Please tell me what you think! Thank you!

theimageoven

Hi all,
My name is Roger, and I`m totally green here. I`ve had several physical location businesses in the past, but this is my very first true online business. I`m not a web guru, and I use tools and templates from the hosting provider for this website. Please tell me what you think about the website and what you think about this business idea.

the website is: The Image Oven

Thank you very much.

theimageoven2007-10-9 20:57:43

ToddF

I like the simplicity of the site, I agree drop the intro page. Also there isnt a strong call to action like "get started" with an upload image button or something. It should stand out, you want people to interact with your site. They should be able to upload images right-a-way and start the process. Also I`m not sure where all the orange is coming from maybe the thought of it being an oven, but the color is overbearing and slightly distracting, its just too much. I would reduce the color on the background so your actionable items stand out more, like buttons, headlines. this page is a good example of color usage:
 

http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/10/09/ ... index.html

 
See how color is used to enhance what they want you to see instead of massive colorful backgrounds that really do nothing. When I scroll down on that page I see "Most popular, recommended, videos, and topics."
 
You might also want to read this article:

http://www.startupnation.com/articles/3 ... trends.htm

 

SandraP

Roger,
 
Great concept and you are on the right track with your site. Todd has some good ideas there! Tweak it a bit and get the word out and you should do very well!
 
Good luck!
~Sandra

theimageoven

Thank you so much for the suggestions.  I took out the intro page.  I`m trying to find a different layout to reduce the overwhelming color.
I will try to add a button for "upload" to encourage the interaction.
I`ll definitely get on my feet to find some home build type of websites.
Thanks again.  Keep the suggestions coming!

johnqh

Great offering, pretty lousy site.
For anyone who want to have a profitable business, some usability reading is essential - "Designing Web Usability" from Jacob Nielssen is a good one. Most of the feedback you got are covered in the book.
The details shouldn`t be on the home page. Instead, it should simple say "transfer your photos to tiles", with a "See how" link, which gives the details. 
You need to have an account system, where people can upload images (drop the email, it is so unreliable these days and very unprofessional), pay, and see status of their order. Basically, you need a real e-commerce system.
And how much does it cost? I had to dig to find out....and I still don`t know how anyone would pay.
However, you have a killer business there. I love your offering. Congrats!

johnqh

More problems I see.
You need real contact information - phone number, address etc. That`s the most important thing when you do online business to make people have confidence in you.

theimageoven

Thank you for your inputs, Johnqh.  With my limited budget, I couldn`t get the account system setup.  I did manage to link to a web store for the shopping cart though.
I`ll work on getting a business phone number.
 
Thanks!

johnqh

It doesn`t have to cost a lot. Use rentacoder and you can get your whole site done for a few hundred dollars, or maybe a little over $1000 if you pay for a professional designed unique template.
Also, I think you need to do some local marketing too....take your samples to the local festivals so people can see and touch them. They can order online. I think you will get great responses from that.
Of course, the biggest problem is timing. With the down housing market, there is less remodeling activities. Still, I think you have a killer product.