spreadubuntu team mailing list archive

[Pierre Vorhagen <pvorhagen@xxxxxxxxx>]

Hi,

Following up on the last e-mail, here's a new mockup. I hope it makes
the "marketing direction" part clearer...

http://freezedriedwater.com/media/homepage_mockup2-PierreVorhagen.png

The icons are still not the right ones, I'm no graphic designer! ;)

Good evening,
Pierre


On Wed, 2010-03-10 at 21:07 +0100, Pierre Vorhagen wrote:
> On Wed, 2010-03-10 at 12:06 -0600, Evan Boldt wrote:
> > Looks great!
> > 
> > 
> > I'm not sold on the bottom part - the 'top rated materials' part. It
> > doesn't look quite as nice as everything else. I think I want some
> > kind of a mixture of the pager at the top with the current design.
> > Maybe this time with only one row of materials.
> The design of the bottom part can be changed of course, but the idea I'm
> trying to get across is that, rather than just show off a series of nice
> images, why not present a small selection of "good marketing efforts"
> and educate people in marketing at the same time.
> Something that says "These materials are good, and this is why: ...",
> showing people why and how something is good from a marketing
> point-of-view. This would be a joint effort with the marketing team.
> Not only would we be a resource for material, but we could then
> seriously strive to become Ubuntu's marketing base.
> 
> This is, if you want, the other side of SpreadUbuntu. What we've been
> focusing on until now is merely what we used to call the DIY section,
> why not extend the reach of SU, and integrate the marketing team in the
> effort, to set up an Ubuntu Marketing Blog? As well as maintain the blog
> with current and past marketing events, the marketing team would select
> a couple of top-rated materials every month, with the branding and image
> of Ubuntu in mind.
> This way, the top half of the site would be completely dedicated to the
> DIY section, and in the bottom half, where the "Top rated materials of
> the month" is on the mockup, the marketing team would practically and
> effectively set the direction for Ubuntu marketing efforts.
> 
> > I agree with Paolo about using just the verb in the top navigation,
> > except I want it made clear that those links are related to materials.
> If you want it, then so be it. ;)
> Separating the materials-links from the login-links by a slightly
> thicker line would probably do the trick... also, see lower down.
> 
> >  It would need some kind of label or something that says that all of
> > those links pertain to marketing materials.
> > I really like having icons. Perhaps we could make white silhouettes
> > (cutouts) of icons and use them in that orange row. Maybe even give it
> > an inner shadow.
> In my opinion, putting icons in the top bar would not fit into the
> design of the new branding.
> Just the verb is of course better than adding "materials" at the end,
> like I suggested in the other e-mail, but honestly, I don't think it
> needs anything else. First-timers are immediately going to focus on the
> content of the homepage (where the 4 areas of SU are explained) and once
> they've understood that, more guidance will only clutter things up imo.
> 
> > The second row of get make translate share looks great, but I think I
> > would replace those icons with the current ones. Do we want to turn
> > the current icons orange?
> Again, why not stay in-line with the new branding?
> My suggestion was to make a new set of 4 icons in the same orange style.
> (Get, Make, Translate and Share)
> 
> > I like how simple it is, but is there any other information we want on
> > the page? It doesn't say anything about what SpreadUbuntu is. I don't
> > know if its necessary. The information on that screen makes it pretty
> > obvious.
> Agreed, the SpreadUbuntu site is a site to spread Ubuntu, the short info
> next to the icons explains the rest really... and if there is doubt, why
> not add a FAQ rather than go about explaining everything in the menus?
> Less is more... ;)
> 
> > I know that canonical is using it in their template and you just took
> > their screenshot, but I'm not a fan of the dots. 
> > Am I the only one?
> If we, who want to become the central Ubuntu marketing resource, do not
> follow the community guidelines about *branding*, who will?
> 
> We mustn't forget that Spread Ubuntu is before all a site which should
> show the way of Ubuntu marketing to the community marketeers. I'm not a
> fan of several things either, but when thinking of what SpreadUbuntu
> should look like, following the current look and feel set by Canonical
> is a top priority. We shouldn't blindly follow them, as Ubuntu still
> belongs to the community. But in terms of marketing, I must admit that I
> entirely trust a company that focuses every day, during many hours and
> also via professional studies, on actually "spreading Ubuntu".
> 
> 
> 
> 
> > On Wed, Mar 10, 2010 at 9:27 AM, Pierre Vorhagen <pvorhagen@xxxxxxxxx>
> > wrote:
> >         Hello,
> >         
> >         it has been quite a while since I last wrote something to the
> >         list, but
> >         I have been following SU developments closely. I have a little
> >         more time
> >         on my hands now, which allows me to come back to a couple of
> >         projects...
> >         
> >         I welcomed the change in branding for Ubuntu with great joy
> >         and
> >         excitement last week, we are definitely heading in the right
> >         direction
> >         with the "light" themes and feeling. Sometimes, less is more!
> >         
> >         At this point, I want to show you an image that I found some
> >         time ago. I
> >         remembered it whilst reading Evan's email and thinking of
> >         possible
> >         changes.
> >         http://freezedriedwater.com/media/simplicity.png
> >         This is exactly what Spread Ubuntu must not fall into if we
> >         want it to
> >         be a central and productive tool for the community, especially
> >         with the
> >         new branding.
> >         Take Launchpad for instance. The UI is constantly being worked
> >         on and,
> >         considering the massive amount of new and old features, the
> >         interface is
> >         a slick, clean working space.
> >         
> >         
> >         Instead of replying to every point, trying to make images
> >         clear, I
> >         drafted a mockup of what I have in mind on the gimp.
> >         http://freezedriedwater.com/media/homepage_mockup1-PierreVorhagen.png
> >         
> >         Remarks:
> >         - 5 elements in my mockup:
> >                * Top navigation bar
> >                * Marketing campaigns scrollable banners (similar to
> >         ubuntu.com)
> >                * Explanatory links of the Spread Ubuntu options with
> >         icons
> >                * A short monthly choice of well-rated materials, with
> >         a
> >         description as to why they're good, and in need of
> >         translation.
> >                * Footer -> needs to be modified of course ;)
> >         
> >         - The Get/Make/Translate/Share icons would be relevant to
> >         their meaning,
> >         and obviously not these ones, but keeping the same style.
> >         
> >         - The "Log In" link could be placed next to the "Share
> >         materials", in
> >         the top navigation bar, and the appearing links (News,
> >         Account, Create
> >         Content and Log Out) would add themselves to the top bar.
> >         There will
> >         probably not be enough space, so I suggest removing the word
> >         "materials"
> >         behind the links, which is quite redundant in my opinion,
> >         especially for
> >         returning visitors that know the concept.
> >         
> >         - You will have noticed that right now there is no reserved
> >         space for a
> >         small description of SU. This can be added at the right of the
> >         campaign
> >         banners I think, since it doesn't need to be long. And "Read
> >         more..."
> >         links are great! ;)
> >         
> >         - The monthly choice of top-rated materials might enable the
> >         marketing
> >         team to somehow draw Ubuntu-related marketing in a specific
> >         direction,
> >         reinforcing a unified branding over unrelated local efforts. I
> >         think
> >         that it's very important to not just offer an exchange
> >         platform, but
> >         also to show the way marketeers should go. To compare with the
> >         business
> >         world, marketing is deemed to fail if the marketeers don't
> >         follow the
> >         company direction. This is why our role as a link between
> >         Canonical, the
> >         marketing team and the marketeers is essential in my opinion.
> >         
> >         - If we want to make SU a central marketing resource, and not
> >         only a
> >         repository, the campaign banners are important. In the same
> >         idea, I
> >         would suggest that we echo the efforts of LoCo's and LUGs on a
> >         "Spread
> >         Ubuntu Blog". The posts would appear on the homepage in a
> >         dedicated
> >         "Marketing Ubuntu " box (which can be under or next to the
> >         top-rated
> >         box). It's very gratifying to see one's efforts relayed on a
> >         somewhat
> >         "official" Ubuntu site.
> >         
> >         
> >         I have not yet drafted anything about the materials node, but
> >         I think
> >         that with the sidebar disappearing, there will be enough space
> >         to
> >         "un-clutter" everything a little bit, and stay in-line with
> >         the new
> >         "light" theme. This e-mail already got way too long anyway...
> >         
> >         Wishing you a nice day,
> >         Pierre
> >         
> >         
> >         
> >         On Tue, 2010-03-09 at 01:38 +0000, Evan Boldt wrote:
> >         > SpreadUbuntu is participating in the new Ubuntu branding. We
> >         want to
> >         > start some discussion about the new layouts, design, and
> >         logo.
> >         >
> >         > Please take a look at this wiki page:
> >         >
> >         https://wiki.ubuntu.com/MarketingTeam/Projects/SpreadUbuntu/Brand
> >         >
> >         > Some things to discuss:
> >         > New Logo
> >         > Check out the current versions. See what you can make out of
> >         it. There
> >         > is a source file on the wiki.
> >         >
> >         > Navigation
> >         > Where should the navigation be placed?
> >         >
> >         > The 'primary' navigation (get, make, translate, and share)
> >         is on the
> >         > left (top for the home page). To match the other websites,
> >         it should be
> >         > moved to the orange bar at the top, yet the logos and
> >         descriptions are
> >         > still desirable. What would be the best way to keep them?
> >         >
> >         > Where should secondary navigation be placed? Currently it is
> >         on the left
> >         > side only for logged in users. If the primary is moved to
> >         the top, the
> >         > secondary will be the only thing occupying the left sidebar,
> >         which would
> >         > be a weird transition from not logged in to logged in.
> >         >
> >         > Front Page
> >         > What improvements can be made to the home page? Is there any
> >         information
> >         > it needs?
> >         >
> >         > Is the current layout ideal? Nearly no visitor clicks any of
> >         the 'top
> >         > rated materials'. Instead, they go for a 'media' or click
> >         'get
> >         > materials'.
> >         >
> >         > Font
> >         > Browsers with support for @font-face are growing large
> >         enough that we
> >         > can pick whatever font we want. Do we want to use something
> >         like
> >         > Liberation Sans for all text?
> >         >
> >         > Materials Node
> >         > This is the layout you see when you click on a material you
> >         want, and
> >         > you are given the option to download images or source. It
> >         displays
> >         > information about the material. How can this be brought to
> >         the new
> >         > style?
> >         >
> >         > Please make some mockups of what you want to see happen, and
> >         add it to
> >         > the wiki at the top in the appropriate section.
> >         
> >         
> >         
> >         
> >         
> >         _______________________________________________
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> >         
> > 
> > 
>