4 ms·

Not trying to just be contradictory here, but does anyone else notice that almost all these websites look the same? I mean, CarbonMade stands out, but almost al

by borski 16y ago

Not trying to just be contradictory here, but does anyone else notice that almost all these websites look the same? I mean, CarbonMade stands out, but almost all these other websites, from a 10-foot view, look exactly the same. Is that because the design is "right" in some way? Because to me, it just means that some of these website designs don't stand out in any way.

thecombjelly 16y ago
It is true. Most of these websites have what I call 'popular SaaS'. I don't know if it is the 'right' design, but it seems to be used by many web apps. There is a menu bar across the top with 'why x', 'demo', 'features', 'blog', 'signup' or 'pricing', and 'login'. Below is a nice picture or screen shot with a punch line and a big call-to-action button. And below that is misc boxes of text trying to communicate more about the product. This seems to be a lot of what you want to communicate to potential buyers and is claimed to be one of the most effective designs (one source is the book Start Small Stay Small http://startupbook.net http://startupbook.net). It seems to be a standard of sorts. It would be interesting to know if this design is proven to be the most effective basic design known for selling web apps, or what is better.
olegkikin 16y ago
Yeah, the author has a very boring taste. Here's a list I made in 5 minutes (and I think it's way more interesting): http://www.roostblog.com/ http://www.roostblog.com/ http://www.heathwaller.com/ http://www.heathwaller.com/ http://www.bohemiadesign.co.uk/ http://www.bohemiadesign.co.uk/ http://www.sproutfund.org/spring/ http://www.sproutfund.org/spring/ http://www.racket.net.au/ http://www.racket.net.au/ http://www.thirdculturestudios.com/ http://www.thirdculturestudios.com/ http://jakeprzespo.com/ http://jakeprzespo.com/ http://www.brewshop.co.nz/ http://www.brewshop.co.nz/ http://patterns.ideo.com/ http://patterns.ideo.com/ http://www.unconventionalguides.com/ http://www.unconventionalguides.com/ http://www.eightytwodesign.com/new/ http://www.eightytwodesign.com/new/ http://www.boxee.tv/ http://www.boxee.tv/
- MJR 16y ago
  While these may be nice sites, your list isn't comparable to his list. His list contains 30 web applications. Your list has two web stores and the rest are generally content sites. So you've kind of missed the point on why he put the list together. I don't agree with your opinion about his taste either. He's pointing to 30 sites which generally focus on driving new sales of their products. While they may have a similar approach, the list does contain a variety of styles and variations. I suspect the similarities in the designs speaks more to the selling process and the mainstream techniques used to drive sales rather than the author's "boring taste".
- _pius 16y ago
  While there are some interesting designs here, it's also worth noting that few (perhaps just one?) of your links are for web apps, which was the whole theme of the post. Interestingly enough, the most obvious web app amongst your links (http://www.boxee.tv http://www.boxee.tv) does indeed have a somewhat similar design to those find in the original article.
nhebb 16y ago
Since these are web applications and the front pages are focused on conversion, the take away should be that there is an emerging pattern. When visitors come to a site, which is more beneficial, a unique design, or a common look and feel that makes it easier to predict where to read, where to click, and how to navigate the landing page?
jrockway 16y ago
Is that because the design is "right" in some way? Nope. It's just that all the designers currently like ripping off 37signals. In a few years there will be another hard-on-inducing design, and then everything will look like that.

by borski 16y ago

thecombjelly 16y ago

It is true. Most of these websites have what I call 'popular SaaS'. I don't know if it is the 'right' design, but it seems to be used by many web apps. There is a menu bar across the top with 'why x', 'demo', 'features', 'blog', 'signup' or 'pricing', and 'login'. Below is a nice picture or screen shot with a punch line and a big call-to-action button. And below that is misc boxes of text trying to communicate more about the product. This seems to be a lot of what you want to communicate to potential buyers and is claimed to be one of the most effective designs (one source is the book Start Small Stay Small http://startupbook.net http://startupbook.net). It seems to be a standard of sorts. It would be interesting to know if this design is proven to be the most effective basic design known for selling web apps, or what is better.

olegkikin 16y ago

Yeah, the author has a very boring taste. Here's a list I made in 5 minutes (and I think it's way more interesting): http://www.roostblog.com/ http://www.roostblog.com/ http://www.heathwaller.com/ http://www.heathwaller.com/ http://www.bohemiadesign.co.uk/ http://www.bohemiadesign.co.uk/ http://www.sproutfund.org/spring/ http://www.sproutfund.org/spring/ http://www.racket.net.au/ http://www.racket.net.au/ http://www.thirdculturestudios.com/ http://www.thirdculturestudios.com/ http://jakeprzespo.com/ http://jakeprzespo.com/ http://www.brewshop.co.nz/ http://www.brewshop.co.nz/ http://patterns.ideo.com/ http://patterns.ideo.com/ http://www.unconventionalguides.com/ http://www.unconventionalguides.com/ http://www.eightytwodesign.com/new/ http://www.eightytwodesign.com/new/ http://www.boxee.tv/ http://www.boxee.tv/

MJR 16y ago
While these may be nice sites, your list isn't comparable to his list. His list contains 30 web applications. Your list has two web stores and the rest are generally content sites. So you've kind of missed the point on why he put the list together. I don't agree with your opinion about his taste either. He's pointing to 30 sites which generally focus on driving new sales of their products. While they may have a similar approach, the list does contain a variety of styles and variations. I suspect the similarities in the designs speaks more to the selling process and the mainstream techniques used to drive sales rather than the author's "boring taste".
_pius 16y ago
While there are some interesting designs here, it's also worth noting that few (perhaps just one?) of your links are for web apps, which was the whole theme of the post. Interestingly enough, the most obvious web app amongst your links (http://www.boxee.tv http://www.boxee.tv) does indeed have a somewhat similar design to those find in the original article.

nhebb 16y ago

Since these are web applications and the front pages are focused on conversion, the take away should be that there is an emerging pattern. When visitors come to a site, which is more beneficial, a unique design, or a common look and feel that makes it easier to predict where to read, where to click, and how to navigate the landing page?

jrockway 16y ago

Is that because the design is "right" in some way? Nope. It's just that all the designers currently like ripping off 37signals. In a few years there will be another hard-on-inducing design, and then everything will look like that.