A fresh new look for our website! - comments wanted

[canada]

We've come up with a fresh new look for our church website. Please let me know what you think.

Here's the link: http://lifeinyou.com/preview/lifechurch.html

thanks!

[[Admin] skstarkiller]

It looks nice, but I am not a fan of the "mystery meat" navigation. It took me a second to igure out how to get anywhere.

[webguide]

Nice graphic appearance!

I'd suggest you give some mouseover tooltips to the menu, so it is a) obviously a menu b) tells people what they get if the go to a page, rather than putting them in the box on the right. Given that there is a slight delay before the box shows the new info, I suspect not all users will realise what is happening. Try testing the site on some non-web-savvy users, using site testing procedures - ie ask them to give a running commentary on what they see, what they are confused by, and what they are thinking, as they look at the site for the first time.

An ordinary title tooltip would be ok, but there is a great way of styling these with js and css which I love, and use on our site.

You might like to try running your site through our church website self-assessment tool too:
http://www.internetevangelismday.com...ite-design.php

blessings

Tony

[Cale J. Rogers]

I would also suggest a simple design element to add a structure to the page.

Cale

[canada]

Originally Posted by Cale J. Rogers

I would also suggest a simple design element to add a structure to the page. Cale

thanks. could you please give an example or be a little more specific?

[Cale J. Rogers]

Yes, check out this site:

http://www.journeychristian.org

I added a blue header across the top with a branded header to establish a contrasting symmetry with the banners, video and sidebar content on the page. I also designed the video in the center to "dominate" the attention of the visitor. Generally, a standard practice is to apply dominance to a single graphic within a collection of other graphics to achieve structural goals.

Here's another example:

http://www.journeychristian.com/Jour...an_Church.html

Notice the dominate banner object with a nice horizontal navigational tool at the bottom of the page.

What I love about your site is the use of graphics for information and navigation. But, without a contrasting structure of design, it's hard to focus or follow anything visually on the page. You don't have to add a lot, a simple 2 px line can go a long way.

Cale

[dlcjonathan]

i agree with all these comments, they would really take the site to the next level.

i watched your "behind the scenes video" very good.