Is this theme salvageable

I just got a theme rejected. Does anyone think it’s salvageable?

When making it I probably got to carried away with my vision (extreme minimalism, content centric) and I probably made it suck. I was just trying to do something different. I must have been using the Zune software too much (every time I read a positive recounting of WP7 I took it as my cue to remove more stuff).

Anyway, here is the theme demo URL : http://www.visiv.ca/Themes/Avum/

geoken,

I would have to advise you to trash this theme and start over. The over all layout is confusing and doesn’t meet the quality standards of visual hierarchy. Read this article on the Webdesign Tuts blog to get a clearer understanding of what I mean: http://webdesign.tutsplus.com/articles/design-theory/understanding-visual-hierarchy-in-web-design/

Also, the color scheme and is extremely bland and not attractive at all. Try adding more color to spice up your themes.

Lastly, you have not provided anything that a buyer would want without going somewhere else. Try adding some key elements such as buttons and unique contact forms.

That’s all I can offer you for now. I hope that my constructive criticism is helpful rather than discouraging (as I always state in my criticisms).

Luke Smith, His Handiwork

geoken, I would have to advise you to trash this theme and start over. The over all layout is confusing and doesn’t meet the quality standards of visual hierarchy.

Thanks for the input. Would you be able to elaborate on the hierarchy point? What specific aspects were confusing?

Absolutely. So there are several elements within the design that I think need improvement, according to visual hierarchy design principles:

1. Color – A website should consist of bold color elements that demand attention from the user and create an inviting feel. You have not captured the user’s attention by implementing bold color elements that make them prolong their visit and take action.

2. Alignment – There are quite a few elements within the layout that are not properly aligned to help the user find his way around the site. For example, you have positioned the logo and the top navigation in the top two corners of the page. If someone has a large screen or even a let’s say a 1280×800 resolution, these two elements (logo and navigation) do not align with the rest of the content below and are basically not in focus.

Those are the two major parts of visual hierarchy that you have failed to master.

Also consider these words from Brandon Jones who wrote the article that I sent you:

To conclude, I’d like to end with a very simple exercise. As the example, we’ll use a website that you frequent, or a project that you’ve worked on recently; The exercise goes like this:

• List the key information points that visitors are likely seeking.
• Assign values (1-10) according to their importance to the average visitor.
• Now, look at the actual design again.
• Assign values (1-10) according to the actual visual importance as you see it in the live design.
• Consider: Does the expected importance match up with the actual designed importance?

In most cases, the answer will include shades of “no”. There are lots of reasons for this – client demands, inexperienced designers, design-by-committee – or a hundred other reasons that you’ve probably read. Heck, in some cases, the designer may want to mislead the viewer (consider a “free” site that’s trying to guide users to paid content). Whatever the reason, understanding visual hierarchy and trying to interpret it is a way to improve the way that you see web design in a whole new light. Hopefully it’ll help inform your own work as well!

I hope this is helpful

- Luke Smith, His Handiwork

Thank you for taking the time to post such a lengthy and detailed response.