Eagles in trouble

Buckle up. This is going to be a rough ride

This is a review of Eagle Stock Images, original comments: Features the wildlife photography of John Herron. Mostly lots and lots Bald Eagle photos but in the process of adding more variety. The eagles are close-up with beautiful scenic backgrounds. Many are close-up in-flight with beautiful scenic backgrounds!

Reviewed by: Rod Cooper
 

This site offers us beautiful pictures of the American Bald Eagle, an indisputably patriotic symbol of the power and resolve of a mighty nation! And, because of the noble nature of the content, I was irked by the pushy sell-sell feel of the site. It's "cha-ching, cha-ching" all the way. Buy it this way, buy it that way. Have you thought of belt buckles?

Style:

If something is beautiful, don't tell the reader it's beautiful. Let the him make up his own mind - unless you really think he doesn't have one. And cut back on the number of products you blitz the reader with at one time. The human brain (with the exclusion of those who can't tell beautiful when they see it) can only absorb so much in one eyeful before the owner has to slam the lid of his laptop and go cool off in front of Jaques Cousteau re-runs.

Navigation:

Use the center of the page to highlight the products. People just don't expect to see the results of their search scrolling down a narrow column on the left while they're being bombarded with sales pitches center stage.

Design:

Those sky backgrounds always remind me of those home built craft sites. Non-distracting solids would work better. And cut back on the unnecessary clutter. Good design uses white space as liberally as good jazz uses rest notes.

Business Comment:

You're trying to sell too much stuff at once. The digital images look pricey. You don't see high-res images for $300+ very often. Check Corbis.

Personal:

Forgive me for being blunt, but when I'm building a business, my worst enemy is the person who avoids being frank for fear of hurting my feelings. Good luck. You'll probably hit pay dirt and get the last laugh.
 

Editor Notes:

Wow! Rod, you sure were blunt. But then again, blunt is good in most cases because that's the way most people arrive at a new web site -- they arrive out of the cold, blue sky, not knowing what to expect. That initial reaction to the first visual gulp is always the most blunt reaction you'll see. If you read the original description like we did, you were shocked when you arrived like we were. This isn't a "wildlife photography" site -- it's an out-and-out ecommerce site. This is the KMart of eagle photography.
      Rod's 'blunt' reaction gives the author of this site a good indication of what many, many visitors will feel upon arrival to Eagle Stock. This review should be taken seriously.
 

Reviewed: 10/28/2002

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