Crap website - Not this one!

[mouldmaker]

I don't know about you lot, but when I visit a website I like to look at a pretty picture or two, get some specs, and move on.

I have just been to the Pavestone website and oh my god! They must have spent a fortune on it, loads of flash, but try getting any useful information out of it.

I nominate this as the worst paving website ever... unless you know different?

Pavestone

[andpartington]

and i thort marshalls was bad! lol

marshalls

[bobhughes]

If you are a professional looking for technical info - crap. If you are looking for ideas and pretty pics then it is very promising. It is still under construction so let's give them the benefit.

[Tony McC]

Once again, the marketing people responsible for a website fall into the trap of believing that customers want Flash animation that takes ages to download unless you have broadband, and that they'll be happy looking at some pretty crap quality mini-images.

The problem seems to be that they bring in these arty-farty web design companies that know feck all about the product and the intended market, but know how to make a site look pretty and oh-so-clever to other web designers. The company knows they ought to have a website, but they don't have a clear idea of what they expect from it, or how it should complement their other marketing activities - they just hand over a huge wad of money and as long as things move and lights twinkle, they seem to believe it's a success.

All too often they fail to understand that the web is a different medium and that it's most important characteristic is the ability to be altered or updated at a moment's notice, unlike, say, a printed brochure. How easy would it be to introduce new products to a site such as that? Would the marketing people at Pavestone be able to handle it or would they be obliged to hand over yet another large wad of money to the web design company? Sites such as that create another separation between supplier and customer.

The most successful websites in any sector of buisiness, not just paving, are those that make the web work to suit their business. Those sites that are simply "brochureware" or expensive twinkly "experiences" are doomed to failure. The amount of money it costs to maintain such sites can't be justified by enhanced sales - they simply don't work as sales tools.

So: has anyone an example of a really good web site from a paving manufacturer/distributor?

[WETCAST]

these have a good web site lol
http://www.stoneflair.com/

[mouldmaker]

Stoneflair should have a good site with all the money AI have to throw at it!

Ours works well - http://www.albionart.co.uk - and brings in a fair bit of extra business that we weren't getting before.

Web design is my other hat, and if anyone's interested I can probably produce a website for you that costs about the same as Pavestone's web designer's tea fund! (Hope I'm not stepping on Tony's toes here!)

If anyone's interested send me a PM and I'll send backa link to my portfolio.

[Robert]

Crap website? No use for the professionals??? Have you seen the paving calculator they have there? You can get a detailed design spec in seconds!

Strange that nobody have mentioned that great little program from their website…

Highly recommended!!!

http://www.pavestone.co.uk/pavecalc_temp.html

[mouldmaker]

The calculator's not much use if you lose the will to live before you find it.

[Robert]

The link to the software is the first thing on the front page http://www.pavestone.co.uk (very strange comment from mouldmaker). Well maybe it is still hard to find for some, but once you find it its worth any effort as there's nothing like it anywhere else.

"Well done" for Pavestone!

[mouldmaker]

Anyone would think you worked for pavestone, Robert. or maybe you're robert@SDART.co.uk - the designer.

I have nothing against the company, but the 'online designer' is hardly unique, and the 'random' layout isn't. Also, even if you click the button to include material costs, all it tells you is how many of each stone you need. No costs, no other information. And I'd say no professional worth his salt would touch it with a bargepole.

Nice programming, but flash for flash's sake doesn't work. And when it comes to SEO, it's actually counter productive.

I didn't make comments to score points, or get into a 'yeah but no but' discussion with the designer, but I've given you some feedback from the perspective of a user.

And I see now the link to the online design, but I ignored it first off because it wasn't what I was looking for.



Edited By mouldmaker on 1152699358

[Suggers]

This takes the biscuit -
Here

[lutonlagerlout]

quite nice suggers===> if you have just ingested 3 LSD tabs ,otherwise what on earth is going on?? :O

[mouldmaker]

Nice eagle though.