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Add me on SphinnSo this is the launch post for my new theme, hope you guys like it a little better than the previous one. I wanted it to be as similar to the old one as possible so it wasn’t a huge change for my readers, but I did want a couple features changed and the whole thing touched up. I had Unique Blog Designs do this project for me, and I think they did a great job and would highly recommend them. They’ve done big time bloggers themes such as Shoemoney and John Chow. I worked with Nate and Matt, and they’re a great company to work with. They had my concept up fast, made revisions fast, and were always there to chat either via IM or email. If you’re thinking of starting a blog, or think yours needs a touch up like mine did, UBD ftw.
So now onto a few of the changes in the blog that I think are for the better :
- A header that actually is a clickable link that takes you back to the home page haha.
- I replaced that ugly spot for the 468×60 banner with a 728×90 leaderboard underneath. It’s a big banner but I actually think blends in rather well and isn’t too distracting.
- New section for popular posts and RSS information. I wanted something like this without doing the super popular three sections across the header.
- New post title setup. The old one was really boring and got the job done I guess, but this one looks prettier and is more sectioned off.
- Rotating 125×125 ads, yayyy my advertisers all get equal exposure now. I actually have some 125×125 ad spots left, so contact me if you want one.
- I have one of those neat looking footers now.
Overall I think it’s a really nice little upgrade from what I had before. The previous theme I designed 100% by myself and I thought it was good and unique, but just a little choppy in areas and could use some improvement. Thank you Unique Blog Designs!
What really matters though is what you guys think, after all I’m writing to all of you, not myself. So let me know that you think.
March 7th, 2008 at 12:34 pm
Very Web 2.0′ish, sleek and sexy, nice job.
March 8th, 2008 at 11:25 am
to say the LEAST!!!! haha. I love the comment section as well, especially the avatars part.
March 8th, 2008 at 11:26 am
How do you change your avatar anyways?
March 8th, 2008 at 4:57 pm
Me likes. ALOT. Another great job done by Nate ‘n’ the team!
March 16th, 2008 at 9:26 pm
It`s fantastic. I love the way the guys from UBD do the layout.
March 7th, 2008 at 12:50 pm
Awesome job, I really like it and think that ads are incorporated well into the overall design. Another good UBD project.
March 7th, 2008 at 12:52 pm
Man, the blog is really looking great! They did a really great job.
March 7th, 2008 at 1:00 pm
Great design! I like the make over!! :)
March 7th, 2008 at 1:06 pm
Looking great! Nice and polished, and the advertise page works now. :)
March 7th, 2008 at 1:17 pm
well, it´s not that special, too simple for me, not worth your wasted money.
March 7th, 2008 at 1:26 pm
Seriously, Unique Blog Designs does nothing great. They wasted your upper part with that banner and that HUGE Top Posts box. Also: The gradient shadow isnt integrated properly. Like robert said: wasted money.
Your old one was 10 times better.
March 10th, 2008 at 4:08 am
ditto.looks good but this was not worth the money that UBD would have charged.
March 7th, 2008 at 1:27 pm
Its not bad man… One thing I would look at is your header style they dont look right to me…
March 7th, 2008 at 1:30 pm
Looks Ok, but I do find it quite amusing that all “Unique Blog Design” layouts look exactly the same. :)
March 7th, 2008 at 1:32 pm
Oh. Avatars and their mouseover text look a little broken too.
March 7th, 2008 at 1:38 pm
Like the colors but i feel its a bit clunky. Sorry to say it but old one was much better.
March 8th, 2008 at 3:14 pm
Old one = better. Agreed.
March 7th, 2008 at 1:40 pm
I think it does look better. More 2.0′ish for sure.
The category options on the right side that are in black might be better suited with blue. Then again that might just be personal preference.
Something about the large UBD add block doesn’t sit well. I am still learning what “works” though.
You very bottom “tagline” might be better used for your branding if it reads “Real Advice, from a Real PPC Uber Affiliate. Just a thought.
Anyways, it does look better in many ways.
March 7th, 2008 at 1:42 pm
I’d have to agree with Ricardo about the big banner at the top— it just looks funny sitting there in the center – maybe move it over to the left and then utilize that space that would be created on the right for something else. But I wouldn’t call this a waste of money- everything else looks nice.
March 7th, 2008 at 2:14 pm
It looks great! There may be an issue with the popular posts since it just looks like your most recent stuff.
March 7th, 2008 at 2:39 pm
Paul, I’m gonna keep it all the way real with you.
I hope to GOD you did not pay $800 for this “design”.
March 7th, 2008 at 2:41 pm
I’m usually not a big fan of UBD designs, but I reckon this one turned out great, has a better focus on the content which is always a good thing.
March 7th, 2008 at 2:45 pm
Looks awesome! I really wouldn’t change anything.
March 7th, 2008 at 3:15 pm
Very nice, I like it. Not a big fan of the footer but whatever floats your boat!
On a side note, what are some good advertising networks to try out, other then PPC? I am running some ads with AdToll and they are working out pretty well but was wondering who else is out there. Or is it better to find websites that are not actively seeking advertisers and approach them?
Great blog and thanks for sharing your gold nuggets!
Marko
March 7th, 2008 at 3:20 pm
First off, all the list items are double bulleted (at least in FF on osx)
Secondly, I agree with others. There is nothing wrong with this theme. With that said all the UBD designs look the same. They all have the same web 2.0 look with the blog elements moved around just a bit and new colors. I know you were just going for a redux look, so maybe that is what you were looking for. However, they brought absolutely nothing new to the table except extra drop shadows and gradients.
Lastly, If they are going to stamp their branding on the bottom of your blog I really hope you got some sort of discount for that.
Bottom line, imho it is better than the old design but nothing breath taking. Then again people come here for the content anyways :)
cheers
March 7th, 2008 at 3:26 pm
Looking good man! I thought you did an awesome job on your other theme, but these new “changes” compliment what you did very well! I’m usually not 100% pleased with what i’ve seen unique blog designs do in the past, but this looks really good.
March 7th, 2008 at 3:27 pm
This site is far more pleasing to the eye. The previous page felt like the Vegas strip with far too much going on at once. The colors still pop without being too overwhelming. Bloggers with an advertising biz model seem to like busy pages though.
March 7th, 2008 at 3:33 pm
VERY nice work. Your new design Rocks !!!
March 7th, 2008 at 4:13 pm
Simple, but very very nice looking. Great work!
March 7th, 2008 at 4:58 pm
It’s funny for a company calling themselves unique, I can spot their designs the moment I see them (and no that’s not a good thing) – Same layout as all their others In my opinion
March 7th, 2008 at 5:01 pm
I like it. Makes me wanna redo mine again. Also like that you didn’t change your logo.
March 7th, 2008 at 5:45 pm
I liked the other one better.
March 7th, 2008 at 6:58 pm
It is a really well put together design. Those guys at Unique Blog Designs always do a great job.
March 7th, 2008 at 11:49 pm
Uh…so-so design. The space on either side of the banner grabs attention first because everything else is so centered. There are also issues with different padding heights on the top & bottom, (e.g., Sponsors section). For the money these guys charge, I’d expect a lot more.
Your blog is fantastic, though. I’ll read it regardless of the design. Keep up the good work.
March 8th, 2008 at 12:42 am
I really like the new design !! great job..
March 8th, 2008 at 3:52 am
Looking very good and neat. Good job!
-Dave
March 8th, 2008 at 7:28 am
I like it. It looks very nice.
March 8th, 2008 at 11:22 am
I think the job was done FANTASTIC! It looks very sleep and awesome :)
March 8th, 2008 at 12:04 pm
[...] over at UberAffiliate went under the Unique Blog Designs knife to get a makeover. I like it! Nice and [...]
March 8th, 2008 at 1:06 pm
Looks really great!
New touch brings shine!
March 8th, 2008 at 2:15 pm
“Unique” Blog Designs – Are not unique by any meaning….
Something like a half year ago I noticed the guys at Unique Blog Designs (UBD) for the first time. Since then, they claim to be offering custom Wordpress blog designs. The guy behind this company is Nate Whitehill.
The reason I’m referring to th…
March 8th, 2008 at 4:31 pm
I don’t like the 728×90 banner @ the top – looks like it was dropped in at the end. But hey, as long as the RSS feed still works, do what you want w/ the blog design :)
March 8th, 2008 at 5:51 pm
Nice look. I know Nate and team do good work. Ill definitely be using them when im ready to get back to blogging.
March 8th, 2008 at 11:11 pm
Nice, fresh look. Not sure if it is just me, but the 125×125 buttons are not loading properly.
March 9th, 2008 at 1:38 am
Clean Man,
I’m digging the top half for sure, although seems like the bottom half didn’t get as much attention as the top. But the top half is gorgeous
March 9th, 2008 at 4:04 am
Well, i dont really like it at all. I prefered the previous design alot better along with that the header is crap, all that UBD does is make things more shiny etc..
Anyways just my opinion, if you are looking for real designs go to inventgw.com
Best Regards
March 9th, 2008 at 7:05 am
Ahh, BEAUTIFUL design. I’m going to get that for a site I’m starting up. Looks absolutely terrific, and that red color is perfect.
March 9th, 2008 at 11:47 am
Wow, I think your new design really helped with the subscribers :)
March 10th, 2008 at 2:37 pm
One thing I don’t understand is if they’re supposed to be so “UNIQUE” then why does it look basically the same as shoemoney.com and johnchow.com ?
March 10th, 2008 at 8:29 pm
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