tailspinhoops.com is now open for biz-nez!

[swingchickie]

well, kinda.

i guess this is what they call in the restaurant business a "soft opening" -- i'm not publicizing it yet, except to you guys, so i can work out all the kinks before i *really* spread the word.

the issue i'm having is that doteasy.com's design software does nowhere near what i want it to do, so all these great ideas i had for the site just can't physically be done. so i don't know if i'm looking at it with an over-critical eye, or if it really does stink.

so, if you have a few minutes, please go to the site... click around, and then post here and tell me what looks stupid and/or what i should keep. (FYI, i'm going to be switching out the 3 photos on the home page, to something more square. i don't like the skinny photos.) i don't care if it's a picture, a description, the layout... give it to me.

ETA: already changed the photos on the home page. much, much better (thanks glenn), but let me know if you have other suggestions!

Comments

[notshakespeare.livejournal.com]

"working out the kinks"

Many - there really is a fetish site for everything.

[notshakespeare.livejournal.com]

Okay, a more serious comment. Why aren't there any full length shots of a hoop on the home page. I mean, just one full circle!

[swingchickie.livejournal.com]

good point! you can't see any of the detail if you take a photo of the whole thing, but perhaps i should be showing different kinds of photos: a whole hoop, a closeup, and one in use...

[notshakespeare.livejournal.com]

At least on the homepage, you need to see at least one full hoop - it doesn't need to be a big pic, just enough so some can point at it and say "hoop". Another with one in use isn't a bad idea.

[swingchickie.livejournal.com]

done. whaddaya think?

[notshakespeare.livejournal.com]

Small tweak - I'd order the images by full hoop, close up (so it is next to "design") then use.

[notshakespeare.livejournal.com]

perfecto!

[dear-amaranth.livejournal.com]

Hrm... not sure if this is really a suggestion, but it seems like the different categories you have them in could have a lot of cross-over - especially "fun" and "funky." It's not a suggestion because at the end of a long work day, I really have no alternative to offer. :P And it's really just kinda nit-picky anyway - as long as you can see them all, right? :)

[swingchickie.livejournal.com]

i know what you mean... i figured i'd put the "themed" ones in the "fun" category -- the halloween and christmas ones. it felt odd having only 2 categories total, and i had to break them out somehow. if you have any suggestions for other category names, and/or putting ones in different categories, let me know!

[xtingu]

LOVE!

I'm so excited and proud of you! Woohoooo!

And I'm a total fairy: I actually got choked up right here in the airport when I saw that you're donating to the Star Foster fund for every SuperStar hoop you sell. *snif!* How awesome!

From a techie perspective: It seems that the top-right picture (three hoops) is loading very slowly, but that could seriously because I'm on a cruddy airport WiFi connection. So if it's loading normally for everyone else, I'll just shaddap.

Lastly: The menu on the left doesn't tell you what page you're on. So, at one point I couldn't tell if I was on the Fun Hoops or the Funky Hoops page. If modifying the menu is a pain in the arse, then just stick a title on the top of the page (like, above "Hula-Ween" for example) just so we remember what page we're on.

This is awesome. I haven't tried hooping since I was in like 3rd grade. Makes me wanna try!

[swingchickie.livejournal.com]

thanks for the feedback! *mwah* a few things:

* i'm really psyched for the star one, i just figured she'd totally be into hooping if she were still here, and the black-on-black seemed fitting. i'm sending the first one to her mom -- she's really into the idea, and gave me input with the design and all.

* that photo IS loading slowly, i'll figure out what the deal is.

* the menu on the left *kinda* tells you what page you're on -- it turns hot pink for the one you're on. but i think the hot pink and regular pink of the rest of the menu are too close in shade to be noticeable. i'll have to pick another color, perhaps...

have a blast on the playa!

[(Anonymous)]

Looks great Jen,

My only comment is that there's nothing on the site about shipping. I'm curious how hoops get shipped (forgive me, I'm an engineer), and - very important - how much it costs.

[dontcallmemolly.livejournal.com]

Doh, that was me.

[pennycuts.livejournal.com]

awesome.. congrats Jen!

[ms-violet.livejournal.com]

Looks awesome! I like the fact that it's not too flashy. And I choked up on the Star hoop connection too.

[swingdoc.livejournal.com]

nice jaerb, jenn!!

what about hoops with your high school or college school colors on them? you could suggest that in the "custom" section. . .

and i must ask - were you on your high school yearbook staff? 'cause your captions are fantastic!

i agree with the "how-the-heck-do-you-ship-me-a-hoop" comment. in fact, i wish i had bought one when i lived in philly. :)

also, a link to some information about star for those folks who don't know her and/or her story would be helpful.

that's all. rock on!

[swingchickie.livejournal.com]

you know what? there's a link to the information about hre memorial fund, but the link isn't showing up as a different color. i'll have to fix that. and i LOVE the school colors idea! very cool!

Perfect!

[occhi-cinesi.livejournal.com]

Love it! Every page loaded perfectly, great clear pics... is it weird that I want an About Us page? I want to know who is selling me these cool hoops... what was her inspiration, what makes her so quirky, does she have a 'real job' and, just like most of us, what about that job made her instead fall so in love with hooping that she decided to design them herself... or was she just bored and independently wealthy with tons of extra time on her hands...?

With your fun writing style, it would make me laugh, fall in love with you and I'd buy hoops that won't fit around the baby... ;)

[notshakespeare.livejournal.com]

The deal is that this pic is huge!

http://tailspinhoops.com/pb/images/img2959346d06f1d1290f.JPG

Make it small like the rest of them!

In fact, suck them all into photoshop or whatever and cut them down to size!