FEEDBACK: GearFace.com launched

[keethrus]

I just launched GearFace.com and I'm loooking for some feedback.

Now, obviously a lot of things are missing (like products to sell, and content), but I want to know opinions on the look and layout of the site.

Just to reiterate, please do not comment on the lack of content or products, instead, comment on the look and layout of the site.

- Jeremiah

[oNyx]

The overall layout is great. Good choice of colors and nice contrast.

And now some small things... here's an image:
http://people.freenet.de/ki_onyx/gearface.png (31kb)

#1 Since you have some text at the very top of your page it would be nice to have some border there (as shown in the image). 10-20px are enough.

#2 It's good to have some space free at the bottom, because...

#3 On shorter pages (like the one shown in the image) the page doesn't reach the very end of the screen, therefore the shadown on both sides is just cut off, which looks rather ugly. So... build a nice bottom, which is always visible.

#4 Write "©" instead of "(C)"

#5 No info here. Importance/font size just doesn't match. I'm not sure what I would do about it. The gray background there looks good. Well, if you keep it make the font at least smaller.

#6 That looks dirty/spotty. For a more even brushed metal plate look do the following:
-create an image, which is about 150 pixel wider than the one you need
-fill it with 50% gray
-add noise (monochrome, gaussian, 35)
-Filter > Blur > Motion Blur... 75 pixels
-Image > Adjust > Brightness / Contrast (if you like)
-change the size of the working area to the size you need (crop)

But then again I'm not sure if it would look good together. I mean it's abstract shape, outlines, flat colors... photorealistic metal just looks odd then, doesn't it?

---

Oh and make the css stuff external.

[ggambett]

Still love the wacky face

[botman]

Following up on what oNyx said, I changed a few more things to make this: http://www.systemworks.co.nz/botman/gear.gif

The key points really were just removing the spacing between letters (it made it hard for me to read...), and cleaning up the navigation.

I still think it needs some more colour, blue and gray is very corporate. When you have some games up your sleeve, I think a nice bright image faded in a corner of the background etc would really lift it...

Anyways, hope you like it, I could have been playing CivIII...

[Reactor]

The thing that bugs me is...

"One Year of Free Updates"

No one will like the idea of 1 year of updates to a game. Every other game is without limits on updates, so this makes you sound worse than the average.


"100% Bug-Free"

and

"You can rest assured that when you purchase Gear Face software, it will be bug-free for life."

This contradicts the above. Since you only receive support for 1 year, how will it be bug-free for life? Do you have to pay to keep it bug free? Also, saying this makes it sound like you can promise bug-free software off the bat, which of course sounds silly when right afterwards you're effectively saying "BUT if you find a bug". It took me a while of thinking about it to realise you were saying the final (bug-fixed) program will be free of problems.

Lastly, I'm not sure how you can guarantee the 100%, because you have no clause (or something to that effect) in the guarantee stating that people should meet the system requirements first. (not to mention newer versions of windows, etc, that make it impossible to get it working) Because of this, the whole 100% thing sounds like a desperate attempt to win people over. I personally would simply rest on the following statements, that you aim to satisfy the customer.

Obviously others won't agree, because I see this stated quite a lot on indie webpages, but... there you go.

[botman]

heh I have to agree with what reactor said too. i was thinking similar things but as i have never attempted to sell a game i didn't say anything.

[EpicBoy]

I really don't agree with playing up any kind of "100% bug free" angle because, quite frankly, that's expected. Customers expect the product to be bug free by default, not as a perk.

[oNyx]

>Anyways, hope you like it

Heh. Well, I like it for sure. Great additions! Two thumbs up from me

[Reactor]

Exactly, Epicboy...

That 100% bug-free thing is from Dexterity.com. I'm not even sure I agree with it on there, either, but I like the wording more. You get the feeling while reading it that Steve meant it, and not simply just wrote it to gain a few more customers (not saying that's what you had in mind, keethrus- it's just that's how it seems on most indie websites).

[keethrus]

First off, I really appreciate all the replies!

I would like to discuss the "100% bug-free" and "one year of free updates" though. Now that it has been brought up I do agree some with the fact that customers just expect it to be bug free and not a perk. But is mentioning 100% bug-free worse or could help by letting people know bugs will be fixed quickly? I'm still thinking about that... .

The "one year of free upates" was there because most companies make you pay more if they release a sequel or Version 2.0 the day after you purchased Version 1.0 or the original. They consider those two seperate products. I was trying to get across the idea that my customers would get a year of updating their product for free. So within a year after their initial purchase, if I release a sequel, or 5 more versions for that matter, they can get all those for free as well (in the same product line or course). Perhaps my wording was not accurate. Fixes and patches will always be free to keep all my products flawless, but they'll also be able to download any newer releases for a year for free. Any thoughts or suggestions on this?

And again, thanks for the suggestions. I'll be implementing some of them for sure.

- Jeremiah

[3dben]

Instead of "100% Bug Free" how about "Free Unlimited Support" ? Isn't that what your really saying anyway?

-=ben

[Bluecat]

I really like the look of your site. It's neat and simple and that will make it easy for your customers to navigate... and hopefully buy your games.

I would like to discuss the "100% bug-free" and "one year of free updates" though. Now that it has been brought up I do agree some with the fact that customers just expect it to be bug free and not a perk. But is mentioning 100% bug-free worse or could help by letting people know bugs will be fixed quickly? I'm still thinking about that... .

I figure that you shouldn't promise anything that you can't deliver... (we're not politicians you know ) ...and bug free software is pretty much one of those things. I'd also try not to promise time frames for bug fixing. A complex bug could really throw you. If you promise bug free or fixes within a week, and then don't deliver, your customers won't be happy.

Providing the refund option (as you've done) would be more likely to build trust. As has been mentioned in other posts, a customer would be more likely to buy based on that, than on a promise of bug free.

The other way, unfortunately, will take a much longer time. Be quick to respond to bug reports. Fix them as soon as you can. Provide regular updates as necessary. This will build up your reputation which is more important than unproven promises.