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Welcome to Integral Life!

Posted May 22nd, 2009 by Corey deVos in The Daily VOS

I wanted to share this new Welcome page i created for Integral Life, which will hopefully be able to offer a snapshot of the full Integral Life zeitgeist on a single page--which, as i am sure you can guess, is a bit of a tall order.  Still, this was my first effort to do so, and would love to hear your feedback. 

http://integrallife.com/node/43115

Is this a page you would be comfortable showing to friends/family who are unfamiliar with the Integral Approach?  Would it make sense to them?

Is there too much on the page, in terms of text and graphics? Too little? Or would Goldilocks be proud?

Are the member benefits spelled out in a clear and inviting way?

Do you like the languaging of the copy?  Do you think it is enticing enough to get newcomers to sign up?

Perhaps most importantly: does the page properly convey that there is something truly UNIQUE happening here at Integral Life?  Or are there details that you think could be better elucidated, while considering the space limitations and the need to be as concise as possible?

 

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I like this, Mr. de Vos

Posted May 22nd, 2009 by Erik Stitt

I find this to be a little more user friendly and a lot less "widgety" than the current front page.  It has more of the inviting and human feel of old-school academia.  Like the intoxicatingly wonderful musty and dusty smell of an old library.  Great job!

 

Be well,

Erik

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Thumbs up!

Posted May 24th, 2009 by Linda Hollier

Hi Corey

I have looked over your welcome page once again and would like to share some of my impressions.

Is this a page you would be comfortable showing to friends/family who are unfamiliar with the Integral Approach?  Would it make sense to them?

This welcome page lives up to its name in that it is welcoming in both layout, style and clarity.  It is inviting without being too “in your face”.

Is there too much on the page, in terms of text and graphics? Too little? Or would Goldilocks be proud?

I was immediatedly struck by the fact that the “Recommended Media” was on the right hand side of the page.  This goes against what one normally experiences (Visuals on the left).  This placement is a plus for me in that it is not only eye-catching but almost subconsciously gives one the feeling that this site is not the normal run-of-the-mill site.  It is different and worth looking into.

IMO the “Featured Guests” photos could be slightly smaller.  At the moment they seem to dominate the page a little.

I would also suggest that the first pic under “Recommended Media” be lower down in the page and not the first one.  The image of the cross, while being inviting for many, could potentially be off-putting to individuals who are not Christian or wanting to find something beyond Christianity.  Although the symbolism for science is there as well as the explanation underneath it that is not what catches the eye at first.  In fact, this image is one of the first things one sees when one looks at this page and therefore the image in this spot needs to be carefully considered.

The fact that the graphics on the side and bottom of the page are free-flowing and not in borders of any kind is in keeping with current trends in advertising and suggests the ideas of freedom and fullness that you are promoting.

Are the member benefits spelled out in a clear and inviting way?

Most definitely.  I would only suggest one alteration in this regard.  I would omit the first “click here to sign up” as I feel this comes too soon and could therefore be offputting.

Do you like the languaging of the copy?  Do you think it is enticing enough to get newcomers to sign up?

Yes and definitely.

Perhaps most importantly: does the page properly convey that there is something truly UNIQUE happening here at Integral Life?  Or are there details that you think could be better elucidated, while considering the space limitations and the need to be as concise as possible?

I think you have done an excellent job of utilizing the space available to bring across your message.

As mentioned to you in my comment on my thread “Branding and its future” I am of the opinion that you have certainly done a good job of utilizing integral branding techniques.  The page is holistic and appeals to the senses.

Best wishes and happy designing

Linda

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Very nice, Corey

Posted May 24th, 2009 by David Marshall

Hi Corey,

I think it's very nice writing.

I just have a couple of formatting/paragraphing suggestions.

You might try taking away the boldface in the first part (the text before the bullet-point section) and improving the paragraphing just a little bit. The boldface works beautifully in the bullet-point section and the sign-up lines but not so well in the text section, in my opinion. Boldface also loses power if it is used too much, like italics.

I agree with Astrid that the paragraphing is already very good, but slightly more bite-sized pieces in three places would be nice and make for easier reading, in my view.

In the first paragraph I would take away the boldface in the first sentence, indent the next sentence, and leave the rest of that paragraph as it is as one paragraph, so the first line would stand alone as one paragraph, without boldface:

Integral Life is your gateway to cutting edge conversations that help you cultivate greater freedom, wholeness, balance and ease in your life.

I would do the same thing for the first lines of the second and fourth paragraphs and leave the other two paragraphs (the third and fifth, not counting the centered, sign-up ones with the Integral Life logo, which could be kept in boldface with "click here to sign up" in blue) as they are in terms of paragraphing but also without the boldface (except "Ken Wilber" in blue). 

You might also want to link the items in the last paragraph in blue, and from a copy-editing perspective we would only want to italicize the Journal of Integral Theory and Practice but not Integral Spiritual Experience and State of the World Forum, both of which could simply be capitalized and linked in blue.

It might look nice and actually jump out at you more than it is with the boldface and the current paragraphing, and the boldface in the bullet-point section and the centered, sign-up lines would stand out more.

While we're on the subject, I would also love to see a site map for Ken Wilber's writings and videos organized by topic. Scrolling through all those pages is difficult and time consuming, and as interested as I am in seeing his contributions my eyes kind of glaze over at that list, which goes twenty-one pages with all topics mixed together.

I would be much more interested in being a paying member again if I could find his work more easily (this is the first month I haven't paid; I hadn't been listening to things, I think, because I found it hard to navigate).

Also, it would be nice to see the author's names on the items in the right-hand margin without having to click to them and find out.

I hope that helps.

 

All the best,

David