Relaunched- Again!
Behind the Relaunch
Dustin Grissom 6/6/2011
Behind the Relaunch
Dustin Grissom 6/6/2011
Welcome to the new Phatact! Which one is it now? Ah, yes, welcome to Phatact 5!
If you've been following Phatact.com for awhile now, you're probably used to seeing a "relaunch" or "redesign" every few
months or so. I'm here to tell you that this one, Phatact 5, is different. In the process of doing so, I will also briefly go through
every redesign Phatact.com has ever had, including it's pros and cons, straight from the designer.
So, it all started in 2006, I was a young child who loved filming (terrible) videos. I also loved designing (terrible) websites.
Sadly, all records of the original Phatact have been whipped off the face of the Earth, leaving no trail of it's sheer ugliness.
However, there are still traces of Phatact's lowly past, take this late 2007 design for instance:
If you've been following Phatact.com for awhile now, you're probably used to seeing a "relaunch" or "redesign" every few
months or so. I'm here to tell you that this one, Phatact 5, is different. In the process of doing so, I will also briefly go through
every redesign Phatact.com has ever had, including it's pros and cons, straight from the designer.
So, it all started in 2006, I was a young child who loved filming (terrible) videos. I also loved designing (terrible) websites.
Sadly, all records of the original Phatact have been whipped off the face of the Earth, leaving no trail of it's sheer ugliness.
However, there are still traces of Phatact's lowly past, take this late 2007 design for instance:
| An old 2007 design. (The image is split into two, normally you'd scroll down to see the right half) |
The site was certainly functional (in most cases), but this was just a small step towards what Phatact was to eventually
become. The basic colors are there, purple, blue, and pink, but back then I was still a little confused as to what the Phatact
look really was. What you see below was the very first logo for Phatact.com. Pretty ugly, huh?
become. The basic colors are there, purple, blue, and pink, but back then I was still a little confused as to what the Phatact
look really was. What you see below was the very first logo for Phatact.com. Pretty ugly, huh?
| A new logo was created for the 2008 redesign |
| Phatact's 2008 redesign |
| An early 2009 design that didn't make it past the front page |
| The logo of a new era for Phatact |
| A design created to try and pull back viewers in early 2010 |
| Phatact was back to it's glorious self! |
| The beta home page of the new and improved Phatact.com! (2009) |
| The first logo for Phatact.com! |
As more content came pouring in, so did the visitors. Views, once again, skyrocketed- Phatact was back. The design lasted
over a year, and in that time, a whole new fan base was born. I now had people coming in from Iowa, Indiana, and even
places like France and Australia (thanks Jon!). With the added popularity came benefits, such as ads and more comments
and ratings. It was a great time for Phatact, and it wasn't going to start there. Welcome to the new Phatact. What does this
version entail? New content, new videos, new actors, new features, slicker design, more updates, more social option, and
hopefully, the last revision for quite a while. It took a long time to get here, a lot of hard work, and a long lasting vision of the
future for Phatact.com. This is the future- this is the definitive Phatact.
-Dustin Grissom, creator and founder of Phatact.com
over a year, and in that time, a whole new fan base was born. I now had people coming in from Iowa, Indiana, and even
places like France and Australia (thanks Jon!). With the added popularity came benefits, such as ads and more comments
and ratings. It was a great time for Phatact, and it wasn't going to start there. Welcome to the new Phatact. What does this
version entail? New content, new videos, new actors, new features, slicker design, more updates, more social option, and
hopefully, the last revision for quite a while. It took a long time to get here, a lot of hard work, and a long lasting vision of the
future for Phatact.com. This is the future- this is the definitive Phatact.
-Dustin Grissom, creator and founder of Phatact.com
There was less of an emphasis on original, Phatact content and more of a focus on content provided by the users. This was
mostly due to the long gaps that were expected by myself between new content that I created. Things had to change, so they
did. Enter mid 2010, where things got a whole lot brighter.
mostly due to the long gaps that were expected by myself between new content that I created. Things had to change, so they
did. Enter mid 2010, where things got a whole lot brighter.
The relaunch was huge for Phatact- views were going through the roof. Not only were they doubling, they were tripling,
quadrupling. A new era had certainly begun for the site I began as just a cool little idea years ago. Sadly, the good times
wouldn't last forever.
A major event struck Phatact, one that would change it forever. I had to move away from Iowa, where most of my supporters
and major contributor Jon O'Neal lived. I was entering new territory, sadly, Phatact didn't transition very well. There wasn't
new content for months, views were slowly declining, and the urge to strike interest back in Phatact was at an all-time high. I
decided to do this through another redesign. One that would signify that Phatact was not dead, nor would it seize to deliver
new content. This didn't last for too long.
quadrupling. A new era had certainly begun for the site I began as just a cool little idea years ago. Sadly, the good times
wouldn't last forever.
A major event struck Phatact, one that would change it forever. I had to move away from Iowa, where most of my supporters
and major contributor Jon O'Neal lived. I was entering new territory, sadly, Phatact didn't transition very well. There wasn't
new content for months, views were slowly declining, and the urge to strike interest back in Phatact was at an all-time high. I
decided to do this through another redesign. One that would signify that Phatact was not dead, nor would it seize to deliver
new content. This didn't last for too long.
The goal for this version of Phatact was to basically change Phatact for the better. A popular slogan for this event, which we
titled "The relaunch" was "More content. More often". And this certainly was true! We were throwing out multiple videos a
day, something unheard of back then! It was a huge step forward for the site, and the introduction of the longest lasting logo
thus far:
titled "The relaunch" was "More content. More often". And this certainly was true! We were throwing out multiple videos a
day, something unheard of back then! It was a huge step forward for the site, and the introduction of the longest lasting logo
thus far:
Sadly, this design didn't make it too far. I only applied this design to the front page because I had a bigger idea in plan, and
this design just wasn't as much of an evolution as I wanted. I wanted a revolution. This is where the famous 2009 relaunch
took place. It was certainly one of the most buzzed about times in Phatact's history- this was a game changer.
this design just wasn't as much of an evolution as I wanted. I wanted a revolution. This is where the famous 2009 relaunch
took place. It was certainly one of the most buzzed about times in Phatact's history- this was a game changer.
More than a year later, I began work on a new design for Phatact. I had so much new content on the back-burner that the
2008 design just couldn't handle. So, I started making a new design. This design would be able to advertise much more
content at the same time than any other design. I had to advertise the new games, videos, and social features- this was the
outcome.
2008 design just couldn't handle. So, I started making a new design. This design would be able to advertise much more
content at the same time than any other design. I had to advertise the new games, videos, and social features- this was the
outcome.
Along with the new site came a brand new logo. This logo resembles the modern day Phatact much more than any previous
revision. It's actually not that bad!
revision. It's actually not that bad!
It wasn't until April of 2008 that Phatact got a much needed face lift. It was simpler, more organized, and all around more
attractive. Sure, it wasn't polished as much as it could have been and could definitely use some better design choices, but
this was progress. The site was more focused, bringing in tons of new content- most notably, the ability for users to upload
their own content. This eventually evolved into the "Social" part of the more recent Phatact.com designs.
attractive. Sure, it wasn't polished as much as it could have been and could definitely use some better design choices, but
this was progress. The site was more focused, bringing in tons of new content- most notably, the ability for users to upload
their own content. This eventually evolved into the "Social" part of the more recent Phatact.com designs.