I need advice / comments on my website!

[Geiri]

Hey guys! I'm looking for advice and comments on my website. I want you to scroll through it as if you were a potential customer. Imagine you just heard of Pedal Projects and want to see if this is something you'd like to buy.

- What made you want to make the purchase?
- What information is missing?
- Why did you decide not to make the purchase?
- Anything else?

Here's the website: http://www.pedalprojects.com

I'm happy to hear any critique and comments, thanks!

[tabbycat]

hey geiri, just had a quick look.

first impressions, a lot like your pedals. clean lines, orderly layout, no mess, fuss or muddle. very icelandic layout somehow. but pedal images on product home page are quite small. too small i think. headline font is nice but other text is relatively small. still easy to read on a desktop but maybe on a smartphone it would be hard to read. i don't use the net on a phone so can't comment re that (anyone?).

the arrival 'landing' page with all the shots of the pedals on volcanoes etc i liked a lot. there's something unmistakably cool about iceland as a place. fresh, clean and uncluttered (compared to the south east of the uk, which is terminally overpopulated). i think that fresh and uncluttered thing is a theme that carries on into the artwork and layouts of your pedal. the innate geographical qualitites of the territory are possibly in you and your thinking if you've lived there for a while, so the landscape shots (in a way) set the key for the way your pedals should be thought about. 'pedal design in the key of iceland' so to speak. maybe i'm being too oblique?

on digging in it was good to see demo links for each pedal close at hand and clear descriptions of what the pedal does and what spec you are going with.
one reservation i had was that the pics are pretty small and don't get bigger when you click them (like ebay and amazon, which are the buying preview formats people are used to). when i right mouse clicked 'view image' (vista) they are available bigger and in better detail, but that would be nice to have that function as standard 'click to enlarge' on the site.

your artwork and internal layouts are clearly something you (rightly so) are proud of, so make them big. and your gutshots should definitely be directly under the pedal front image rather than lost right at the bottom of the page. your gut shots are a great selling point (so buyers can compare your finish to the scruff passed off by dba, etc). so make them unmissable.

checkout works great. easy. i could navigate through quickly and painlessly and i'm the first to be put off by inscrutable checkouts, hidden dispatch prices, etc. a clear and honest checkout, like the rest of the site.
nice too to have the option of paypal or credit card. lots of places are paypal only but personally i think paypal suck as a company so i try to bypass them and use my card whenver possible.

nice work, geiri. best of luck with it.

[kirshman]

I really like your site.  Clean!  The only thing for me was on my phone, galaxy s5, the pictures that scroll at the top of the home page start good, but then as they go the pictures are cut off.  I can only see the left half of the pedal in pic 4 and so on.  Other than that its awesome! The thing that makes me want to buy a pedal is your great demos of the pedals.  No guessing, no nonsense, just a good guitar player,feeling it, and rockin out.  Well done!

[Ed Nice]

Nice site Geiri. Quick first impressions...

You make this comment, which I think is really important. 'Imagine you just heard of Pedal Projects and want to see if this is something you'd like to buy. '. I think you need to re-inforce your brand a little more. I know you are going for really minimalist here, but [I hate to spout this consumerist propaganda] from a marketing perspective, you need to present name and brand (logo) at the same time, so people absorb the name Pedal Projects subliminally with the brand, thereby building the association between name and brand which increases brand recognition. Sorry, I got all wierd there.

People will buy your pedals because they look cool and are of the most incredible quality and finish but more people will buy some average crap from a 'Brand' and pay more for the priviledge of doing so simply because it's familiar to them.

From a UXP perspective its [the website's] simplicity (as mentioned) makes it really easy to navigate and gives you a really strong opportunity to present your information succinctly. Now the comments...

You have a link to home from the logo, but I'd consider one in the menu. People are [mostly] idiots and are prone to panic when it comes to thinking for themselves and actually figuring out how stuff works if it's slightly left field!

I'd consider adding some 'calls to action' on the home page slider for each product. They look so [fuc**ng] awesome on there but you can't rely on those idiots again to actually go and find the products. Consider links to the product details page and it might also be good to add captions, titles/short summaries on the image rotator?

You need images on the custome artwork page. Think about it. Some people will want to read about custom artwork, but if I see custom artwork, I want to see custom artwork. :) You have some really great designs. Why not show them?

On the products page, it would probably benefit from a link back to a 'show all' option as well as each category.

Any links on the site (such as the one to Big Cartel) should be target = _blank, so people don't get the opportunity to get away :)

It looks cool in a mobile (via various Opera emulator options) but you already know that :p

I'll try a proper user journey tomorrow when i can keep my eyes open.

[Frank_NH]

Geiri - been a fan of your work for a while.  Great job with the web site.

My only suggestion would be to list your prices without the ".00".  And I'm assuming the prices are USD?  

Good luck with the business!

[rocket88]

Frank beat me too it. Other then that, I think the site looks fantastic.

[motterpaul]

Just FYI - I do website's as a profession, and I don't mean building them, I mean running them to make a profit, so I think I have a lot of experience and have done a lot of thinking in this area. So, I will be happy to do this...

1) Branding... what a fantastic domain name you have - easy to remember and perfectly describes what you do. So where is the name of the web site/business when I go to the landing page?

If I Google "pedal projects" there is every reason why your site should come up near the top with that URL. But Google is smarter than that - they need to know that your site delivers what the URL promises. So, what do they read to verify this? Text. Every single page in your site needs descriptive text - NOT with a lot of repetition, but with a lot of good information. Try to use important phrases descriptively;

"What makes our overdrive pedals the best? Our overdrives contain the highest quality components available, the best (IC names, transistor part numbers, etc). They are hand-made, one pedal at a time and fully tested by our top pedal experts"

OVERDRIVE: -- "what makes PedalProjects overdrives different? First, what is an overdrive pedal? In the world of guitar effects an overdrive makes a guitarist's lead solos stand out in the mix. They deliver the sustain and brilliance you need to make every note count. With  four controls: __, __, __, __ - they give you the most versatile control over your lead guitar tone possible."

You get the idea.

I gotta run - but that should keep you busy for awhile. I will be back.

[motterpaul]

Okay, I'm back.

Categories. It is good that you used text for your titles. Remember that images do not help you with Google. I am having a hard time seeing the word after "About" at the top. I know it is shipping.

Warranty should be its own section - warranties are important. Shipping is far less important (in terms of your web site design).

I would change the word "Product" to "Pedals for Sale" or just "Pedals" - ditch the word "Products," it's far too generic.

I would change the name of each pedal (just on the web page) to add what it is...
from "Lionheart" to "Lionheart Overdrive"

Figure out a way to capture email addresses. I suggest a "subscribe to my newsletter and get a $5-off coupon good any time" - I usually make the sign up a form where they enter an email, (and anything else you want to ask them). That can go straight into a database you can use to email people with monthly specials.

Having an "About" page is vital. I like yours but you also need to talk bout the expertise and technology behind your pedals. Talk about some of your successes.

Have demos - I highly advise uploading video demos to YouTube with links back to your site. Embed them in your site, but also remember that you can embed them in Facebook, and you can friend every person who signed up for your email.

The two things you need to remember are these:

1) touch - get people's emails and reach out on regular basis
2) reward - you need to give people something in exchange for them caring about you & your site. It can be coupons, or just a good blog with good advice. Ideally both.

Added: the goal of any web site is establish credibility. Quotes from famous people go a LONG way. If you can get Pete Thorn to demo one of your pedals you can quote him.  Also - set up an eBay store and auction off one of your pedals at a fairly low reserve once in awhile. Let people know this is an enticement to learn more about your pedals (not a going out of business sale). But at the same time have a link to your eBay Store where you show all of your pedals selling at retail prices.

If you can't do that on eBay without paying a fee - do it on Reverb.com - they don't charge anything until you sell something.

[Beaker]

Hi Geiri, there's not a lot I can add really, you already have some excellent suggestions here.

However, as a potential customer, I am asking myself two questions:

Video demos - the videos are great, but who is playing on them? Is it you, a friend, a well known pro guitarist that I do not recognise? A short note under the videos would answer my questions.

Who else is using your pedals? I know bragging and self promotion is not an Icelandic trait, but I would like to know if any giutarists I know, like or respect are using your pedals. A "Pedal Projects User" page would be nice.

I would also add a big +1 to the suggestion above - lose the "Products" heading. It is far to generic and impersonable. Replace it with "My Pedals" or something similar. It re-inforces the fact that they are MY pedals, HANDMADE, by ME.

BTW, I'm in Iceland again in August, If I'm able to get to The Westfjords this time (last time snow storms closed all the roads and we had to change plans), I would love to drop in and say hello.

[Geiri]

I can't be bothered to give each person a reply so this is too all of you who have commented so far: Thank you so much for the tips!

I am kind of a perfectionist with things I do and I prefer to do everything I can on my own, unless I don't understand the task at hand. I want every single little detail on the website to be spot on but I sometimes easily overlook the simplest and most obvious things, because I'm digging to deep into something people probably won't notice.

I should note that I had a different theme on my website and just switched before I posted this thread. It naturally came with the switch that some things aren't exactly looking perfect. That's why I asked for advice and comments so that I could see with fresh eyes what needs to be adjusted / fixed.

I'm happy to take more criticism, on anything and everything. Don't be shy! I'm not very good at writing product description so if anyone wants to give me ideas and notes on that, I'd love that as well!

If anyone is good with writing, and I mean good enough to know that you're good at it, I'd be open to possibly get all the text on the site redone in exchange for a pedal of the persons choice.

@Beaker - You should visit! August is usually a nice time to be here if you want the Icelandic summer but the seasons have been quite weird lately. We'll see if we get an unusually hot, or even cold august month this year haha! In all seriousness, going to the westfjords is a must for anyone travelling to Iceland!

[motterpaul]

I would be happy to do all the writing. It is what I do for a living, and I don't need any pay. I'm just glad to help.

We would just need a process we use since I don't know your pedals. I think what would probably work is having you write up a fast description of each pedal that I could take and rewrite.

EDIT: sorry, I have to edit for readability sometimes and I leave in words by mistake, but I really can write.

[Travis]

The website looks great on my iPhone. As someone said above the scrolling pictures are cut off after like the 3rd or 4th one

I really dig the hand painted artwork. The raccoon growly is especially cool. The artwork definitely draws me in, good job on that

I guess I'll just say be careful writing the descriptions. Go to just about any pedal website, and they have the same generic bullshit, which I guess is supposed to appeal to people that don't do much critical thinking. You know what I mean.. All the silly buzzwords that people use. At least for me that kills all interest right away

[motterpaul]

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[Chris60601]

I don't want to come off sounding like an asshole, but you are asking for opinions.

I get the whole art-deco thing but, if I'm spending 100+ plus for a stomp, I don't want it to sit on my board looking like a child had a field day with crayons/markers - That's just me, don't take it personally.

The main page, I like - but, its does not flow with the rest of the site. I don't know if the rest of the site should be on the same theme as the default page or if default page ought to be on par with the rest of the site. As it is now, it does not flow.

If I'm going to listen to a stomp, one of the first places I go via YouTube is gearmandude. You have done that. kudos! To me, having him sign off on a stomp is a seal of approval. That will be your biggest selling point for folks that have a clue opposed to someone that strolls in to a place like Guitar Center (not putting it down, but there are 2 types that go there, the folks that know little to nothing about gear in general and the idiots that go there to show off how well they play and spew the buzz words).

I guess it really depends on the target group you are trying to hit. If I were to buy a stomp, I tend to frequent well known shops. AMS, Sam Ash, Musicians Friend etc. Otherwise, I do my best to build what I can - so to me, you really want to zero in on a certain demographic.

I personally stay away from "boutique" vendors/stomps. They don't really offer anything I don't already have. I can't reason the value of a Klon that is being sold for 300.00 when parts are under 40.00 - Oh, I get the whole, "Made by Hand in *insert country here*" I do. But really?!?! So, pricing is everything. I assume you have that well defined. Again, I am not in the demographic unless I want a Strymon or something along those lines. Now, if you are selling PCB's - now you have my attention  so, maybe that's an option for you.

Your products, I would prefer to see categorize. Distortion, Fuzz, OD etc. opposed to a scrolling spread.

The FAQ is nice but I would prefer to see more tech. for example, Why your builds are better than others, explain the whole MOJO thing and convince buyers that YOU offer what they want and why you use the parts you do. Brag on yourself - this would be the area to do it. Have the buyer walk away saying, this dude knows his shit. EDUCATE the buyer. If they don't buy, someone they tell bout you might.

Give folks a reason to visit your site. This might mean posting lees on the forums what you have done. Perhaps a simple blurb might get them there. If I see your latest work on another forum, why would I visit your site? Users tend to be click-lazy. Entice them, don't spill the beans on a site other than yours.

It probably wouldn't hurt to have some disclaimers or terms posted with links at the bottom of each page (this may not be needed, but you pretty much see that on just about every site you visit - I would think you would want some legal terms up there somewhere).

A Bio page? Maybe something along the effects of what Smallbear did, how you came up with the name, how long you been doing this, etc, etc, etc. Make Show that you and the company have some history. This allows the buyer to feel that you are opening up to them to a point.

Just a few things off the top of my head - much of that is my own personal prefs so I don't expect them to be used or considered  But, you did ask

[Travis]

Just my opinion, but both examples so far were 100% bad. If I read one sentence like that, I would back out immediately.

Obviously you'd need to have some kind of experience with the pedal to actually describe it. Neither example contained anything descriptive at all.

Saying that something is the "best" is kindof an instant giveaway that what you're reading is a bunch of crap

[rocket88]

Travis wrote

Just my opinion, but both examples so far were 100% bad. If I read one sentence like that, I would back out immediately.

Obviously you'd need to have some kind of experience with the pedal to actually describe it. Neither example contained anything descriptive at all.

Saying that something is the "best" is kindof an instant giveaway that what you're reading is a bunch of crap

 
2nd

[gabiru]

First post here.

- What made you want to make the purchase?

Cool demos, cool artwork and incredibily well built pedals.

- What information is missing?

If I were to buy one of your products, I'd be satisfied with the info online. Don't need anything else.

- Why did you decide not to make the purchase?

It's quite expensive for me, due to the exchange and to import taxes. The final price of the stompobox would be twice the original price.

- Anything else?

Not at the moment.

[Travis]

Btw count me as a vote in the "I want your pedals based on the art" camp. That raccoon one is so sweet, if I didn't build all my own pedals I would definitely be a potential customer. The princess bubblegum one is really cool too

[rocket88]

i love the p-bubs, but the louis belcher one is my favorite. i have been fighting to not buy it actually. lol

[motterpaul]

With all due respect to you guys, the phrase with "best" was just a rough example of how you write a sentence optimized for SEO, it was not a real example of what I would write for marketing content. I thought I was clear on that.