233 karma · joined March 15, 2011
Contact me at Jeffreykaineui (at) gmail.com or on Twitter @jeffreykaine
My funnel looks like this: -reach out to about 50 designers -15 of them are open to coffee -1 of those 15 are open to an interview
Note about freelancers: they tend to like the lifestyle that freelance provides. I've had luck with hiring on freelancers as part time contractors that actually show up on site, then gradually convincing them to join up full time.
Product: As others here have said, you are a two sided marketplace, but you have a really strong value prop to indie artists. I'd make the homepage about building crowdfunding campaigns for indie bands rather than the consumer side of your marketplace. You really need to fill up your supply, and that will increase the demand side. This happens because your artists likely already have a following who would want your product.
UX: Your primary CTAs (call to actions) compete slightly with your secondary CTAs. I'd consider using color for your primary and something greyscale for your secondary actions. Also, try to have only one primary CTA on the page.
I'd ditch the categories for now as well, you don't have the stock to divide it up like that. the result will be that your catalogue will feel empty.
Visual Design: overall a decent direction. I'd try really hard to keep everything gridded up though. At 1280px wide, you don't have things aligned down the left and the right, this makes the user's eye jump around the screen instead of moving smoothly down the page. Try using a grid system and sticking to it.
Logo: It feels a little off balance, if you found a way to make the dot of the I the hole of the record I think the logo would lay out nicely and better reflect your company.
Overall I think this is an awesome start!
The book "Sophie's World" does a great intro here and it a really great weekend read.
http://www.amazon.com/Sophies-World-History-Philosophy-Class...
Desk: 5' by 3' white, in a row of other designers desks
Chair: Aeron by Herman Miller / exercise ball
Monitor: Apple Thunderbolt display 27"
Keyboard: Apple keyboard, Magic Mouse
Music: Spotify, retrowave/8-bit for design work, punk/ska/rock for emails
Hours: 12pm to ~11pm at the office, sometimes work at night at the house.
As for Flint, Michigan... A quick google will give you a lot of info, but the gist of it is that they have had lead in their water for over two years and it's beyond toxic. Their government has failed them.