Finally!
I’ve been working on the new design of my eCommerce site for quite some time. Just last week, I finally got it to where it looks good across multiple monitor resolutions, including 640×480, whose users now are in fractions of a percent according to most surveys–but why risk turning away someone who might want to buy something from you?
The problem was that the header looked great at 640×480, okay at 800×600, and odd at every larger size.
Finally, this evening, I resolved that issue! It now looks good at all resolutions.
Still, it’s not perfect and not exactly what I would prefer, but there are limitations to what you can do, and doing it in different ways would not be compatible with a larger percentage of browsers.
I also worked on other areas of the design. I am getting there! Once I finalize the design, I can get to work on finishing the other pages. The two portions that take the most time are the design and the backend stuff. Once you get those done, completing the actual pages is almost a trivial matter by comparison.
I rearranged some things from the working design, and this has resulted in having two elements at the bottom of the page, and I need to make that three for better balance. Just need to find the third thing!
Pairs are not so good. Trios are better.
Why? Well, it has nothing to do with Joanne’s post, but I mention and link to it to score my point.
From a marketing perspective, threes are good. We remember stuff in threes. When you write copy, it is usually recommended to work in threes. Have three benefits. Make three points. Highlight three features. I’d give an example, but it’s 2:23 a.m., and I am drawing a blank.
Let’s not forget that the mind works in threes: the Id, the Ego and the Super-Ego. Atoms are made of three things: protons, neutrons and electrons. In a number of religions, there are three places: Heaven, Earth and, ahem, Tartarus. Some denominations of Christianity have a Holy Trinity: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. The nuclear family has three members: Mom, Dad and the child. Wicca has the Rule of Three, whereby whatever energy you put out comes back to you threefold. Plato’s idea of the utopian city had three classes of people: workers, warriors and philosophers. Luck or events are sometimes said to come in threes. And, finally, in design it is common to group three elements together.
Whew!
I have also been working on making the site more feminine. I received advice earlier in the year from a marketing consultant that said my site was too masculine (and a larger percentage of buyers are women). I thought it was kind of neutral, myself. Masculine would be cars and half-naked women, right? Apparently not. So, I have been working on softening the design and that sort of thing, while still retaining the retro look that I need for the personality of the site.
So, that’s the update. I have been busy!
How does one go about making a site “feminine”? Aside from color schemes I mean.
I would say hearts, cute mystical creatures, and maybe cute half naked guys!?
Feminine, not girly!
Ha, feminine sites - thats new to me. Perhaps you should follow David’s advice and just go all out.
Feminine vs. Masculine Design
This is something I should expand on sometime on my DesignPrintBlog!, but I’ll just do a quick comment here on the topic.
Take a look at iVillage and AskMen.com. You’ll notice that iVillage uses softer colors, while AskMen.com has bolder colors. In addition, note that iVillage has a lot of curves in the design, while AskMen.com is more linear.
Men like squares and women like circles. 90° angles vs. curves.
Mind you, of course, that these things are done more in trends than in absolutes. Some men may prefer the look of iVillage and some women may prefer the look of AskMen.com. That’s not necessarily anything to do with their sexuality, but more a matter of their own personal likes and dislikes. I also read that male designers tend toward feminine designs and female designers tend toward masculine designs.
At any rate, here are a few places where you can read more (until I do my own post on the subject!). They are older links, but I didn’t find anything newer. Granted, I didn’t spend a whole lot of time searching–I’m still a bit busy!
“Girls Prefer Circles: Gender Bias and Web Design Esthetics”
“Gender Bias in Web Site Design”
“Designing for a Girl“
[...] my earlier optimism at getting the design work done on my eCommerce site, I am still working on [...]
[...] “Finally” (20070902) [...]