Hi Matt,
One of the things Kathy and I have been "conversatin` " about, to use a
term my niece introduced to me, is exactly this type of issue. We have
1 product, split into three product lines, at the moment. Later, we
have plans for a larger type of integrated product where we`ll have
lots of different items for sale. But that`s for later, not now.
As more people are entering the e-commerce wave, it seems that more Web
sites look pretty much the same. That tends to be mostly true for those
who are selling something someone else created, as with retail sites.
The result seems to be that all the templates, cookie-cutter shops, and
other turnkey "solutions" pretty much look the same.
If that`s true, and we think it is, then being different is going to
start mattering more and more. To that end, you`re only going to be
different if you develop something on your own, using your own (and a
developer`s) imagination.
So I`d recommend the designer route, and don`t be shy about consulting
a bit with a layout artist as well as someone skilled at marketing.
CraigL2008-1-10 19:10:25