I’ve been trying to design a professional website for my jewellery and silversmithing things. I want to be able to sell and show my pieces on-line. However, I seem to be going around in circles. I’ve done a lot of research and, to a certain extent, found what I need to put on my website. The problem is I don’t know how my website should look. You see I’m one of these people who might go a little crazy and start bunging images/colours in, without really thinking about the visitors.
So, when you browser websites which are aimed for potential consumer what do you look for?
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January 7th, 2009 at 11:28 pm
I was going to suggest Etsy (http://www.etsy.com), but I don’t think that’s what you’re looking for.
In any case, I think a commercial website needs to be simple — easy to navigate, and the layout shouldn’t distract from the content.
January 8th, 2009 at 10:18 am
Thanks Kaylee. Your advise will be really helpful – whenever I start making the site…
January 9th, 2009 at 8:56 pm
Hm. Well, it helps when the coding is valid, and simplicity is key. Organization is also a plus since I don’t want to spend a long time looking for exactly what I want. Hm. I really don’t know what else. Some of my favorite shopping sites are shanalogic.com, cute-plush.com and kidpirate.com if looking at those helps.
January 10th, 2009 at 6:28 am
I’m siding with Kaylee on the simplicity in terms of use of the website.
In terms of design, use whitespace to its fullest potential. Nothing is more annoying on an e-commerce website than clutter. Keep items evenly spaced as it makes a cleaner, more pleasant looking website, which emphasizes the items for sale as being more pleasant.
January 10th, 2009 at 10:49 am
@Stepherz: Ooh, thanks. I’ll have a look at those sites.
@Aaron: I wondered about the white space, whether or not filling it will a different colour but you’re right. Thank you.