Graphic Design 65: Web Design 1

Name: TheSpyStore.com

URL: http://www.thespystore.com/

Why do you want to re-design this website?

This website is pretty awful.  The logo at the head of the home page doesn’t even fit inside the box it has been placed within.  The black background is overwhelming to me.  The horizontal and vertical navigation is really hard to read with the bright blue underlined text. Once you actually find what it is that you are looking for each product has this really cheesy blinking “new” sign above the description.  The product description is very hard to read and has these really ugly purple bullet points in them.  The products also have photos that are very low quality.  When you click on the index for a specific product you are searching for, the list is in all caps gold text inside white boxes with a black background. Its really hard to read.  Itt is also extremely difficult to order a product from this site.  There is absolutely zero design put into this site as well.  This site doesn’t even really follow a grid.

Who is the target audience?

The target audience is any individual, buisness, and law enforcement who is interested in spy equipment. Their products include audio/video, PC, gps, cellphone, and counter surveillance.  They even sell items that allow you to catch a wife, husband or partner who you suspect is cheating on you.

What did you learn from the competitive analysis and how did it impact your re-design?

The competitive analysis really opened my eyes as to how similar companies to The Spy Store designed their sites. It also showed how poorly laid out the site I chose was.  By doing this analysis it gave me inspiration on how to layout a simple yet effective design for my new site SpyGear.com.  It showed me who my competition was and how to be different from them.  

http://www.sourcesecurity.com/

This site seems a bit cluttered and not that orderly.  Pretty good color palette.  The font choice fits well and is easy to read.  The navigation is okay. Its pretty easy to find things but I feel like the home navigation should be in the main nav.  The eyes of the owl is the focal point of the home page.  This draws me away from everything and I don’t understand why it says informed.

http://www.discount-security-cameras.net

This looks like a three column layout. I like the logo and header of the page. A little to much blue color for me.  Its visible as to what this website is about and the navigation on the left side and top is good.  There is kind of a lot going on in the home page.  Great quality pictures and it is very easy to purchase a product.  When you go to the interactive learning center, I like the idea of this page, but the blue text is kind of hard to read.

http://www.spyassociates.com/

This site has a pretty good overall structure and simple design. It fits a design for a surveillance product website.  The navigation is pretty good. I kind of wish there was an option in the navigation that is about the company.  Instead you have to scroll to the footer of the page to find out about it.  There is pretty good color palette.  No really center focal point that draws in my attention.  Overall it is very easy to use and I know what the site is about. 

What is “Grid Theory” and why is it important to web design?
A grid is used in design to help make everything proportionate.  The grid theorywas started by the Pythagoreans golden ratio.  They say that you can take any line and divide its length by 1.62.  This ratio complements graphic design because compositions divided by lines that are proportionate to the golden ratio are considered to be aesthetically pleasing.  The grid gives us logical guidelines for creating designs.  A simplified version of the golden ration is know as the rule of thirds.

In addition to “balance,” what are the other design principles important also to web design? 
There is Unity, which consists of proximity and repetition. Unity refers to how the different elements of a design go together.  The other design principle is Emphasis.  This is about making a particular element stand out.  Emphasis consists of placement, continuance, isolation, contrast and proportion.

What are the “Bread and Butter Layouts” in web design?
These are the most common layouts for web design.  The left-column navigation layout is the standard.  A layout featuring left-column navigation is a safe choice for any project.  The downside to sites that use left-column navigation is that they can lack creativity. They’ve been done so many times, and in so many ways, that they tend to look the same. Right-column navigation layouts are used for sub-navigation, advertising, or sub-content. Since, in western cultures, our eyes scan from left to right, this allows the page’s main content to be the first thing viewers see.  If you want your design to be different from the average web site, but you still want users to be able to find your navigation, try a right-column layout. The three-column layout has a wide center column with two diminutive navigational columns.  Although three columns may be necessary on pages that have a ton of navigation, short bits of content, or advertising to display, it’s important to remember that whitespace is essential if a layout is to be kept from appearing cluttered.

http://www.doodlersanonymous.com

http://blog.drawn.ca/

http://design.org/

http://www.fontshop.com/