# Critique my website?



## smootah (Mar 23, 2014)

Hey Haunters! We're opening a new haunt in northern Utah and I've been building our new info based website! It's still on lockdown so you'll have it put in a password (*Deacon91*) I want some critics to check it out before I make it go live! Let me know what you like and dislike! Thanks! Remember to put in hr
Www. LoganHauntedHouse.com
Password: Deacon91


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## smootah (Mar 23, 2014)

Www.LoganHauntedHouse.com


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## Troll Wizard (May 3, 2012)

_*After checking out you new website for your new haunt, I would have to say Not Bad! I would maybe suggest that you might change the type of lettering you use to maybe make it a little more creepy. I think you should also decide if you really want kids there that are under the age of 8 as you have suggested.

If it is going to be a scary as you claim, then I would make a disclaimer that would say something like this:

You would indicate that this is very scary and it is not intended for children under that age of 8 years of age. I do like the idea of the wrist bands that allow the actors to gauge the amount of scariness that they need to apply. I don't think that you should allow parents to decide if someone younger than 8 should go into you haunt or not.

The problem is in letting parents decide to let younger kids in is then they get the pants scared off them and then you have irate parents because they had to leave the event early or the kid is throwing some kind of tantrum inside the haunt, which disrupts everyone else's fun in getting scared.

In fact, I would just go as far as saying that this haunt is too intense for children under the age of 8, and will not be allowed into the haunt. But again, that is up to you, as it is your attraction. 
*_


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## jaege (Aug 23, 2009)

Pretty spooky stuff. I am not sure I understand how this is linked to a haunt though. Are you going to actually use that rink? If so, nice setting.


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## LucDarque (Jan 18, 2014)

I really like the layout. It's different from many of the haunt sites out there, mine included. The imagery is great but I'd have to agree that the typeface needs a little creep factor. Finding something that looks like it's from the era and distressing it would work really nicely or something that goes with the awesome doll pic on the home page. 

Just out of curiosity, did you hand code this or use web design software? I'd love to use that layout for non haunt related projects and I've never quite gotten it.


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## scarybill (Oct 7, 2012)

The wristbands are a good idea. nice job


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## smootah (Mar 23, 2014)

LucDarque, thanks for the feedback! I'll see if I can work w/ some better lettering. As far as the page layout, I actually just purchased an account with SquareSpace.com and ended up using their 'Bedford' template and built it from off of that. I have so far loved their service plus they gave me 50% off because I'm a college student building a business. Thanks for the insight!


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## smootah (Mar 23, 2014)

Troll Wizard said:


> _*After checking out you new website for your new haunt, I would have to say Not Bad! I would maybe suggest that you might change the type of lettering you use to maybe make it a little more creepy. I think you should also decide if you really want kids there that are under the age of 8 as you have suggested.
> 
> If it is going to be a scary as you claim, then I would make a disclaimer that would say something like this:
> 
> ...


Thank everyone for the great feedback! I've fallen in love with this Forum because I'm speaking with you great people and you all seem to care so much as to even check out my website on your own time! You guys are great! I'm glad that you had mentioned what you had about the discretion of children, it's made me think a lot more about that and I'm currently building my disclaimer now! And yes, the Roller Rink is the location of our haunt, we're currently creating a video that will be placed inside the site the will more fully promote the haunt. Thanks for all your feedback!


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## HavenHaunt (May 17, 2013)

I like the website. I just do a home haunt and the first year I did wrist bands and the second year I did glow stick bracelets because the actors could not see the wrist bands. It looks like you got that taken care of if you are using glow in the dark bands. I live down in Kaysville so I will for sure come up and see the haunt!


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## fontgeek (Jul 24, 2006)

Generally, I like what I see in the site.
It's nice to see something other than the shock and gore genre. I'm glad to see that it isn't loaded down with animation and such, that can drag the viewing speed down wildly, and for some, make it impossible to view.

A couple of questions though; First, will this be an annual thing, or just a one time event?
If it will be an annual event, will it carry the same theme, name, or location every year?
The reasons for asking this stuff is that how you name and letter your event for a one time thing tend to be quite different than an event that will carry on the same name or theme every year. You can tweak the lettering and name to fit the individual event's name without the worry of having to make it come out differently the next year (since there would be no next year). If it's something that will carry on year after year with the same name and or theme, then you can pretty much do whatever you please, if it's going to keep the name but not the same theme, then you need to keep future possibilities open as far as the look or feel goes, both for the lettering and the haunt name and website. This is especially important if you are going to publicly market this (sell T-shirts, posters, postcards, etc.). If people can only hear the haunt name and think of one event, then that limits your sales quite a bit. Knott's Berry Farm/Scary Farm learned this many years ago and started giving each year's haunt a different name and look for their advertising campaigns. This allowed them to sell massive amounts of shirts and souvenirs year after year. The shirts became collectors items, the same with the ticket stubs, etc.
You can answer these questions publicly, or just ask them to yourself before you dive in too deep. Let us know, we'll help you if we can.
I'm not exactly sure how you plan to market your haunt with a name that basically means an irrational fear of irrational fears. Maybe adding a subhead that says something like "Where all your fears come to life."

Another group I'd do special offers for is active military personnel and their families (with military I.D.). It's an easy way to spread good will and bring in more people from your community.


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## smootah (Mar 23, 2014)

fontgeek said:


> Generally, I like what I see in the site.
> It's nice to see something other than the shock and gore genre. I'm glad to see that it isn't loaded down with animation and such, that can drag the viewing speed down wildly, and for some, make it impossible to view.
> 
> A couple of questions though; First, will this be an annual thing, or just a one time event?
> ...


Great idea for the active military offer! Very respectable! As far as the haunt - this will be an annual thing in the same location. However I'm in between the idea of renaming the haunt every year. This first season we have named it PHOBOPHOBIA: The House of Fear. Going off of the "Fear of Fear" and throughout the house we will be re creating common phobias such as spiders, clowns, heights, etc. We're really excited about it. 
As far as the second season - maybe we could toggle through the sub title such as PHOBOPHOBIA: Lights Out. Or PHOBOPHOBIA: Circus Clowns. 
As experienced Haunters, does that seem to be effective in advertisement or should we change the name entirely every year?


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## fontgeek (Jul 24, 2006)

I think I'd give your group a name and have each year's event shown as "Crypt Keeper (your group name)
Presents
Phobophobia (Haunt name)
"Terror to the very end" (subtitle or quote).
Having a consistent group or organization name makes it easier to market and makes it easier for people to remember who you are. They may forget the haunt name, but if your haunt is good, the group name will bring them back and have them recommending your haunt(s) to others in years to come.
The subtitle or phrase/quote lets you do something clever to explain that year's haunt theme.
Would you be selling shirts, posters, etc.? If so, then creating a new look or design each year is critical, if everything looks the same then that's what people will expect out of your haunt, the same old stuff, and if it's the same shirt or design year after year, you've taken away the incentive for anyone to buy more than one year's shirt or poster, I mean what's the point if they were all to look the same?
having a character, logo or icon people will remember and that isn't stuck in one theme for a haunt makes it easier to market in the future. It builds it's own following.


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## warlordstudios (Apr 2, 2014)

very cool , very professional.


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## screaminscott (Oct 13, 2006)

I must say that I liked the typeface. The spooky font has become a bit cliche.

I also liked that there wasn't any video or animation in the web stie. You didn't have to wait for it to load.

The menu at the top of the page was great - it allows people to jump directly to the information they want. Also, including extra links in all the pages was great also - you never want people to have to hunt for information.

The only suggestion I have is to make the picture smaller on http://www.loganhauntedhouse.com/hoursandlocation/ . It takes up the whole page and people might not scroll down to see the additional information.


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## NickWaka7 (Aug 10, 2013)

Nice website. Like stated by others, I think it needs to be a little more creepy, but other than that it looks great! If I lived closer I would come!


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## corey872 (Jan 10, 2010)

Seems to be nice, clean and well laid out. It's not heavy in flash, animation, sound, or other things which break or take forever to load - so kudos on that. 

As constructive criticism, I might suggest jazzing up the story of the old roller rink a bit... maybe even spin a bit of a tale ... it's not a court testimony, so I don't guess it has to all be true?!? I am by no means given to melodramatic prose, but consider adding some elements:

===
The Old Roller Rink of Logan, Utah was constructed in 1904 and has recorded its share of strange and macabre happenings over the past 110 years.

First used primarily as a popular dance hall with music provided by the Thatcher Orchestra. Though not long after its construction, reports of strange happenings started to surface. Some reported a presence was felt in the otherwise empty dance hall. Others say they felt a hand on the small of the back or a tap on the shoulder as if to ask 'may I have this dance?" - even though no physical body was there. Some even say not everyone left the building once the orchestra stopped playing.

As popularity of orchestral dance music died out, the building was transformed to a roller skating rink. Even through the laughter and music, dark forces seemed to be at work. Some children reported standing perfectly still on their roller skates, yet some unknown force would start pushing them across the floor. Others reported a feeling of 'being watched' or the same feeling of a hand on the back or touch on the shoulder - even though they were much too young to ever know of the events during the halls former orchestral life. A few children became so haunted by the taps on the shoulder and touches on the back, they left, and refused to return. 

For unknown reasons the building was suddenly boarded up and abandoned in the early part of this century. It sat decaying in apparent silence and solitude until June 2012 when local security footage revealed unusual activity occurring near the building. First disregarded as a 'trick of light' or 'bug in the camera', these events were noticed by different people on several different occasions.

With the frequency of these events increasing, an investigation was launched to examine the now decrepit old building. It was only during the investigation when researchers started examining the structure in detail and made a terrifying discovery. The building had been abandon and boarded up in a manner which was designed not to keep someone out - as had been thought - but to keep someone... or some thing IN.
==========

Might also jazz up the plain gray background a bit. But overall, very nice job!


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## Blackrose1978 (Aug 13, 2011)

I really like your idea of scare care wrist bands. Overall I really like your website. Easy to navigate and love the little background info


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## smootah (Mar 23, 2014)

THANK YOU for your deep insight and help on the background story. I absolutely love the depth you placed into it. I appreciate it!


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## fontgeek (Jul 24, 2006)

Slightly off subject, but for your "Fear of heights" how about doing one of those drawings on the floor that looks like an open pit, maybe with some creepy things in the pit?

A story line can definitely help, Corey's is good, and it leaves you room to grow in years to come. Having a "Company" name that you can use year to year to help you establish and identity and followng can be a major help in growing our business.


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## kprimm (Mar 14, 2009)

I like the site, looks great. Agree about scary lettering, but the rest looks top notch. That roller rink looks awesome for a Haunt. I do think you should keep the same Haunt name throughout the years though. That will people will come to know your Haunt with no confusion and you can build your history.


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## smootah (Mar 23, 2014)

corey872 said:


> Seems to be nice, clean and well laid out. It's not heavy in flash, animation, sound, or other things which break or take forever to load - so kudos on that.
> 
> As constructive criticism, I might suggest jazzing up the story of the old roller rink a bit... maybe even spin a bit of a tale ... it's not a court testimony, so I don't guess it has to all be true?!? I am by no means given to melodramatic prose, but consider adding some elements:
> 
> ...


With some minor fixes off of personal preference-- I'd like to thank you. Corey. I've used your given background story for my new website! (If that's ok w/ you). Thank you so much for taking the time!


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## smootah (Mar 23, 2014)

Ok, I have taken into account all the many insights that I have recieved from this forum! What do you think? Thanks for everything, Haunters!


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## corey872 (Jan 10, 2010)

Looks great. Sorry I didn't see your earlier post in a timely manner, but you're welcome to use any/all elements of my story you see fit. To tell you the truth, I'd hoped some great minds around here would touch it up and make a REALLY great story for you. But if it suits, I hope it works out for you. 

Good luck with the haunt!


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## Abunai (Oct 28, 2007)

I just checked out the site. 
It does look very slick. It's a layout I haven't seen before. 

Great find on the old roller-rink location. Are you renting or is it yours (and your bank's)?

I'm from Utah, and am a haunt fanatic, so I'd LOVE to see a Utah haunter succeed in starting a professional haunt. 

I'll get there soon, but until then, I'll root for you.


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## Lunatic (Oct 3, 2006)

Looks good....Intriguing!


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## smootah (Mar 23, 2014)

Just wanted to give a special thanks to all those that reached out and gave their insight and thoughts as we have been going through the process of building our website for our Haunt this year. We've done a lot of work to it recently. Check out our progress! 
You'll notice on our opening "ABOUT" page we have been putting together a "Ghost VIDEO" that shows the footage of a ghost being caught on local surveillance cameras. The video is not yet complete which is why you'll notice that there isn't a ghost in the clip yet. Patience  It'll come.


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## ATLfun (Oct 12, 2012)

Looking really good. Has anyone else noticed that most websites like this one are going back to clean lines and uncluttered backgrounds. Easy on the eyes, looks professional which implies that the haunted house would be worth visiting.

Good luck.

.


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