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Feedback for my website?
After a couple of months of building my website, it is finally in a state where I am proud of it! However the people using it are my friends, and I need some fresh eyes for feedback.
Basically it's called Come Clean, and you make confessions to get them off your chest. Simple idea really.
So please visit my website and tell me what you think: http://www.comeclean.co.nz
If you think something is good or bad, or if you spot a bug, leave a comment :)
Thanks!
Discussions
8 years ago
I like the idea, but the site needs a bit of polishing.
The graphics (or lack of) and color scheme bother me. I get the sense you're going after a retro commercial kinda theme like a printed cleaning product advertisement from the 60s, and I kinda like that. Go through a few women's magazines from the 50s-70s and get a few ideas on the general feel. Obviously it will all have to be modernized, so you'll need a good eye for seeing something dated than can be really fantastic right now.
I'm seeing a lot of "vents" and not a lot of confessions.
Example Vent:
I can't believe other people get better scores than I do in math class!
Example Confession:
I constantly cheat on math examinations, but no one knows. Everyone thinks I'm smart at math.
Some of the wording on the site is a bit misleading/confusing for people wanting to leave a confession. You could simply have "Confessionals" and "Confess" rather than "Confessions" and "Vent". It might even be worthwhile putting a couple lines on what constitutes as a confession.
My honest recommendation is to not bother with confessions that go into a black hole - that's what priests and diaries are for.
You could also streamline by sticking "Random" as a category option in "Confessions".
Get rid of "Home" by making the "Come Clean" logo clickable.
Come up with a quick phrase so everyone knows roughly what "Come Clean" means and what the goal of the site is. Repetition isn't such a bad thing. More can be added in the "About" section.
Add columns. It's more difficult to read a sentence spanning 920px than 600px.
I don't mean any of this in a "YOUR SITE SUCKS!!" way. I'm throwing out a few ideas to help it improve. I'm impressed at what you've got so far especially considering that you're 16, and I'm doubly impressed that you're seeking out critique for improvement. The two big things is making it look cohesive and polished, which ought to be pretty fun although a bit tedious, and streamlining the content and organization, and I'm pretty sure that's what every website developer struggles with. Instructables is constantly updating their look and organization!
Hope it helps! And congrats!
Reply 8 years ago
Yuss! Criticism! Because my friends use it, if I ask them for what is wrong or bad in the website, they don't give me a straight answer, so thanks AngryRedhead!
The colour scheme I picked out when I did a relaunch of the site, and I never changed it, so maybe it's tike to look at some alternatives. I had my IT teacher suggest using drop shadows around the main content box for added contrast or something like that.
The name 'Confession' has stuck since the first version of the site (when the site was a 400px wide column in the center of the screen!). Maybe it's time to rethink the name. I think the examples would be a great idea, and maybe having a tick and a X to the approiate examples would be handy.
The Vents go into a black hole database because one friend of mine suggested it. I'll have a think about reversing that decision.
I'll take the other points into consideration.
Don't worry, I've been looking for someone to critique my website and not automatically say its great. Thanks for the help!
Reply 8 years ago
I'm glad it was helpful. Phew!
Oh, and these little websites are very helpful and VERY fun when it comes to picking out colors: http://www.colorblender.com/
There's more out there, but that's one I found quickly.
8 years ago
Some how I spent more time on your older site :-)
A
Reply 8 years ago
Older site? Which one would that be?
Reply 8 years ago
See how mixed-up I am.
I thought I landed at lemonie's new site :0
Didn't realize this was your question LoL
But collecting Confesssions and Vents is neat.
A
8 years ago
The connection was reset twice before I got to the bottom of the page, then I gave up.
Where are you getting the content from?
L
Reply 8 years ago
My database, what page are you trying to load?
Reply 8 years ago
http://www.comeclean.co.nz/all50.php
Where are you getting the content from to put in the database?
Are you planning to turn this into an "agony-column" because I'd be interested in that. The confessions alone aren't much without feedback.
L
Reply 8 years ago
The Submit page. People type in their confession and submit it into the database. Once it's on the All page, you can click the Confession ID to view the confession and comment on it.
Quick example: http://www.comeclean.co.nz/confession/10272
Reply 8 years ago
Ah right, is this general global-internet submission then or geographically mostly NZ?
L
Reply 8 years ago
Global, but I haven't advertised it much yet. Currently the only form is word-of-mouth by my friends.
Reply 8 years ago
Put an "agony-aunt" section in there and you may have something, they really need feedback, otherwise the interest is minimal.
L
8 years ago
Well, the very first thought I have going there is....this site has an addy of - http://www.comeclean.co.nz/
Rather then starting with HTTPS it may be annonymous name wise, but secure it isn't.
Reply 8 years ago
https://www.comeclean.co.nz does work, however my webhost uses a certificate that doesn't match the domain name, so it comes up with a warning.