SitePal

[dclamp]

For the web developers out there...

i have noticed the sitepal ad on vbf a lot lately, and i was thinking about it a little.

Do you think that having a talking animation will help bring traffic to your site?

[RobDog888]

We had SitePal on the forums before, serveral months ago. IMO it irritates more people then any kind of benefit it may create. Remember those MS Agent characters? They were also used on web sites too and failed for the same reason, irritated more poeple then you can shake a stick at.

[dclamp]

Yeah, i dont like going to a website and having sound come at me. Usually i am playing music on my computer and it just ruins things. I think they are kinda creepy as well.

There was an actual sitepal on these forums, or just the ad, or on another forum?

[RobDog888]

It was just ads like the current site pal ads we have now.

[AsmIscool]

Looks like their website is broken in Opera. Not really convincing advertising.

[alex_read]

Every time I've moved the mouse over that damned top right large ad in order to scroll a post I've got a "please type a note in the messagebox to hear me say it" including when I got in around midnight after last weekend and had the volume up full - sure my neighbours appreciated that.

No site should have any flash, movies or sound playing unless explicitly set by the user. This way the site will be designed in a manner to appeal to, and be used by a greater majority of people. I believe adding this functionality to a site as-is will deter more people than attract people.

I can see they've looked at the suggestions and proposed Internet site/law rules on accessibility rules and found a niche, but If I was adding full accessibility to my site, I'd want this to be an option which is either manually set on via the user ticking a box, or I would provide it via a URL such as http://alexsite.com/soundaccessbilitysiteversion/. If you were to expose the functionality via one of these methods then yes you would keep people interested as well as being able to advertise for those with sight probelms that your site exposes sound options and therefore target a larger audience - if it's done right.

Having said those I think if I ever needed this functionality I would be inclined to wait for a competitor as the Sitepal advert on this site has just wound me up so much I would purposely steer clear of them and advise others the same now - not good marketing on their part at all.

[RobDog888]

click the little speaker mute icon at the top right of the stupid ad. That will shut her up.

See, perfect example of why not to use that damn site pal ad.

[penagate]

Web pages should be seen and not heard.

[mendhak]

Experienced web users don't appreciate ads that insult their intelligence.

[RobDog888]

Web pages should be seen and not heard.

So for the blind they shouldnt be able to hear? :d

[abhijit]

For the web developers out there...

i have noticed the sitepal ad on vbf a lot lately, and i was thinking about it a little.

Do you think that having a talking animation will help bring traffic to your site?

ha ha. my ad blocker seems to be blocking that out.

[Hack]

Do you think that having a talking animation will help bring traffic to your site?

It would have the opposite affect.

I don't even like it when my wife talks to me. I damn sure don't want some web page yaking my ear.