REVIEW REQUEST: www.aabestcomfort.com

The major problem I see with this site is lack of organization. Try to reduce the amount of information on each page - this will make it easier for people to find the important information.

Take the first page for example. This is effectively a splash page in that you have to "enter" to get into the site itself, but there's way too much on here. What a splash page should do is set a visual impression - the basics of what the site is about without going into too much detail. Really, a logo and a photo with a small caption would be fine.

The second page is just information overload. Too much text in too small a font, no navigation menu, no clear delinations between what is the important content and what is not. Clarify things more, get rid of the junk. And stop centering things, it makes it really hard to read text that way. What you want to do is create a strong line that leads the eye to the important content. With everything centered the eye has to keep jumping back and forth and it just gets confusing.

Your store entrance here is located halfway down the page - I would assume that this is the most important part of the site - it should be at the top where people can see it.

Overall there is way too much text here - people aren't going to read that. Keep it minimal, use photos to show your products off as you have on the store pages, use bulleted lists and headings to separate information into easily digestable sections. Keep a logo and navigation menu on every page so that users can clearly see who you are and what they can do on the site. I think this site would look really good with a very elegant, minimalist look.

first check out some of my competitors ( thats what I always do: http://dir.yahoo.com/Business_and_Economy/Shopping_and_Services/Home_and_Garden/Housewares/Linens_and_Fabrics/Bedding/Pillows_and_Comforters/

most of these sites look horrible. The use of the Black, gold, and tan colors are because they are the same colors used in DownTown's packing materials of their blankets etc.

The splash page has multiple entrances: the entire down comforter image, the downtown logo and the ever lame - " enter here" for the newbie online. The info on the page might be a bit much.. but it is attention grabbing IMHO if you are actively seeking a down comforter and dont want to be ripped off!

main page -
I do center things a bit, but going down after the main image - I answer plenty of important questions I believe.
and I show the benifits of making a purchase here on my website: freeshipping, order tracking, 30 days returns,
Then your brought to the store directory ( I am updating this majorly.), then info about sales... latestest new products..then some kuhdos about the company.

Just needed to explain my vision a bit. thanks.

I think there should be more to the title of the site on the first page than just plain text (i am referring to the AA Best Comfort at the top).

The very first sentence on the first page has a link to another site...not a good practice if you want to keep visitors from leaving (or do you want them to look at the other site?).

I am still a little confused about the Down Town thing. Is that your site or someone elses? Maybe it is just getting late and I am not grasping this. There really is just too much stuff (useless) on that first page.

You don't really have any type of navigaiton on the site other than the links that are scattered on the first page. I agree with Megan..."The major problem I see with this site is lack of organization."

I think a simple navigation bar across the top, just under the logo thingy would look nice. That would give your visitors a starting point so that they can choose where they want to navigate to without having to read all that stuff. Something good to keep in mind is....people like to scan a page looking for important things.

Quote: Originally posted by AABest

main page -
I do center things a bit, but going down after the main image - I answer plenty of important questions I believe.
and I show the benifits of making a purchase here on my website: freeshipping, order tracking, 30 days returns,
Then your brought to the store directory ( I am updating this majorly.), then info about sales... latestest new products..then some kuhdos about the company.

Maybe this is just a difference of opinion, but I don't think that a web site should be thought of in a linear fashion like that. The way you're explaining it, you want your visitors to follow a set path through the stie, but that's not the way people surf. They want to get right to the information they need as soon as possible, maybe stopping to branch off to other paths that may interest them. I belive that as designers it is important for us to make that process as easy as possible, and one of the ways to do that is to get rid of any unnecessary information that gets in the way.

The first thing I want to know when I'm shopping on a site is shipping information (because I live in Canada, I want to know if a company is going to ship to me. If I can't find that information quickly away I'll probably leave), then I'll want to know if they have the product I need and if the prices are reasonable. Most people would probably do that the other way around - look for the product they want and its price, then shipping info. Information about the company I wouldn't expect ot be of much interest to people. I would make the store part much more obvious - the way it is here the store is kind of being overshadowed by all this extra text. You're trying to sell things here, make it easy for people to get to that point.

So, put some highlights of your merchandise right up at the top - that sale item would be a good thing to highlight. Then create a navigation menu with "About Us", "Product Info" (where you can talk about the quality of the comforters and where they come from), "Shop", "shipping Info"... something along those lines. Make it as easy as possible for people to find out what they want to know.

I think if you have to explain the naviagation or reason of layout etc you have a problem, the layout should be user friendly, everyone should be able to work out whats where and why, if they have to guess you'll loose them.

"This page will refresh momentarily ..." I had a lok at your source code you and you dont have a refresh script (done by meta tag) your title is way to long as well

on the main page you start by saying "We sell every bed & bath product created by DownTown Company!" then mentioned payment methods, where are the products, or really what are the products?
the little arrows are confusing, should mention "more" or something or show they are links

As mentioned you need to split your info up, make more pages, home, about, products, checkout (payment and orders), comments, sitemap or whatever with links across the top and bottom, you have all the stuff there, just have to arrange it

did you know, what you call a comforter, we in NZ call a duvet and the Australians call a dooner

At first glance, I notice that your site doesn't give the visitors... a feel for the product. The website looks very generic, and probably doesn't reflect the products well. The phrase that quickly popped into my head was: "all over the place."

Try giving users a better picture of the things available through the site. Include more thumbnails on the front page - avoid a splash page in this case (I just skipped it when it loaded and I faced all that text).

Also try organising it all into a better structure. It has to be definite, uniform and hierarchical.

Just because HTML allows room for presenting a lot of text doesn't mean you should. Internet users generally skim and won't bother reading large bodies of text, no matter how well you display it.

I also looked for some form of navigation or other to have a look through your products but I couldn't find anything straight away. Try adding a conventional navbar at the top or sides.

You might be interested in this link: http://wdvl.internet.com/Authoring/Design/Hot/index.html. It has great tips on good writing for the web.

In my experience people will look at images first then skim read the rest, whether it's on the net or from an actual paper brochure. If they are looking to buy a product they want to know why yours is the best place to do so.

With this in mind you need to have some good pictures, bullet points with the relevant information people want to know straight away and a good logo so that it brands your site. When I type this and think of your site without looking at it I immediately think of the Down Town logo and I should be thinking of AA Best Comfort! You need to have a navigation system from this to the more in depth stuff about the product which people will then go on to read if they want to find out more about the product (once you've sold it to them on the first page) and links to the product pages so that you don't have to scroll down the page to 'find' them.

I looked through the list on Yahoo and I wouldn't say that they are all horrid sites at all - far from it, but the one thing that you see is a logical navigation system on nearly all of them and they aren't dark but colourful and eye catching.

You seem to have good ability with your pictures, they all look very clean. I personally would be more attracted to a bedding website with a white background as that seems more clean, fresh, etc.

I think you need to ditch the into page unless you are preloading graphics, but either way, don't have any information on there. The first thing a user sees when they get to the sight should be some form of navagation around the site (that is consistent from page to page) and some idea of what is offered on the site. Then they should be allowed to quickly jump to whatever page has the desired info.

I also find it bad (to me anyway) to have some of the text aligned left then some centered. I think all the text on a given page should follow the same alignment (most of the time anyway).

Oh, and ditch the custom scroll bar, maybe not everyone agrees with me, but I like my scroll bar to look like the rest of my browser

Other than that, it has good potential. Focuse on your graphics to get your point across and you will do alright.

I'll work on the Navigation, but some things I need to tell you: first, the black, gold and white colors are used because DownTown Company's packaging uses these same colors.

Someone said get rid of the scroll bars colors - I totally disagree. This must be a matter of opinion... just as the use of Frames still annoys people out there ( I dont)

The navigation section is pretty easy to determine where it starts... after some of the features of why you should buy my products, who is downtown company.. further details about Down are already explained.. ( that is if the visitor chooses to follow those links.

I have a graphic that clearly says "Store Directory" and underneath is the many different product categories I sell. Below a sales info spot.. then latest additions.. then kudohs.

To me the site is pretty logical, and my customers I would like to think are pretty smart. I dont want them to think about AA Best Comfort... I want them to think... I know a site that sells DownTown Company's products.

In general they are going to be searching for Down Comforter or possibly DownTown Company... I dont have the budget to push my name in advertising yet.. so I am using the power of DownTown Company to do it.. get their name out there.

Most of the critiques were about the Nav... so I guess I will work on this. Thanks again.

Sigh.... you're new at this aren't you? People don't like to scroll to find content. People are used to browsing in a certain way. Few uers will expect that they have to scroll down to get to your actual content.

Look at other successful e-commerce sites. Look at amazon.com for example. Nice navbar at the top, lots of links to store products. Right at the top where it's easy to see them and get to them. I can't find anything in there that talks about the company itself - why? Because nobody cares.

A few more articles for you:

Are Users Stupid? (Yes, they are)
Ten Good Deeds in Web Design
"10. Do the same as everybody else: if most big websites do something in a certain way, then follow along since users will expect things to work the same on your site. Remember Jakob's Law of the Web User Experience: users spend most of their time on other sites, so that's where they form their expectations for how the Web works."

Users expect to see a navbar. They expect to see the important content at the top of the page.... they're not going to expect the important content to be located halfway down the page

Top Ten Mistakes of Web Deisgn
"6. Long Scrolling Pages - Only 10% of users scroll beyond the information that is visible on the screen when a page comes up. All critical content and navigation options should be on the top part of the page...

7. Lack of Navigation Support - Don't assume that users know as much about your site as you do. They always have difficulty finding information, so they need support in the form of a strong sense of structure and place... "

(PS I do think that this guy is an egotistical jerk but much of what he says makes some sense)

Hi

Black, for a background, is not really my favorite.......

I have never used it for one design, no I'll take that back, I did use it once for a image display system. Your site is content rich, but it lacks (subject = value) next page (NEXT SUBJECT = VALUE).....

Unless you are writting a book, putting so much content on each page is not very professional. It's like every page is a navigation system that is in dis-array!

Try to create pages containing a single subject, with information about that subject, then you could include "keyword links" or a navigation system that would link to pages that are like the current page....

The images are great, but could be smaller, over 200K per page in images is a bit to much, poor 56K'er....

F!

http://www.webmaster-forums.com/showthread.php?threadid=17239

You may find some of the comments in this thread also helpful.

Suzanne

just a note about the colored scroll bar thing, its only seen on IE6 so isnt a biggy, I doubt the other browsers will pick up on it so its something the IE6 users can enjoy.

**I've only seen the colored scroll bar in pictures :)**

***If anyone doesnt like the colored scrollbar option, switch to Netscape or Opera***

The site color is alright. If it is just organized a little better it would turn out looking really nice. I think you are on the right path, but like the others are saying, just organize it a little better. Maybe tone down the scroll bar a little to.

The coloured scrollbar shows in IE5.5 as well, not that I have that but my hubby does and he told me!!

n/m

umm can we stay on topic.

Sorry mum

I'd bring in your borders a bit, maybe make the overall table 85 or 90% width.

I tried reading the first page in IE, thought about something you said and went to continue but the page refreshed, I really think you need to make that first page part of your layout and include navigation to it (no refresh tags).

on the next page "Welcome to AA BEST COMFORT.Com" is to small, at least make it the same size as the etx or bigger (and this is viewed by IE5)

you have "Save $9.99 - $29.99 Off!" which confused me, do i save 9.99 or get 29.99 off? or even save between 9.99 and 29.99? if this is the case loose the word "off"

I don't mind your color combo - looks OK to me, but, quite frankly, the colored scroll bars have me so confused, I paid more attention to what was going on there than anything else. I've never seen it in any of my surfing before, and would prefer not to encounter it again.

Navigation - something like what you've got at the bottom of a page like
http://www.aabestcomfort.com/orpnets.html
should be at the top - except not quite like that -
it's a 50kb graphic with no alt text (the text is part of the graphic - you'd do much better to re-design so you have text hyperlinks as well as re-designed graphics.

Still working on the nav.. and breaking down pages a little smaller. check out aabestcomfort.com/directory2002.html
in a few minutes. moving stuff around.. etc. Got some better pics of the comforters and whole mess load of new product$. cool.

AABest,

Regardless of whether your warm looking, Hungarian down comforters are a good deal or not, I didn't stick around to find out more.

Primary reasons not to continue:

(1) The entry page you gave is much TOO BIG!...a whopping 112,163 bytes total (including images). It takes "forever" to load.

(2) Dismal, spooky, black background (I got scared!) (initially thought it was a Halloween site)

Suggestions for improvement:

(1) Optimize your images (or only sell Hungarian comforters to DSL / cable surfers).

(2) Forget that you like the site's black background. Everyone knows that white is the best color background for doing business.

Hope this helps,

Texas

Quote: Originally posted by Texas
(2) Forget that [b]you like the site's black background. Everyone knows that white is the best color background for doing business.[/B]

I'm going to disagree with this, its true 90% of sales sites are white but it isnt written in stone (I think i made this same comment about white backgrounds a few months ago)
way back when Henrey Ford made the Model A you could only get it in black, then in '52 when the Corvette was made you could have one any color you wanted as long as it was white, these days they invent colors to stand out, how things have changed.

But I do agree you have way to much stuff on your first page, if it was my site (which its not and this is only my personal view, you can do it anyway you want), I'd use your main header (banner), make it a little skinnier, add some links under it (going horz) then add the store directory image section, then maybe the best rated and contact/copyright stuff at the bottom.
They say you have something like 11 seconds to capture someones attention, so its best to do this without making people scroll or search, sadly people still go on first impressions so you need your first page inviting so you can get them to view another page, and then another ... you have the product/content, just need to fine tune it

I too think the black background is appropriate for this site and like the colors he has used. My reasoning is that the white comforters, linen, etc. may not show up as well on a white backgound.

I still think you need navigation at the top and will not be satisified until you get yourself a navigation bar, text links what ever.....at the TOP.

ARG...MEN!!!! LOL

DownTown Company's products are shipped with packaging that is BLACK,GOLD, and WHITE. There most recent logo is the same colors. That is the reason for these color choices.
Infact, I even answer this question: Why is the site so dark and black... in my FAQ on my customer Service Page!

I really do like that colour scheme. As DM said, the comfortors and such may not show up well against a black background, and black and gold is a really elegant scheme that coordinates well with the high quality merchandise you sell. I think this is an exception to the white rule

Posted the revised index.html page for my website, please take a look and advice. thanks.

aabestcomfort.com

That is much better but....(bet you knew I was gonna say that)

All jokes aside. The home page is good. It is short and to the point. You tell your visitors what is inside and give current customers a link to immediately check the status of their order. But I would put "enter" instead of "begin shopping". I was expecting to go straight to the shopping cart.

If you are still insisting on not putting some sort of navigation on the site and splitting the directory.html page up into sections then I guess you have done about all you can with this site.

Me wish you mucho luck.

the first page looks nice and clean, congrats. you could put the descritions in a list or use bullets infront of each one.

The second page is the old first page? I still think you really need to break it down into sections, something like:

the shop, about us, help, specials, sitemap (optional) or whatever. otherwise your customers will have to go up and down, up and down your long page trying to find details.

this page http://www.aabestcomfort.com/indexa.html is a good one (totally different layouts to the 3 pages i had to go thru to get there), if it had links on the side or top/bottom and maybe banner across the top would be perfect layout. Its clean (fonts a lil small) but serves well as an extra page, this page and others should be linked off the main page.

Im cutting it up big time... did alot of work last night.. going to post the revision... probably Weds.

thanks.

if you sell furniture your site should look comfortable, and black background isn't that comfortable, you should go with beige or olive, orange, in sort of pastel shades (I sound gay, don't I?)
like check this out http://www.fourhands.com , I just got the feeling of comfort when I saw the design, it's very relaxing

that gives you a feeling of comfort?
first thoughts was I was at the zoo
second a stained glass window
only thing I think would suit that layout (furniture wise) would be wrought iron stuff, but each to their own

you're rude for a moderator, the webmaster is a good friend and I do think the site has a nice feeling, at least it gives a better feeling that black background

Pixelfreak... I addressed the use of black background countless times.. even answer it on my FAQ on my site.
So Im not going to bother repeating WHY ..now. The site you recommend.. Im sorry but that site was waaaay to ethnic IMHO... its a nice clean site... although it kept reminding me of Dust&dirt and being lost in a third world country.

Sorry PixelFreak if I offended you or your friend, if I can find the link I'll show you how that icon looks similar to our local zoos icon. (has elephant head with birds in background)
That site is well presented but clashes with the product, only one I could find on there was teak furniture. But we're not here to critqic that site.
another way to look at the black background issue, black = night time, comforters is a night product ...

[edit] found it, but they have changed the icon, still has elephant but they replaced the birds with a zebra and monkey http://www.aucklandzoo.co.nz/

What everyone should remember is...each person here, be them a critiquer or critiquee, has their own likes, dislikes, opinions and thoughts. That's what makes our world go round.

I don't like the fact that AABest STILL doesn't have a navigation bar (ahem...cough, cough) but I absolutely refuse to get my drawers in a wad about it.

D-M,

Quote:
What everyone should remember is...each person here, be them a critiquer or critiquee, has their own likes, dislikes, opinions and thoughts

This is so true.
Especially colors...

Pixelfreak--
i loved the colors on four hands! *lol*
Going there was like--"Oh here are some of my colors!"
In all truthfullness those shades (although just a bit lighter)
I just picked out to paint a room in my house!

I love color.

dragonsjaw

hehe, sorry about that, I just really liked four hands design and the guy that made it is like a mentor to me so it kinda hurt my opinion.
oh and sorry to mention black, is just that this thread got so big that I didn't read all of the posts (I'm not such a good reader)
I see the night time idea now, if I was to make something like that maybe I'd put a fancy moon on top of the page, or something that makes the idea clear...
hehe, that's really great dragonsjaw!

http://www.aabestcomfort.com/newnav.html

let me know what you think...
my only fear is that its already at 4k and thats not even including pictures, prices, etc, if I cold kill off some of this weight, it would be better.

opinions?

thanks in advance

if you used style sheets for things like font and font colors it will drop it down, but 4k isnt big, I'm working on a page now and the html alone is up to 26kb (but does include some server side stuff)

if you do keep this idea, add a ∓nbsp; into the empty td cell, as NS wont show background color without it.

I think this may be a bit bulky for the top navigation, you could trim it down to just "home, sitemap, products, faq, contact" the sitemap could have kind of like what you have now, but even with a picture/icon beside each one.
things like view shopping cart and checkout arent needed until your actually viewing products, return policy could be part of the faq, not sure having its own page looks good, kind of gives the message that you get a lot of returns.

This is definetly not going to be the only thing on the page...
after you select a division to go to... pillows for example
then you are in the pillow section.. make a selection...
AND THEN... you would see that top navigation that I created... thats why Im worried about it already being 4k.. and the page hasnt even started.
I will play around with < Style > tags a little and cut it down.. I had an awesome .css file but cant find the damn thing!

I do have a very brief nav on each page..(Store Directory, View Cart, Checkout) put for some reason.. practically everyone here either didnt see, didnt like it... or thought I didnt have a nav!,, infact its on the top and bottom of all product pages!