Hi Everyone,
Yesterday we launched our brand new website!! It was a lot of work and a big project, but I truly hope you guys like the new website. After all, we made it for you! Let me know what you think! :)
Since I was one of the chosen to first view it, you already know that I like it.
I too was one of the lucky ones who got to review the website. I think that it was well thought out and everyone will enjoy using it.
Blake
I too was one of the lucky ones to view the new website, & I think you have a winner.
lovin' it so far!
Me 3X as well.
It was very good at the test stage.
Lumpy
I have decided to remove my comments because I know it will cause a big time argument
Smoke on fellow smokers
Quote from: devo on November 06, 2013, 01:45:05 PM
I have decided to remove my comments because I know it will cause a big time argument
Smoke on fellow smokers
Devo they are asking for input you should not remove your comments. I know mine will also raise a few hairs but it is my view point if I'm wrong that's OK but I don't think so. Photos from a 27" monitor.
As a old computer programmer the new web site is a start, I found some problems with it screen shots below on the home page.
(http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g262/gafala/DSCN0388_zps00e19b46.jpg)
Left side of screen only smoke could be ok.
(http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g262/gafala/DSCN0389_zpscd06b4e8.jpg)
Right side of screen four small boxes to see you need to scroll to the right this could be fixed. Sorry for the flash in the photo.
(http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g262/gafala/DSCN0390_zps785176c4.jpg)
Right side of photo cut off. This needs to be fixed.
...what fix Gafala...you just snagged yourself a Bradley Stainless... 8)
Deleted again. I love my bradley....(https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-fgX5Q301iKA/UQmN6iG7B3I/AAAAAAAAGT8/B0YhFbxNKxk/w92-h32-no/hug.gif)
Quote from: Gafala on November 06, 2013, 02:19:44 PM
Quote from: devo on November 06, 2013, 01:45:05 PM
I have decided to remove my comments because I know it will cause a big time argument
Smoke on fellow smokers
Devo they are asking for input you should not remove your comments. I know mine will also raise a few hairs but it is my view point if I'm wrong that's OK but I don't think so. Photos from a 27" monitor.
As a old computer programmer the new web site is a start, I found some problems with it screen shots below on the home page.
(http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g262/gafala/DSCN0388_zps00e19b46.jpg)
Left side of screen only smoke could be ok.
(http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g262/gafala/DSCN0389_zpscd06b4e8.jpg)
Right side of screen four small boxes to see you need to scroll to the right this could be fixed. Sorry for the flash in the photo.
(http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g262/gafala/DSCN0390_zps785176c4.jpg)
Right side of photo cut off. This needs to be fixed.
Gafala, I think you may have issues on your end if your truly using a 27" monitor. I'm using a mac-book pro 15" display and have no issues viewing the site. actually, I like it.
The new site displays and navigates perfectly on my ipad with the latest OS.
It also displays and navigates perfectly on my new Dell PC.
In short I would say the new site is SMOKIN" and is a great improvement.
Gafala, I think you may have issues on your end if your truly using a 27" monitor. I'm using a mac-book pro 15" display and have no issues viewing the site. actually, I like it.
The issue here is the Compatibility View in when used it will cause the results I got turn it off and no problem and yes it is a 27" monitor. I did try the site on my Galaxy Tab and no problems.
The new site does not work with my firefox browser.When I use internet exploder the site seems to be devoted to visual effects with little information.Maybe I'm missing something but so far thumbs down
I'm only seeing what was billed as the global site when we reviewed them and not the one that was supposed to be for USA/Canada which I felt was a better site, I'm glad the forum was added to this one but I think the other website we reviewed was much better and I hope it get's published for all to see.
I am a pretty simple guy and when I am looking to buy something from a company I want to know what I am buying. I want to see the product, see the dimensions, see what it can do and know how much I am expected to pay. I don't know if this is the "new" site but I went to http://www.bradleysmoker.com/ and I have to be honest and say that the web site that I saw failed in all categories.
I am running a iMac and use Chrome as my browser. It was slow loading and seemed to hang up. I had to refresh 2 times to get it to load. Then I see a movie of fish! I was looking for smokers! As a potential customer I think I would be a bit confused. So I then see arrows on each side. What are these for I say. I click and see a clam shell with a photo of a smoker overlay. I click the digital smoker thingy and then get to see a spinning smoker. No other information regarding the smoker. No inside view. No specs. Nothing to make me want to purchase the product. So I click the right arrow to see what is next. I get a movie of sheep and a overlay of a smoker. OK, so I click on the "view digital smoker" button. I see a spinning smoker again with no inside view, no specs and nothing to motivate me to want to buy the product. I click the right arrow again and get to see a hunk of meat. Click the tab for the OBS and get another spinning smoker with nothing to make me want to buy the product.
I have clicked "Home", "Products", Buy a Bradley", "Company", "Media" and "Warranty" and I can't find any information about a smoker. I would have thought that if I clicked "Products" it would get me to where I wanted to go. Nope! Got another spinning Bradley.
Then I click on the "Buy a Bradley" tab and click on North America........USA.....A page of smokers comes up and I am starting to look at it and it goes away and up pops a bunch of guys at a tailgate party and the site goes into another slide show. Now I am really getting confused. Now I have several browser windows that have popped up. I still can't find any information about the smokers and I give up! I don't have a clue where I can find any information about the products. Perhaps there is information there somewhere but I have lost interest in trying to find it.
I love my OBS and use it at least 2 to 3 times a week. I have smoked hundreds and hundreds of pounds of meat in it and it is still going strong. I have friends that I have recommended the Bradley to and they have purchased them. To be perfectly honest, if I was in the market for a smoker and did not know a thing about the different types of smokers on the market and went to the Bradley site, I would be turned off and Bradley would have lost a customer.
Not sure why there are movies of fish swimming and sheep grazing and a clam shell and a hunk of meat. I would think that if Bradley wanted to put a movie in then why not have a movie of a happy customer opening his Bradley to see a gorgeous Brisket or Butt getting a blast of nice rich smoke? Then have a page that shows the inside of the cabinet and how the racks stack with dimensions of the inside and outside. Why not show how the smoke generator works? Why not get that customer to the meat and potatoes of the Bradley as fast as you can to keep him/her interested and want to buy one.
Guess I am just old fashioned and not very hip. When I go into a store I know what I want and I don't want to waste time getting it. If I can't find what I am looking for I leave and go to another store. The 1st store may have had what I was looking for but making it hard to find don't get my business.
Quote from: Bradley Marketing on November 06, 2013, 10:47:20 AM
Hi Everyone,
Yesterday we launched our brand new website!! It was a lot of work and a big project, but I truly hope you guys like the new website. After all, we made it for you! Let me know what you think! :)
Not sure why you made the website for us the members of the Bradley forum. I would think you would have made the site to attract new customers. I don't think I have ever gone back to the Bradley site since I purchased my OBS almost 3 ½ years ago.
In this day and age of internet you have a small window to capture a customer when they visit a site. I found nothing on the site that would make me say.....wow this is what I am looking for. I am not trying to degrade the site......I am trying to give honest feedback as I want Bradley Smokers to succeed. You wanted to let you know what we thought and I am giving you my honest opinion. Good luck with the new site.
Sailor
I kind of liked the fish. It reminds me of spearing Pike. I thought it was a little tough to find the forum which is my favorite part. I think the guys on the forum do quite a lot to promote the smokers. I know they are a good bunch of guys. I have recommended all of my contacts to join the forum which I am sure interest them in the equipment.
KC
Quote from: Saber 4 on November 06, 2013, 07:33:16 PM
I'm only seeing what was billed as the global site when we reviewed them and not the one that was supposed to be for USA/Canada which I felt was a better site, I'm glad the forum was added to this one but I think the other website we reviewed was much better and I hope it get's published for all to see.
That site is here: Link (http://www.north-america.bradleysmoker.com/). Can be found about a third of the way down the page of the global site, and pops a new tab or window...but it takes forever for my page to be able to scroll there. I'll be bookmarking this one instead of going through the global from now on.
I also felt that the regional site was better than the global. I may be wrong but I believe the global site was designed to capture the initial interest with links going to regional sites for more detailed information for their particular region.
I was one of the luck few that had a preview, I think it is a great looking website and will be good for years
Sailor, I couldn't have said it better, I love my Bradley and want them to have great continued success and I don't think the new website as currently configured is going to help do that.
Quote from: Tiny Tim on November 06, 2013, 10:18:52 PM
Quote from: Saber 4 on November 06, 2013, 07:33:16 PM
I'm only seeing what was billed as the global site when we reviewed them and not the one that was supposed to be for USA/Canada which I felt was a better site, I'm glad the forum was added to this one but I think the other website we reviewed was much better and I hope it get's published for all to see.
That site is here: Link (http://www.north-america.bradleysmoker.com/). Can be found about a third of the way down the page of the global site, and pops a new tab or window...but it takes forever for my page to be able to scroll there. I'll be bookmarking this one instead of going through the global from now on.
Thanks Tim, that's kind of hard to find, I think it should be the first thing you see and there should be a button at the top for the forum and customer service/FAQ's.
Thank you for your comments and feedback! And yes we made the new website for our customers (which includes the forum members), and our potential customers. The global site (www.bradleysmoker.com) is designed to have more like a show room feeling. The north American site is where you can find detailed information about our products etc. If you are using an older browser/system the screen might clutter. If you send us your browser, system and screen details, we can adjust the settings.
Thanks again!
Windows Vista OS (tell me how and I'll get the version/update numbers)
Google Chrome browser, Version 30.0.1599.101 m
I'm using Windows 7 and Internet Explorer 10 both with the most current updates available.
Well, my comments (many of which ran pretty much along the same lines as Sailor's) appear to have been largely (if not completely) ignored. That, of course, is their privilege. One area in which I was ignored, however, bears bringing to the attention of the forum members. If you go to the Recipe section you will find that many of the recipes are direct copies of posts on the forum recipe site. That brings up a couple of issues:
- Bradley does not own the recipe site or the recipes thereon so I wonder if they have the right to use those recipes for commercial purposes, especially without attribution.
- The "Author Info" on the page of every recipe attributes the recipe to some guy (real or imaginary) named Ted Reader (including those with the true author's name on the recipe, e.g. Brisket Pachanga) and goes on to claim that the recipes are "his food smoking secrets." At best, that's misleading and rude. In the hands of a competent attorney it's definitely a profit opportunity.
In addition, the entire Recipe section of the site is essentially sloppy and lazy work. Two examples:
- Recipes from the forum site are copied verbatim but explanatory photos are not included. For example, 10.5's classic rib tutorial is copied without the pictures, even though the largest font on the page clearly states that the page is a pictorial guide.
- There's no way to cut and paste (copy) any of the recipes. I guess they expect you to carry your (connected) computer with you whenever you need to refer to the recipe you're preparing. I guess I could use my tablet but am glad I don't have to drag my desktop back and forth between my prep area and smoker.
End of rant.
What he said X2
I just would like to say that all feedback has taken in to consideration. And yes we do reckon the issues with the recipes site. We are going to change that but couldn't do this before the launch. You may have seen that there are A LOT of recipes on the site which we have to go through so it will take a while. And maintaining the recipe page will be an ongoing process. I'm sorry if this wasn't clear to everyone.
A few items that I addressed in my evaluation were taken care of (guessing I wasn't the only one to bring them to light), at least on the North American site. I didn't provide much info on the Global, as it was just as temperamental then (for me) as it is now.
I totally agree with Ka Honu's comments about the recipe section and this was one of the main areas I concentrated on in my response. I don't think that area is a good advert for the BS at all although obviously it is their prerogative to do as they see fit.
I went to town and made quite a few positive and negative comments in general. Some of the negative ones seem to have been accepted and to be fair the feedback from the marketing group seemed to concentrate on comments that had been made by the concensus of the respondents..... not just the rantings of one Brit from across the pond! ;)
Think it was sensible to select a finite number of people to respond other wise the process could have taken too long and it was great they came to the forum in the first place to give people a chance to have some input.
Conversely I think perhaps it was too rushed and I think I concluded my original feedback by saying the new website was a "work in progress", in particular the recipe section should have been tidied up significantly before release IMHO.
Hopefully Bradley will accept both the positive and negative comments highlighted in this topic and continue to give forum members the chance to input such things in the future. :)
Here is Ted Reader.
http://www.tedreader.com/
Can someone direct me to the recipe section as I can't seem to locate it on the website.
You have to navigate to the northamerican part before even a link shows up for it
http://www.north-america.bradleysmoker.com/recipes/
Quote from: KyNola on November 08, 2013, 07:01:13 AM
Here is Ted Reader.
http://www.tedreader.com/
Can someone direct me to the recipe section as I can't seem to locate it on the website.
Thanks for posting Larry, can anyone tell me why this guy would be on the website at all, I don't see any support for Bradley Smoker's on his website anywhere. I don't always agree with everything Brad Lockwood of Love of the Hunt TV says but at least he knows meat and smoking and always has a Bradley Smoker on his show and at his seminars. Just seems to make sense that if you're going to have a name on a recipe section it should be someone associated with your product.
When I did my review to marketing I assumed the north America site would be what we would see in north America and the global site would be for all other areas. I guess I assumed that the name servers would point you to the appropriate site based on where you are logged on to the internet from, after all I can't go to most news sites without getting ads targeted to my local area which is determined by where my log in is showing.
Quote from: KyNola on November 08, 2013, 07:01:13 AM
Here is Ted Reader.
http://www.tedreader.com/
Can someone direct me to the recipe section as I can't seem to locate it on the website.
Larry......that was the point that I was trying to make. You cannot navigate the site to find what you are looking for. I never got to the recipe area when I was writing up my post because I got so frustrated in not being able to find information regarding the smokers. The home page should have links that will take you to where you want to go. Now who would have thought that a person had to click on "buy a Bradley" then have to go to North America then click USA to even know there is a recipe area? Very poor design IMHO. I just hope Bradley did not spend $960 million to design this web site like Obama spent to design a worthless web site. ;D
Quote from: Ka Honu on November 07, 2013, 02:37:25 PM
Well, my comments (many of which ran pretty much along the same lines as Sailor's) appear to have been largely (if not completely) ignored. That, of course, is their privilege. One area in which I was ignored, however, bears bringing to the attention of the forum members. If you go to the Recipe section you will find that many of the recipes are direct copies of posts on the forum recipe site. That brings up a couple of issues:
- Bradley does not own the recipe site or the recipes thereon so I wonder if they have the right to use those recipes for commercial purposes, especially without attribution.
- The "Author Info" on the page of every recipe attributes the recipe to some guy (real or imaginary) named Ted Reader (including those with the true author's name on the recipe, e.g. Brisket Pachanga) and goes on to claim that the recipes are "his food smoking secrets." At best, that's misleading and rude. In the hands of a competent attorney it's definitely a profit opportunity.
In addition, the entire Recipe section of the site is essentially sloppy and lazy work. Two examples:
- Recipes from the forum site are copied verbatim but explanatory photos are not included. For example, 10.5's classic rib tutorial is copied without the pictures, even though the largest font on the page clearly states that the page is a pictorial guide.
- There's no way to cut and paste (copy) any of the recipes. I guess they expect you to carry your (connected) computer with you whenever you need to refer to the recipe you're preparing. I guess I could use my tablet but am glad I don't have to drag my desktop back and forth between my prep area and smoker.
End of rant.
Thud that was the sound of my jaw dropping. I just found the recipe site. I am floored that you are so correct in that some of the recipes have been taken right off the forum recipe site and this Ted Reader gets credit for them. NEPAS has a recipe that has his name on it and this Ted guy is taking credit for it? Perhaps Rick gave Bradley permission to take his recipe and publish it and granted Ted permission to say it was his recipe. That is pretty low if you ask me but Bradley is not asking me.
Quote from: devo on November 08, 2013, 07:21:08 AM
You have to navigate to the northamerican part before even a link shows up for it
http://www.north-america.bradleysmoker.com/recipes/
Thank you the direction Devo.
As for the recipes that are in the recipe section of the website, if those recipes were originally posted in the Bradley Forum and then were subsequently posted over at the susanminor website then Bradley most likely has a right to publish them as it becomes property of the Forum and Bradley owns the Forum. Having said that, giving Ted Reader carte blanche credit is simply wrong. The person who originated and posted a recipe should be given credit. I am hopeful that the folks at Bradley will remove the Ted Reader tag soon.
Ok.. I see a lot of people commenting on the recipe site:
Like I stated yesterday in my post; the recipe page is still under construction. In order for us to go through all the recipes it will take a while because there are A LOT of recipes on there. We are adjusting them as we speak. And no; Ted Reader is not the author of all the recipes, and we are correcting this. This was not high on our priority list as you this is a small fraction of the total website.
Unless someone copyrighted their recipe, copyright infringement doesn't apply.
We all need to take a step back and take a breath. The folks at Bradey have answered our questions. We need to give them time to correct the issue and they will correct the issue. Remember, they own the Forum "house". We're allowed to live here for free.
Quote from: KyNola on November 08, 2013, 07:01:13 AM
Here is Ted Reader.
http://www.tedreader.com/
Can someone direct me to the recipe section as I can't seem to locate it on the website.
When I clicked on the link it took me to their main page, where one of the tabs at the top says "Recipes". Clicking on that brings up a list of recipe topics. To see the individual recipe details I clicked on whichever one I was interested in.
Hi Everyone,
Since there were a lot of comments on the recipe page/author; we changed Ted Reader as an author in "Bradley and friends" . To make this a little bit easier on us; if you see your recipe on there and you want to have it say that you are the author of that recipe. Please create a login name for yourself and send an email to
[email protected] stating:
1. Which is your recipe (be very clear about that)
2. Your user name on the north American website
This way we can modify it and show it's your recipe.
Thank you!
Quote from: Bradley Marketing on November 08, 2013, 12:07:26 PM
Hi Everyone,
Since there were a lot of comments on the recipe page/author; we changed Ted Reader as an author in "Bradley and friends" . To make this a little bit easier on us; if you see your recipe on there and you want to have it say that you are the author of that recipe. Please create a login name for yourself and send an email to [email protected] stating:
1. Which is your recipe (be very clear about that)
2. Your user name on the north American website
This way we can modify it and show it's your recipe.
Thank you!
I can only speak for myself, I don't know what Old's position is on this. There are a lot more issues with the recipes pasted on the Bradley site then the lack of giving notice to the source and the original author. The recipes on the recipe site are for easy access for all, and in most cases where rewritten to make them clearer then they were when first posted on this forum. We even provide a way that you can download the recipes to your computer.
So if you need to copy the recipes from the Recipe Site, you need to do it correctly. The problem I have with the recipes being copied directly from the recipe site and not from their original posts on the forum is that a lot of the cut and paste is poorly done, links imbedded in the recipes to clarify instructions are broken, and there is at least one recipe that I am aware of, that the sections within a recipe were pasted in the wrong order.
As for the website, I'm sure that you considered and weighed all input.
I did not realize this thread existed and started a new thread which hopefully will be directed here.
Very interesting, it is a good example of how not to design a web site. :o You can get seasick, or dizzy watching the smoker spin around or you can watch the sheep grazing. See if you can find the link to the forum in less than 15 or even 30 seconds. On Monday the marketing somebody responded to my e-mail and said it would be fixed by the end of the week. I would hate to be a new customer to Bradley and think this is the face of the company.
I can understand wanting to redesign the site to add an international view! But to exclude the ease of navigation that was available on the old sight is a bit myopic.
The site does indeed need some work... like test, test, test, review, test, test, review.... I think you all get the idea.
This site kind of reminds me of another site which is experiencing difficulty due to some oversights :o
John
On the smoker main page http://www.north-america.bradleysmoker.com/food-smokers/ (http://www.north-america.bradleysmoker.com/food-smokers/) does the V rack look upside down or is it an optical illusion ?
Quote from: carnie1 on November 21, 2013, 01:23:28 PM
On the smoker main page http://www.north-america.bradleysmoker.com/food-smokers/ (http://www.north-america.bradleysmoker.com/food-smokers/) does the V rack look upside down or is it an optical illusion ?
Its correct look at the Louvers they are on the top.
QuoteIts correct look at the lovers they are on the top.
BUT which lover is on top I can't tell ;D
I counted 22 pucks in the feeder tube to the left of it. :o
I dont post a lot these days but I did click on the web site. Aside from buttons not working, I have to say that Bradley that turkey is in has to be the cleanest smoker I have ever seen! I would bet its just a brand new one with a pretend turkey in it. Just an observation. Not even sure its been seasoned.
Before I go into what I see as "wrong" with the new Bradley site, I will explain my background in computers. I retired in April of this year after 40 years of computer development, both programming and web development; on mainframes, minicomputers and microcomputers (PCs). I started doing online computing with a 110 Baud modem phone. At 11 characters a second, anything done for online viewing had to be succinct and to the point. The creation of the Internet and higher bandwidth has led to websites with times graphics and "cutesy" effects.
To further complicate, or obfuscate, the web experience, a lack of standards for business websites has resulted in sites that range from excellent to horrible. Part of the problem is that web developers are young and have good eyes.
I have viewed the new Bradley website with Internet Explorer 9 and 11 and Firefox 12.0. I will not use chrome so do not know how it is displayed with that product.
My first observation is that the global page does not display well in IE on a wide screen monitor (27"). It does display OK in Firefox 12.0. This does mot mean that the page is easy to follow or read. The graphic backgrounds are distracting and make it more difficult to read the overlayed text.
Books are printed black on white for a reason - readability. White on black, just about any color on black is difficult to read as is text on a moving video.
I appreciate the effort that Bradley has made to create a unique web site but am put off by the results. If I was not a returning customer, I would not stay on the site long enough to figure it out.
My suggestion is to layout the web site on paper, planning links to various functions/features and the code the web pages. After coding a page, it should be checked for functionality in multiple browsers and tweaked until it works in all of them correctly.
Consideration should be given to the visually impaired as well - get someone older to check out the web pages for readability.
Quote from: DaWiz on November 22, 2013, 07:04:55 AM
Before I go into what I see as "wrong" with the new Bradley site, I will explain my background in computers. I retired in April of this year after 40 years of computer development, both programming and web development; on mainframes, minicomputers and microcomputers (PCs). I started doing online computing with a 110 Baud modem phone. At 11 characters a second, anything done for online viewing had to be succinct and to the point. The creation of the Internet and higher bandwidth has led to websites with times graphics and "cutesy" effects.
To further complicate, or obfuscate, the web experience, a lack of standards for business websites has resulted in sites that range from excellent to horrible. Part of the problem is that web developers are young and have good eyes.
I have viewed the new Bradley website with Internet Explorer 9 and 11 and Firefox 12.0. I will not use chrome so do not know how it is displayed with that product.
My first observation is that the global page does not display well in IE on a wide screen monitor (27"). It does display OK in Firefox 12.0. This does mot mean that the page is easy to follow or read. The graphic backgrounds are distracting and make it more difficult to read the overlayed text.
Books are printed black on white for a reason - readability. White on black, just about any color on black is difficult to read as is text on a moving video.
I appreciate the effort that Bradley has made to create a unique web site but am put off by the results. If I was not a returning customer, I would not stay on the site long enough to figure it out.
My suggestion is to layout the web site on paper, planning links to various functions/features and the code the web pages. After coding a page, it should be checked for functionality in multiple browsers and tweaked until it works in all of them correctly.
Consideration should be given to the visually impaired as well - get someone older to check out the web pages for readability.
I was one of the people to got first crack at the new sites and review before they went live. There were some issues that were corrected. Personally I don't see anything that bad about the sites now that there live. I'm running on a macbook pro, Safari 6.1 and Firefox 24 and see no issues. What I do find interesting is that I'm pretty sure most of us own a Bradley of some sorts. Then you get all this negative feed back on the new sites. Don't really know what to make of that?
Quote from: RedJada on November 22, 2013, 03:24:47 PM
[quI was one of the people to got first crack at the new sites and review before they went live. There were some issues that were corrected. Personally I don't see anything that bad about the sites now that there live. I'm running on a macbook pro, Safari 6.1 and Firefox 24 and see no issues. What I do find interesting is that I'm pretty sure most of us own a Bradley of some sorts. Then you get all this negative feed back on the new sites. Don't really know what to make of that?
The point I was trying to make is that the site will work ok for some and not ok for others. O;der people will possibly be put off by the site (I know I would). IMHO the site was built by sp,epne who either does not have much experience or does not care about reacjomg a wider aidience. If Bradley wants to appeal to the widest possible aidience, they will rethink the layout of the sire and do an easier to navigate (and read) site.