looking for feedback on my website

[kkemp]

I recently finished a web application/site that I created for the purpose of hosting people's trip reports. I designed it to make it easy to create reports with a map, photos, track log and waypoints. You simply upload the track log and photos and the website creates a google map for your report with a track log, photo markers for you. The home page has a map displaying clickable markers for all reports. You can also display them in a list for browsing by title.

It currently just has reports from me and my family. Most of it is 4x4 related, although it can be any kind of report. The other goal I had in making the website was to make it so that you could search reports and categorize them. For example you can search for difficult 4WD trails in moab etc.

After creating the website I have found that a lot of boards have policies against posting links to trip reports on other web sites. It's really too bad because my website is optimized especially for trip reports and does it so much better, if I may say so myself.

Anyway, I'm a software engineer and not a marketing person and have no clue how to get this site really going. I launched it on Nov. 18. I posted some announcements on a handfull of boards and got a bunch of hits from that but since then, the traffic is settling down to almost non-existent.

So, if you have nothing better to do, I'd be thrilled to get feedback from folks. I've been on this board on and off for around 4 years, and some of you know me. So, I'm not some random stranger coming here to spam your board.

If your are interested in checking it out, it's at http://tripreportsplus.com. Thanks for looking and I'd love to hear from you. You can either reply here or drop a message on my Contact page.

Kevin


P.S. If you have already seen the site, you might want to take a 2nd look at it. It's gone through a bunch of changes since I launched it in November.

 

[Spork]

Might be trivial but you have the filter on the left and the marks disappear off the map as the criteria is narrowed down, It would be nice to have some text links so you don't have to zoom the map and hover over all the marks. Or an option to do it via map or have a list by states.

 

[kkemp]

Spork, thanks for the feedback. That page has been somewhat of a challenge for me. Maybe having titles always shown without needing to hover is the way to go. I added the view by 'List' tab to let you see the report titles an info at a glance, but what you are saying may be better. You can list by a single state by just selecting the state in the filter, but it doesn't let you sort by state if that is what you meant.

 

[Spork]

Spork, thanks for the feedback. That page has been somewhat of a challenge for me. Maybe having titles always shown without needing to hover is the way to go. I added the view by 'List' tab to let you see the report titles an info at a glance, but what you are saying may be better. You can list by a single state by just selecting the state in the filter, but it doesn't let you sort by state if that is what you meant.

That looks better. :greg: About the only trivial thing I can think of is having your GPX files be the name of the trail vs a number.

 

[Herzog]

I like the idea. It's cool how you brought together the map, gps info, report text and photos all together. Kind of a one stop shop experience.

The UI could use some help but the functionality is pretty cool.

I've been thinking about converting our RME Google earth maps into an in place google maps embed. Seems like a much better idea instead of relying on the earth software.

 

[EROK81?]

I don't know if you can do this but it would be nice when you zoom in to look a location and report, finish and click back, to resume your zoomed in view.

If you are browsing reports it's kind of a pain to have to find and re-zoom in where you were before. I think this would be a huge plus once you have hundreds of reports gathered in a single area.

 

[DOSS]

I just like that my jeep is on the splash page -- even if there is no trip report that corresponds with that pic

 

[cruiseroutfit]

Hey Kevin, the site is looking great, some new content since the last time I visited.

My concerns would be the same as I have for other sites that are doing the same thing (i.e. TrailDamage.com & TrailTracker.com, Schwarttzy.com, etc). They don't provide any legality information, permit info or just a general disclaimer informing user to do their due diligence before a trip. Not even a link to the local land manager. When its available to any joe-shmoe on the internet you open up the floodgates to the 'download and drive' generation that does nothing more than stare at their GPS for instructions. Don't get me wrong GPS is an extremely powerful tool but it should be the last step for a trail run plan, not the first and only. I may be the exception to the rule so take it as such but I prefer a trip report that is heavy on the experiences of the user, heavy on why they decided to go someplace, heavy on how they felt... rather than what the trail was like and where the trail head is, for me its very rare that I would actually download a GPS track, I find them more distracting than useful as they seem to cloud the whole I deal of 'exploring' to me. There seems to be two distinct types of travelers though, those that seek out a trail for the trial itself and those that seek out a trail for the places and faces it will expose them to. Its by no means wrong to cater to one or the other, you choose that.

Above and beyond that you have to find a way to make yourself different from the others, trip reports alone are not going to draw the masses in, afterall the average RME member for example is a member of 5-6? other forums alone that have Trip Report sections, what would make them post their trip report on yours rather than another? You have to make yourself attractive. Its obvious forums don't want copy/paste information, just as your looking at ways to make your site initially 'marketable' they are looking for ways to keep theirs 'marketable' and in some cases just don't want to 'give away the farm' by making everything searchable to the masses of the internet. Decide what type of place you want to be not today but in a year or 5 and taper your site accordingly.

 

[kkemp]

Hey Kevin, the site is looking great, some new content since the last time I visited.

My concerns would be the same as I have for other sites that are doing the same thing (i.e. TrailDamage.com & TrailTracker.com, Schwarttzy.com, etc). They don't provide any legality information, permit info or just a general disclaimer informing user to do their due diligence before a trip. Not even a link to the local land manager. When its available to any joe-shmoe on the internet you open up the floodgates to the 'download and drive' generation that does nothing more than stare at their GPS for instructions. Don't get me wrong GPS is an extremely powerful tool but it should be the last step for a trail run plan, not the first and only. I may be the exception to the rule so take it as such but I prefer a trip report that is heavy on the experiences of the user, heavy on why they decided to go someplace, heavy on how they felt... rather than what the trail was like and where the trail head is, for me its very rare that I would actually download a GPS track, I find them more distracting than useful as they seem to cloud the whole I deal of 'exploring' to me. There seems to be two distinct types of travelers though, those that seek out a trail for the trial itself and those that seek out a trail for the places and faces it will expose them to. Its by no means wrong to cater to one or the other, you choose that.

That's a really good point Kurt. I guess I have never thought about all the land manager info stuff. I don't think the site itself stops one from doing the report in either style. I actually consider myself more in the middle of the two extremes you mentioned. I'm not so much interested in what the trail itself is like but more about the place itself. The maps and tracklog are just a tool to help show where the trip took place and make it easier for others to find it if they wish to go there to.

My real goal of the site was to make it possible to help people plan trips of their own by sharing info. Ultimately, there may be multple reports on the same place. With this site, it is easy find that info.

As for my current reports on the sight, that's just my style, I don't consider myself a great writer; your reports are actually really amazing. I wish I had your writing skills.

Above and beyond that you have to find a way to make yourself different from the others, trip reports alone are not going to draw the masses in, afterall the average RME member for example is a member of 5-6? other forums alone that have Trip Report sections, what would make them post their trip report on yours rather than another? You have to make yourself attractive. Its obvious forums don't want copy/paste information, just as your looking at ways to make your site initially 'marketable' they are looking for ways to keep theirs 'marketable' and in some cases just don't want to 'give away the farm' by making everything searchable to the masses of the internet. Decide what type of place you want to be not today but in a year or 5 and taper your site accordingly.

Yep, you got it exactly right. Once I had it done I realized that I probably should have consider writing this is a plug for existing bulletin board software. That way it would be integrated right into the website. Of course then, I have to convince people to buy it.

Thank's for comment's.

I just like that my jeep is on the splash page -- even if there is no trip report that corresponds with that pic

You could fix that Scott!

I don't know if you can do this but it would be nice when you zoom in to look a location and report, finish and click back, to resume your zoomed in view.

If you are browsing reports it's kind of a pain to have to find and re-zoom in where you were before. I think this would be a huge plus once you have hundreds of reports gathered in a single area.

I hear ya. If haven't actually decided how I will handle large quanties of reports. I just waiting to cross that bridge before I get too concerned. But, yeah it will have to change. I don't have some ideas though and Google Maps as a built-in feature that makes that possible fairly easily.

I like the idea. It's cool how you brought together the map, gps info, report text and photos all together. Kind of a one stop shop experience.

The UI could use some help but the functionality is pretty cool.

I'd really love to get some specifics from you. I know you are an awesome web designer and would love your feedback.

I pretty much know what you are saying. My graphic design skills are nothing like yours. I've just done the best I can with my limited eye. As for usability, I've been working alot to make it better. Most of my experience has been developing non-web software; this is pretty new to me, so I have to work at it a little hard. That's why I'd really love to hear what you see lacking.

I've been thinking about converting our RME Google earth maps into an in place google maps embed. Seems like a much better idea instead of relying on the earth software.

It would be a shame to not leverage all the work I've done somehow. The only problem I see in terms of integrating my stuff into RME is that the RME board is probably all PHP and mine is all Java. Even that is not a show-stopper.

Thanks for that feedback all, it really helps to hear back from people.

I will have to say, based on what cruiseroutfit had to say. I really need to figure out how I'm going to make this web site marketable Until then I probably won't be adding a bunch more features. Besides, my day job is about to start demanding a bunch of my time.