

Hello HN, take a look at my new (beta) app BonMp3? - Dmunro

Hi HN,<p>First off, it's been great following you since September. I really feel like I've learned some valuable insights into technology, business, science, and so many other topics from you. And attending this recent Startup school was probably the turning point for me, when I resolved to make something that people want to use, that people love.<p>I've always been really interested in music. I played bass and drums for years growing up, though between you and I, I never managed to develop a good sense of rhythm. My older brother was seemingly infinitely talented in every instrument he touched, and played in local bands for years. Of course I was jealous.<p>It's been a long time since those days, but I've finally settled on my contribution to the music scene. It's a music distribution service that bands and musicians can sign up for. Nothing too different so far, however, instead of the status quo of a ~70% return on album sales to the musician, we're targeting 90%. We're also going to donate <i>most</i> of that other 10% to the Save the Music Foundation for the first six months, and 1% for each month afterwards, as long as the service is alive and kicking. We like to call it music distribution with a conscience.<p>I really don't plan to make (a ton of) money off of this site, or quit my day job, which I'm hoping will help differentiate us from the competition. The business infrastructure behind music is showing signs of aging, inefficiency, etc, etc, and the vision here is to show how simple and efficient music distribution can be, and (hopefully) that it pays to put the musician first.<p>Anyway, I should probably give you the link so you can tell me how beta my beta service is. In case you haven't gathered so far, it's pretty solidly in the beta category. And by beta, I mean it should all work but is still facing some big development efforts:<p>http://bonmp3.com/<p>Thanks HN!
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vijaydev
I'm not sure if the idea of giving the full sign up form up front in the home
page is a particularly good one. First, it makes the page layout go bad.
Second, I miss out reading the section on "How it works" and "Features". No
way a user is going to scroll down so low. Third, it scares the users away,
imho.

One more small pick: The logo in the home page points to
<http://dev.bonmp3.com/Home> (oops, is it the dev version?!)

~~~
Dmunro
(dev link) Fixed, thanks :)

Originally the sign up form was behind a tab. I moved it out because it seemed
like a superfluous click, but you are right about sign up forms being scary on
the front page.

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teye
I immediately glazed over. Here are a few tips.

How it works and features should be more visible parts of the homepage. You
haven't sold me at all but you're showing me a signup form. Give me the info
first.

Eliminate all but the most important 3 or 4 bullet points. Controlling
distribution sounds pretty similar to keeping the rights, simplify your fans'
access to music is assumed from your mention of social networking sites, and
most won't care about school music programs. Bullet points are like bumper
stickers. Too many and they lose their effect.

Your headline being outside the main container looks strange.

More whitespace (blackspace?).

That user agreement textarea doesn't need to be more than three rows.

Increase line-height on the /About page.

The underlying point is that it doesn't look established enough for me to
trust you with my music. I know it's beta, but consider allocating resources
to design (including the "how it works" and service comparison graphics).

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vijaydev
Clickable Link: <http://bonmp3.com/>

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jeffmould
Looks interesting. Great job! I agree though that the signup form on the
homepage is a bit intimidating. But if you are deadset on keeping it there may
I suggest you move the "How It Works" section to the top of the page and maybe
integrate the benefits portion that is currently above the signup form in it.
That way the band/musician sees all that at least before be immediately
presented with a signup form.

Looks interesting though and good luck. You are right the music industry is
ready for a change!

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voidpointer
The idea seems good. Have you thought about asking someone with experience in
web design to make a more streame-lined and less clunky version of the landing
page? I think you are on a good way in terms of keeping it simple but in my
humble opinion the execution isn't quite there yet. I'm not that competent of
a designer myself but I'd bet someone who knows his stuff could improve the
page quite a bit.

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NathanKP
Personally I think that the front page seems a little bit dark. I'm not sure
what your intended mood is but I think that you should rethink the layout.
Perhaps looks at other music selling sites to see how they lay out the page.
Its a good idea to be different, but you can still learn a lot from comparing
with other sites.

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messel
I appreciate your marketing mojo, early limited but heavy donation encourages
rapid adoption by caring enthusiasts. Of course giving 5% forever would be
incredibly generous but would cut into artist rewards.

Will check out your app, much respect the Jekyll and Hyde founder (day jobs).
That's where I come from.

~~~
Dmunro
Thanks for your interest.

I really have to see how the economics play out, but I'm always open to
raising the donation bar.

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spooneybarger
as a musician, i would go to your site... take one look at how little you
value giving me info about your service and leave.

compare your first page to <http://www.tunecore.com/>

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ivanzhao
you need a better designer. too chaotic in the front page; too many different
fonts, sizes; and the browsing flow is not smooth.

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jokull
gogoyoko.com

