[Project Complete] Due Feb 21st - Web/Software Company - $500

[bpautsch]

(Admin code added by palmer - 0AT675766B174642M , 5Y007186KR1093356 )

Company Details

1a) Name of Company
iArchitect

1b) Company Tag Line or slogan:
None.

1c) Do you have a company logo?
Yes, it was created by a designer on this website.
See it at: http://forums.iarchitect.net
Would you like me to upload the files? If so, what format?

1d) Do you have a corporate visual identity (a customized (non stock) logo and color scheme carried out throughout your office, stationery, business cards, etc.)?
No. I recently renamed my company and this is all fresh. My company specializes in Microsoft .NET development...notice the Microsoft colors in the logo.

1e) What is the nature of your business?: Briefly describe your products or services:
Microsoft .NET development...software and websites. Also some technical blogging.

1f) Who is your target market? Who are you hoping to reach with your site?
Small to large businesses who need custom software or webbsites developed.
We have created software from small businesses (1-2 person shops) to large businesses (Allstate Insurance, US Air Force, Register.com, etc.).
Small businesses usually buy our software packages and utilize us for small projects.
Medium sized businesses also buy our software, but can also afford our rates for good sized projects.
Large businesses usually utilizes us for long term projects.


Website Details

1b) Do you have an existing website? If so, what is the URL?
No...this is brand new.

2b) IMPORTANT: Please list at least 3 URLs (web addresses) of high quality sites that you like the look of (these do not have to be sites who’s business is similar to yours. It aids us in determining what your design style is.) Please consider layout, colors, navigation, graphics, and typography.
1. http://www.digg.com - It's very friendly and inviting...maybe because of the soft colors. But these colors wouldn't work for our website. I really like color fading...3D looks...shadowing.
2. http://www.2advanced.com - This site is ridiculously amazing. Believe me, I don't expect anything this amazing, but elements of it might be considered.
3. http://www.bmwusa.com - Very clean. Soft Grays are always nice, but I also like color to add some life.
5. http://www.microsoft.com/vista/ - The main page has a nice area with rounded corners. It seems see-throughish and slightly opaque. I also like the background color changes from blue to green...looks like light shimmering down. I also like how the top buttons look like they have a light relection...but I don't like that they'rew black.
6. http://www.cadillac.com - Also very cool looking, but our site would need a little more color.
7. http://www.deepblue.com - nice background, very clean
8. http://www.gateway.com - I like the top graphic (I can create a bunch to rotate) and the area title bars.
Basically, I like the Mac and Vista looks a lot. Very 3D-ish.

3b) What colors or color schemes would you like?
See the logo. I like blues, greys and greens mostly. But please be creative. I don't want to see 10 designs with blue, grey and green.

4b) List the Navigation links for your Site:
Home - A way to get to everything, but not cluttered...I see the following areas:
- What Do you Want to Do? - See: http://www.worldwit.org for an idea of what I mean.
- Testimonial Quote - See: http://www.worldwit.org (top right area). I can get 10 or so quotes from customers that could rotate.
- Last 5 blogs? See my website: http://www.brianpautsch.com - this blog is being pushed into this new website
- News? I usually don't like News on a website, but it might make sense as we release new products/versions every month.
- Search - All website content (blogs, etc.) is searchable.
- Maybe a welcome area with a paragraph text about the site?
- Be sure to throw a link to the RSS feed somehwere (like on the left on http://www.brianpautsch.com).
Blog - I write a blog or 2 every week and get a lot of traffic for it.
Products - Right now, we sell one product but will sell a few more in the near future.r
Services - This will be a plain text page that lists what we do.
Support - Will link over to a forums website to support product questions/issues.
Contact - Company name, address, phone, email on left 1/2 and contact form on right half.

Maybe the site should have a top graphic area specific to each page/section...like at http://www.catavo.com - takes up 25% or so of the page.

5b) What type of look are you trying to achieve? (e.g. clean, high-tech, conservative, warm, flashy, etc.)
Professional and inviting. I want people to be impressed with the look/feel, but not seem intimidated. Simple is good too.

6b) Please provide the addresses of competitors' sites, if possible:
http://www.consultus-inc.com/consultus2003/ - My brother's consulting business. Not really a competitor, but in the same line of business.
http://www.catavo.com - A company we do work for as consultants. They are also consultants and sell products.
http://www.solutionpartners.com - Local software development/staffing company

7b) Do you have any images for use in the design of your site? If not, do you have images, can you offer suggestions of what you type of imagery you feel would be most suitable for your website:
Not really...but if stock photos make sense, feel free to pull any photos from http://www.shutterstock.com.
I have a subscription and can get the high-res, non-watermarked versions for free.


Deadlines and Deliverables

1c) What is the deadline for the design of your project?
Let's give it 3 weeks. I'm in no real hurry, but would like it done soon anyways.

2c) What is required breakdown of the files you require our designers to supply you with on finalization of your project?
PSD and HTML with CSS and images cut up.

Are there any other comments/specific ideas we should keep in mind while designing your project?
Please create only the home page, but keep the other pages in mind. Once the homepage is selected, I'll pay more for each of the other pages I need.

[bpautsch]

Please note the last statement in my original post. This is just for the homepage. Whoever wins this project will be awarded more money for additional pages I need built...Blogs, Services, Software, etc. I just don't want to commit that money yet in case I don't like any of the designs and need to walk away. I'm sure that won't happen...I like most of the designs I've seen on this site already.

[matude]

Hello,

interesting project!

I was unsure which one I personally liked the best so I just uploaded them all (always good to have a choice, right).

http://work.matude.com/iarchitect/iarchitect20.jpg
http://work.matude.com/iarchitect/iarchitect30.jpg
http://work.matude.com/iarchitect/iarchitect40.jpg
http://work.matude.com/iarchitect/iarchitect_2.jpg
http://work.matude.com/iarchitect/iarchitect3.jpg

What do You think?

Thanks,

matude

[bpautsch]

Nice start...

Pros:
- I like the see through background.
- I like the bubbled area...nice visual separation of content areas.
- Search area is not bad.
- What Do you Want to Do looks good.

Cons:
- I don't like the logo in the white area. See: http://www.microsoft.com/windows/products/windowsvista/default.mspx - I like how the logo is outside the content area bubbles. Actually I like everythingabout this webpage design.
- Not sure I like the navigation. Seems to take up a lot of space.
- I don't like the colors too much...including background rainbow colors. These title colors seem too soft and pastel-ish. I can tell you took those colors from the logo, but they don't look anything like them since they were softened.

Again, go back to http://www.microsoft.com/windows/products/windowsvista/default.mspx. The background colors are really nice...blues and greens.

Thanks...nice start...I like the direction.

[bpautsch]

Curious...what's the average time I should expect to see designs. Is it still early? Any other designers already working on this? Is my price too low? I think it's fair...whoever wins this project will get more $ for additional pages...seriously.

[belladonna]

Hi :) , just wanted to let you know that Im working on something.

[abby]

Project Update: The project amount has been raised to $500.

[dziner]

I was interested in your project but I didn't see where you had your logo files available?
Thanks!

[bpautsch]

I will get the logo files uploaded shortly...within the next hour or two max.

Also, I decided to raise the price to $500. I really would like to see more designers get involved. But in addition to the homepage, I'd like 2 more pages layed out: Blogs and Software. They should be easy since the homepage will somewhat dictate what they need to look like. Anything beyond these 3 pages I will pay extra for (if needed).

Oh...and please change the navigation from "Products" to "Software".

[bpautsch]

Attached are the EPS logo files created on this website.

I was going to provide the PDF and JPG versions, but the file was too big all zipped together...and I don't think you all need them anyways (I guess I could have uploaded multiple files). Eh.

[matude]

Hi,

here are the revisions,
what do you think?

In which direction should I head with the navigation?

Thanks,

matude

[bpautsch]

Looking better! Some immediate thoughts:
1. Background color (green and purple and blue) looks great.
2. I still see the logo and search in the see through background. I prefer it outside of it I think. Now that you have the EPS files, can you try that out?
3.I like how you incorporated the logo wedge thingys into the title areas. Very cool.
4. The left and right areas are looking really good, but the center still needs some work. I still don't like the gray oval button things. And the "Read More" button color is no good. Too pastelish.

Let me look at it for a day and get back to you.

[matude]

I changed couple of things right away. Did you mean something like this?
Or should the navigation be out of the box as well?
Also would you like the searchbar be where it was? Because moving the logo opens up new possibilities.

http://work.matude.com/iarchitect4.jpg
http://work.matude.com/iarchitect4_1.jpg


I will work on the center part now, as it takes a bit more time..

matude

[dziner]

Here is one from me. I will be happy to make any changes you would like to see. The boxes in the middle could be used for things other than what is shown. Good way to highlight products and services etc..
Thanks!
http://www.thedotfactor.com/sites_mine/iarchitect/layout1.jpg

[bpautsch]

Hmm...I like the logo outside the see through area. I checked out the first one and thought "Maybe move the search into the nav area". Then I saw the 2nd one. :) But swap the nav and search...I think nav left justified would look better.

The only problem now is all of the wasted space at the top right. Let me think about it more and get back to you.

[bpautsch]

Message #15 was to matude.

[bpautsch]

dziner - Wow...give me some time to digest this and I'll get to you.

[matude]

Thank you for your quick reply,

Here's revisions:

http://work.matude.com/iarchitect5_2.jpg

matude

[Severner]

Hey,

You can expect something from me.


Thanks very much,

Sev (:

[Severner]

Hello there,

Here is mine so far; I still have a lot to add but I wanted to see if its in the right direction and get your initial thoughts and guidance;

[bpautsch]

Overall:
Very clean and nice, but doesn't totally wow me. I know this might be a little frustrating, but I want a design that's both frienly and inviting but also looks amazing. Yours is close, but still a little too soft.

Comments:
1. Initially, I liked the top area background, but after seeing it a few times it's a little too soft. The other designers are using a darker backgrounds that I think look better.But..I do like the "iArchitect" in black much better...the other designers are using white and it tends to not be as "strong" or "bold".
2. The search area is simple and nice...doesn't take away from anything else.
3. The navigation is also very clean and nice.
4. I want the "What Do You Want To Do?" on the home page area (see matude's designs). I don't want a lot of content..people don't read that stuff. I want them to look and quickly find what they want and keep clicking.
5. I like the breadcrumb area just below the navigation. I forgot that I wanted that too.
6. Testimonials and News look great. Testimonials header seems a little overpwoering though...the blue. But I'm afraid if you soften it, it'll look pastelish (which I don't want). Hmmm
7. Content area looks great! I love the short welcome area and the 3 boxes. The icon images are great! I was hoping someone would do this...I think these drawn graphics fit really nice. When the site is all colors and text, it tends to be a little boring.
8. Footer is fine...boring, but that's what footers are. Actually, see Message #20...I see more and more sites that have a nice footer design. Any ideas and doing some design down there too?

[bpautsch]

Overall:
Getting better...very original.

Comments:
1. I like the background colors...and the logo wedges in there too.
2. How does the logo look with black text? Might need to alter what color is behind it so it stands out.
3. We gotta figure something out with the navigation. I really don't like it. The other designers navigation is really nice. You design seems to be very rounded (corners) and theirs seems to be more 90 degree corners. Your navigation is a bit harder to design...I spent a 1/2 hour looking around for something I like...didn't find anything great.
4. The search area is good.
5. What Do You Want To Do looks good.
6. Center top content...I've said this a few time...I really do not like the gray oval things (breadcrumbs and Print).
7. News are is OK.
8. Testimonials and Blogs looks good...gray button again.
9. Footer is nice.

[dziner]

Another version =)


http://www.thedotfactor.com/sites_mine/iarchitect/layout1b.jpg

[bpautsch]

Overall:
Darker than the rest, but I think I like that. It seems a little more edgy (I asked for that in the original request). colors are good and nav is cool. Content area is boring.

Comments:
1. Logo might be too big (matude: same with yours too...forgot to mention that). Also, I like the text in black better...seems to really stand out.
2. Search is OK...I've never seen it touching the top of the page...looks a bit awkward. Maybe drop it down and lose the opaque background (like dziner's in Message #14). I know you're trying to make it stand out, but it just seems a little weird. Also, it looks really tall too. Maybe shorten it a little.
3. Navigation is great! Reflection on button is very cool and the veritcal dividers and rollover effect is very cool.
4. What Do you want to do? As I mentioned to "dziner", I wanted that on the home page like "matude" has it. I want the homepage to have a brief info and then little area that make it easy for a visitor to find all parts of the site. The Waht Do You Want To Do would faciliate that along with the last 5 blogs, and product intro. See what dziner did with the 3 boxes...I think that was great. I especially like the icons added too.
5. You're the first to have the top image area that I asked for. Thank you. The height is perfect and the content is good (just a few bullet points, a software box and buttons to learn more or buy...great!). But for some reason it looks a little weird. The green seems to clash with the background...I know, I know, you probably sampled the background and it's a good color to choose, but it still looks a little weird. Great overall though.
6. Content area is really boring. Maybe add the 3 boxes like "dziner" did.
7. Testimonial looks good, but maybe taking up too much real estate. Might need to be skinnier.
8. Quick blog...hmmm, not bad. That's a nice way to display multiple blogs without taking up too much space.
9. Footer really stands out...bold. It may be too bold since it's the old red on the page really. But, th whole site can;t be blues and greens. Looks good.

Good direction so far...looking forward to the updates.

[bpautsch]

Great job so fareveryone. I wish I could award you all the money :)

[bpautsch]

I'm guessing you didn't see my message before posting this new version.

Changes I see:
1. Navigation colors: I like the original nav better...this new nav is overpowering.
2. I like how the header is its own area...with the breadcrumbs. It's really easy to see where the common area ends and the page content starts.
3. You changed the areas into bubbles...at first I thought it didn't look as good, but I think I like it better.

That's all I see...looking good!

[dziner]

Thanks for the great feedback... I will start making changes and post later today. =)

[matude]

Hello again,

Here's my revision,

What do you think so far?
Those software boxes are just examples.. spaceholders.

http://work.matude.com/iarchitect6_1.jpg

Here's also version with different text-color, because 2 black colors don't work well together (logo and the header).

Thanks,

matude

[dziner]

Here are some revisions to the first one I posted. I will continue to work your suggestions w/ the second. Thanks!

http://www.thedotfactor.com/sites_mine/iarchitect/layout1.2.jpg

[Severner]

Hey,

I will have my revision for you tonight.


Thanks very much for the detailed feedback,

Sev (:

[bpautsch]

I will not be on the forum all weekend since I have a trade show this weekend for my other business, Midwest Scuba Diving Magazine (http://www.midwestscubadiving.com). Please upload your designs ASAP as I plan to select a design next week (Tues or Wed).

Thanks,
Brian

PS - I will need some work done for the scuba magazine. Look out for that soon!

[Severner]

Hey,

I decided to change it all and I think for the better.

Let me know what you think of this so far;

[Severner]

Also;

[Severner]

Also a few small changes;

[bpautsch]

Better...and I like it, but when I look at the other designs and come back to this one, it looks a little plain...maybe too much white.

I appreciate all of your hard work and I don't want to waste your time. Feel free to keep updating your designs, but right now, I'm really close to choosing dziner or Severner.

[bpautsch]

OK...I like your designs the best. The choice appears to be between you two. So I'll tell you both what I like and dislike about each and you can both do what you want. I don't know what the rules are as far as taking ideas from each others designs (obviously not exactly copying), but I really wish I could award you both 1/2 the money each and take pieces of each.

Comments for my favorites so far
dziner #29 and Severner's #34

Overall
dziner: Your designs are so crisp and clean. I like that a lot.
Severner: Also very clean and I like that you provided different ideas.

Header
This is one of the most important pieces of the design since it's the logo area. I kept saying I wanted the color mix in the background (which Severner did), but I also said I don't want people to follow my advice/comments exactly everytime. So my dilemma now is that I have two very good (not great) headers that are totally different. It's not a bad thing, but a bit of a pain.
dziner: Your header really makes the logo stand out. I love that. But I'm not sure I like the green. I'm betting that's the best background color, but it seems a little awkward. I know that sounds weird, but it's hard to explain. Maybe it's just me...maybe I need to get other people's opinions. Sorry I'm not much help here....any ideas? Search box is good as is.
Severner: The background color mix is nice. Logo seems a bit large and seems a little lost in the background. I think it looks lost since I look at dziner's and it's so vibrant. I know, not much help...I can't have it one way and not the other. Search box, text and button seem large too.
Both: The header is really tough...both are really good, buit both have pros and cons.

Navigation:
dziner: Looks great. Honestly, I like Servner's just a little more. His doesn't use tabs like yours and that seems a little cleaner. Nice breadcrumb placement.
Severner: Great nav, but no breadcrumb area. Any ideas?

Side boxes:
dziner: Perfect. Couldn't look better. Actually, under Testimonials, could there be a "more" link or something so the visitor knows they can read more?
Severner: Looks really good. "What Do You..." looks great. Testimonial. I want to have an actual quote, not a list. Nice idea though, just not what I want. Also, I like how you threw the logo "wedge" shape in each title area. Would it look better if they were colored to match the header color? Or did you try that and it looked like too much?

Contact area:
dziner: Looks great! Clean and crisp. Actually, I noticed you have the blogs here while Severner has them in the side box. I like them her better and now there's room for news (which I actually update often). Oh wait...I just noticed you don't have an area for a large image advertisement (like Severner does at the top just below the nav). I wonder if it would look good in your designs...maybe not. Now you're making me 2nd guess myself. Instead, you put in the 3 boxes which is a good amount of graphics. Hmmmm...what do you think? Leave it?
Severner: Looks really good. First the top area. I like that advertising area...but I liked just one software box better...and make the box smaller with links to "Learn More" and "Buy Now" like you did in #20 (but make then underlined text instead of buttons). Now the content...eh, looks OK. I do like the 3 boxes but it looks like a lot of text. Maybe swap the middle text and links with the software boxes? Does that look good?

Footer:
dziner: Looks really dark and blends in with background (of website)...Not necessary a bad thing, but that was my first impression. Maybe lighten or change a little?
Severner: Looks good. I'm not sure I've ever seen the top nav match the bottom nav. I think I like it. And I like the thin orange strip at the bottom to finish it off.

Hope this help...please post a message or email me if you have any questions/comments.

Thanks,
Brian

[Severner]

Hey,

Is this on the lines you where thinking?

The news/blog would obviously scroll down as much as you would like and I put in another header background option.

http://www.mfowler.co.uk/work/iart/homepage2c.jpg

[bpautsch]

Sevener,
The first one with the green behind the logo doesn't look good, but the attached one is OUTSTANDING! I showed it to a few designers already and they all think it's great. Don't make any changes. Let's see what dziner comes up with and I'll make a decision.
Thnks,
Brian

[Severner]

Hey Brian,

Fantastic I am extremely happy with it, I look forward to the decision.


Thank you.

Warm regards,

Sev (:

[dziner]

Thank you for the great feedback. I will work on the changes this evening.
Shelly

[Severner]

I thought I would try a header behind the logo to see what it would look like;

[Severner]

Also something that stands out a lot more;

[bpautsch]

dziner,

I wanted to make a final decision today and haven't heard from you. Were you still planning to update your design?

Thanks,
Brian

[bpautsch]

dziner,

I will be making a decision tomorrow at noon CST. If you don;t submit an update by then, I will have to go with Severner's design.

Thanks,
Brian

PS - I just submitted another project for a scuba trade show. And I will be submitting other projects as early next week. Keep a look out!

[bpautsch]

Severner,
Quick question: I need the design cut up into images with HTML and CSS. What format are the files you give me? Can I get them in PSD?
Thanks,
Brian

[Severner]

Hey Brian,

HTML, CSS, Sliced Images and PSD(s) yes.

The font is a standard Windows and Macintosh font.


Thanks very much,

Sev (:

[bpautsch]

OK, Severner, this project is yours.

1. Please cut up #41. I will be changing "Testimonial" to "Case Study" and reworking the text in that box, but I cn do that.

2. Per Message #9, please layout the blogs and product pages.

Blogs: Shouldn't be much work. It just needs to be a list of blogs similar to http://www.brianpautsch.com/Blog/
But I think it needs to be a bit more with colors, bolding, etc.
There should be a date, title, category (which I don't show now) and an intro.
Oh wait, here's a site I built 6 or so months ago: http://www.whatsyourmotto.com/Blogs/
Check out the top section under "What We're Saying". I like that with the arrow, author, and number of comments so far. I think I'd like the intro text to be 2-3 lines, though.

Product Page (single product):
All pages will have the header and left nav, but should the top banner picture stay too? Not sure? Your thoughts? Whether that's there or not, the content area will need to look something like: http://www.redgate.com/products/SQL_Compare/index.htm

In the center content area, there should be a product title, a picture of a software box with 4 or 5 key features next to it, a short paragraph, and a feature set. On the right should be the price, a link/button to buy it, and a table with links to case studies, comments, requirements, licensing, faqs and support forum. Similar to what's there now.

Please put these together and I'm sure they will only need some very minor tweaking.

Thanks,
Brian

PS - If I need more pages layed out, what would they cost each? I might want a "Products" page done which lists the products I sell. And maybe a Contact Us form.

[Severner]

Hey Brian,

Excellent, I think for the product page maybe the banner takes up too much room, I'll have it try with and without to be sure.

Extra pages would cost $100/page for design (PSD) and code (HTML/CSS).

I will get right on this tonight.


Thanks very much,

Sev (:

[bpautsch]

Sounds good. Thanks. Looking forward to the scuba trade show design.

[Severner]

Hey Brian,

Let me know what you think of this for the blog page?

Yes indeed, I have been working on that scuba project design but will not have it to show for a few days.

Working on the product page right now and I have my partner slicing/coding the homepage as we speak.

[bpautsch]

Looks good...I may tweak it a little, but it's good enough to be done. Thanks.

[Severner]

Brian,

I have sent the blog page to my partner to code too.

What do you think of the product page?

[bpautsch]

Looks great! Just change the header from "Most recent blogs" to something like "Products > Cloud9". Actually, this will be text, so I can just do it. Cut it up!

[Severner]

Hey Brian,

I have a link to download the files through Private Message (http://www.designoutpost.com/forums/private.php?).

As stated, let me know if you think something is wrong, missing or just need help on something.


Thanks for the great project,

Warm regards,

Sev (:

[Severner]

Also I will see you over in the Scuba contest very soon ;)

[bpautsch]

Severner - Quickly reviewed files...looks great. I noticed the css at the top...did you guys create a style for all mouseovers? And for the nav, did you create all mouseover images? If not, could you do that quickly? You can do it a hell of a lot faster than I could.

Design Outpost - Files received. Consider project closed.

[Severner]

Hey Brian,

I will get right on that for you.


Thanks very much,

Sev (:

[bpautsch]

Great, thanks.

[Severner]

Updated and sent through private message.

Sev (:

[bpautsch]

All files received and exactly as requested.