and tell me what you think! 

:thumbup:


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## daArch (Mar 15, 2008)

I know, that's why I gave you such limited feedback. The side borders are the only thing I could have a valid opinion about. 

the rest was an explanation of why my feedback was so limited.


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## vermontpainter (Dec 24, 2007)

daArch said:


> I know, that's why I gave you such limited feedback. The side borders are the only thing I could have a valid opinion about.
> 
> the rest was an explanation of why my feedback was so limited.


The feedback was limited because you stated that you did not read anything. 

:jester:

I understand, Bill.


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## Paint and Hammer (Feb 26, 2008)

I go to your blog when I get a subscription update through my mail. It takes me directly to the update. Only a few times have I gone to your blog to find something again, to be honest I can't remember its layout, but I do know it took me while and moreso I wasn't sure 'what all was there'. It was kind of search and discover.

With that said, this one seems a more organized. Items laid out down the middle with thumbnails is easy to see and navigate. 

My question would be why only four 'articles' (? - not sure if that is the right word) per category. I like the "Wood Snobbery" , "Cutting Room Floor", "Tools". 

But if I go to Tools looking for Festool Extractor I won't find it there. I have to scroll down to "You may also like". Easy enough, but the what if I were going to your blog to find one thing. I think it would be ok to be redundant. Put your articles under the appropriate heading, but as you produce new ones, put in the "You may also Like" or title it "Recent Articles" or "The latest..." your the author...with a link to the article under the category that it belongs.

I'd then like to see the category titles Bigger and more profound. 

my thoughts....


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## vermontpainter (Dec 24, 2007)

P&H

The body of the page is like a highlight show. The primary source of navigation is still the Category Navigation bar under the header photo. Under Tools, you see a dropdown, and Power Sanders would be the category that sorts the broader category of Tools down to the specific ones you might want to read about. 

Thank you for the honest feedback, it helps alot.


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## Paradigmzz (May 5, 2010)

The feed does not have subscriptions by email enabled. 

Ie. Feed burn settings need to be enabled.


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## jacob33 (Jun 2, 2009)

Looks good. I think JP is going to have competition on who is the king of PT product and tool reviews. Do you think your up to that challenge Scott.


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## Paradigmzz (May 5, 2010)

jacob33 said:


> Looks good. I think JP is going to have competition on who is the king of PT product and tool reviews. Do you think your up to that challenge Scott.


As soon as JP is published as much as Scott, maybe jp will be up to the task....


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## jacob33 (Jun 2, 2009)

Paradigmzz said:


> As soon as JP is published as much as Scott, maybe jp will be up to the task....


 
Dont doubt the JP:jester:He has Behr on his side.


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## vermontpainter (Dec 24, 2007)

I enjoy jp's blog. 

We don't really do the same thing.


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## straight_lines (Oct 17, 2007)

I like it Scott, more things on the title page. The background image still needs some work. 

1920x1200 the color layer is missing a few pixels for me.


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## y.painting (Jul 19, 2009)

In terms of functionality and content, it's very good. 

In terms of design, I'm really not a fan of that background. It takes me back to 1997 when tiled background images were all the rage and it is also hard on my eyes - the background is competing for eye attention with the actual content and content photos.

In terms of top level navigation, I find it too detailed ie there's a category overload and as a result, a user might not explore any of them resorting to only the content on the front page. I think many of those categories are better suited for a side-bar category navigation rather than top-level navigation. Instead, I suggest trying to group some of those things into even bigger top level categories and leave the sub-categories to the sidebar.


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## ewingpainting.net (Jun 2, 2008)

Being on my BB, I can't see the background image. Ut seems easy for navigating on my phone, less clicks which is good for mobile. I can understand Y's thoughts. Looking good though Scot


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## RCP (Apr 18, 2007)

Y, that's an interesting observation about the navigation, I like the way it is.

I think a lot of it has to do with the way we personally navigate sites. I notice this a lot as I teach kids and teachers how to do stuff at school. I'd be interested to see any data on that if you knew of some, it is an interesting topic. We were having a discussion on another forum about websites, whether you prefer to have a new window open or not. Thanks


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## KeirK (Nov 30, 2007)

Hey Scott,
Firstly, praise for taking on the responsibility of such a knowledge base. They are difficult to continue and extremely time consuming!
my recommendations:
1. your tagline under the initial title "Where Product Drives Process" I would recommend changing it to something that says your in the paint and wood care business. a crappy example "From painting to wood care, an experts review"
2. the right side of the blog could use better separation from the left with possible color change in the background. Make sure they are both identified for their purpose. Left for current posts and categories by time line and right for all the other misc stuff. Its easy to get lost on the page, and if you do separate them, people will know where they want to go over time.
3. I love your categories, and they should be in larger font so they are easier to differentiate.
4. A much more difficult thing to deal with is the quantity of content. Typically a blog would have the most recent post open and ready to read with a backlog column for previous posts. This layout is more of a straight up website which is fine, that may help you determine how to arrange it. 

Good luck with it and hope all is well up there in VT, leaves are gone by now I am sure!
Keir


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## PressurePros (May 6, 2007)

It looks awesome, Scott. Great layout and clean navigation. The background image does render wrong on different screen resolutions. Its not terrible nor is it distracting for me but I can see how it would affect some readers. Here is what I see. The tiling is what causes the problem. Its the little sliver that takes away from the neatness of the background.


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## RCP (Apr 18, 2007)

Good feedback, I have been helping Scott with it and the background has been my biggest PITA, be curious if it appears like that to more people. Is that IE Ken?


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## KeirK (Nov 30, 2007)

Seems to be optimized for the iPhone, no worries viewing it there. Also good on IE 8 Vista.
Keir


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## RCP (Apr 18, 2007)

Yea, I did it all on my Macbook!


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## WarlinePainting (May 22, 2011)

What about skipping the background all together? Just a solid colour.


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## RCP (Apr 18, 2007)

Yes, that is an option, Tommy (straightlines) is working on a logo/header and then we will decide, this has been a collaboration! But you know what a wood snob the guy that owns it is!


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## Ultimate (Mar 20, 2011)

If I were a potential customer, I would take a glance and think right away you were clearly the expert on things. The testing of this or that blogs shows you have done your homework. It is a good sales tool imo.


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## CApainter (Jun 29, 2007)

I like it! I'll be looking forward to reading the tool reviews, and articles about the business.

Thanks for this resource VP.


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## jenni (Aug 4, 2011)

i really like it. i'd say highlight the video section by putting a bolder heading on it.
also your "home" link on the top links to a page that says "sorry, page not found"


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## bikerboy (Sep 16, 2007)

I mean this with no malice.

But blogs in general, and yours in particular are staring to look like websites all revolving around "look at me!". (which is the essence of a blog)

It's nice, its well designed, it works, but it's more website than blog.


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## vermontpainter (Dec 24, 2007)

I think "blog" is becoming a bit of an outdated term. They have evolved to the point where they are sites. They dont have the cumbersome url's that they used to have, and they are fully customizable, and more user friendly than a traditional website. 

Perhaps some clarification is in order. My "site" happens to be on a wordpress platform. Its similarities to traditional blogs and the way they are used probably ends there in a lot of ways. 

*IT IS IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT:*

I don't use my website or my wp site to try to attract business to my paint contracting company. My business is mostly new construction, referral and repeat, so I just dont use online marketing for business. 

However, as a professional writer in numerous paint/home publications, my writing quickly outgrew the capacity I wanted it to occupy on my business website, so I wanted a place to archive that content, independent of my business website. 

Wordpress was the obvious choice, because I am not a code writer, and the wp platform with its cms setup is relatively easy for a doofus like me to update and work with.

The content of this new site is mostly paint product and tool review. With some business topics that I have published over the years in apc. 

The purpose of the site is for other paint contractors who are looking for information on product, to have a place to go where they can read a review, and most likely SEE footage of the stuff in action with real painters. 

Thats pretty much it. We see it here on pt all the time. 

"Is the unloader on your 395 loud??"

Pretty good chance there is a 395 unloader muffler mod somewhere in my archives. 

"Will a RO125 strip 16 layers of paint?"

Probably a video of that somewhere in there. 

"Do all Proshots pulsate??"

Bunch of videos of Proshots painting cabinets, doors, spindles, etc. 

Its just a resource. It happens to be mostly content that I and my business have accumulated. The intent is to share with others, because we have been the lucky beneficiaries of information that others have shared with us. 

If you hate it and think it is stupid, I want to hear it. 

If you like it and have suggestions of content that would help you make decisions on product or process for your business, I want to hear it. 

If you just enjoy looking at the images and vids and want to comment, thats cool. 

I dont have all the answers, by any means. But I do have some information that others are looking for and I am happy to share. Again, the majority of what is on the site is an extension of my writing in APC. I just thought it made sense, if I review a tool, to have a place to report back a year later on how it did further in its life. There arent many resources like that for us paint contractors. 

Thank you all for the feedback, and just wanted to clarify what the site and its intent is.


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## y.painting (Jul 19, 2009)

Scott, some of the tweaks you guys made in the past 2-3 days made a big different for me!

One thing I'm confused about it the top bar with more menu options there (besides the main nav bar). I see what you're trying to do there, but a first time visitor (especially someone not super internet savvy) might confuse that bar for the main navigation. 

Also, that bar decapitates your employee each time I scroll...it's actually kind of fun hehe


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## y.painting (Jul 19, 2009)

Oh forgot, do you have the same pic of the background, but with a finished product? Or did you want to show only a few boards stained and the rest unfinished?


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## PressurePros (May 6, 2007)

Scott, you sure Ron's megalomania isn't rubbing off on you? :devil2:


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## WarlinePainting (May 22, 2011)

Scott, 

The site looks great and it continues to get better with every tweak you guys are making. It is definitely more than a blog. I know I have it bookmarked so I can keep coming back to it to find product and equipment reviews.

Congrats on a great site.


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## Ultimate (Mar 20, 2011)

No like button..... Get one please


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## RCP (Apr 18, 2007)

FatherandSonPainting said:


> No like button..... Get one please


Thanks, it does need one, and a Twitter!

Thanks Y for the screen shots, the background and the menu bar have given me the most issues. I changed it, love to hear which you prefer.

Jenni, that is a good suggestion about the videos, thanks. Scott has a ton of them and I trying to figure the best way to show them.


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## WarlinePainting (May 22, 2011)

bikerboy said:


> But blogs in general, and yours in particular are staring to look like websites all revolving around "look at me!". (which is the essence of a blog)


LOL - well at least you get the point.


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## Holly (Jun 14, 2011)

When I saw you mention 

' "Will a RO125 strip 16 layers of paint?"

Probably a video of that somewhere in there.'

I went hunting for that in your site, but couldn't find it. Is it possible to put a search box on your site, or is wordpress kind of a rigid thing where you can't do that? I didn't find the sander in the drop-down menu under power sanders.

I really enjoyed looking through your site and seeing all the information you have there--you have created a valuable resource. 

Your site seems pretty user friendly. I'm not so knowledgeable about websites, except that I know when it's easy to use, which yours is. Except for the search box...

In terms of the background image, I love the idea of the wood deck and the beautiful scenery behind it; it creates a visceral response regarding what your values and aesthetic must be, and sets a professional tone at the same time. My only suggestion is that the powerful diagonals of the wood deck are a distraction--if you could get a photo of that same deck, view and spacious quality that is less dynamic, you would still keep the tone you have set and make it easier to focus on the site.

Thanks for your paint contracting philanthropy!


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## John's Painting (Aug 24, 2011)

From what I could see, it all looked pretty good. Standard things in place where they should be.

The thing I really didn't like was the YouTube video embedded in the top left hand corner. It annoyed the life out of me and felt as if it was cluttering up the place. Is it meant to appear there by itself or was this just a glitch?


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## vermontpainter (Dec 24, 2007)

The renegade youtube vid is a glitch


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## RCP (Apr 18, 2007)

Are you guys still seeing the video? And on what browser? Thanks


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## y.painting (Jul 19, 2009)

Yes - video in upper left corner. Windows Chrome.


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## RCP (Apr 18, 2007)

Weird, not happening in FF and Safari, and I am not seeing it anymore in my mac Chrome, cannot figure it out!?


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## y.painting (Jul 19, 2009)

RCP said:


> Weird, not happening in FF and Safari, and I am not seeing it anymore in my mac Chrome, cannot figure it out!?


Here's a screenshot...


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## RCP (Apr 18, 2007)

Thanks Y, I was seeing it, but not anymore and I did not change anything that I think would affect it.


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