CASE STUDY Spider Groove music website
A song list became a site people stay and play with.
Spider Groove is the home of 67 original rock songs. People used to come, look and leave. I rebuilt it so they press play, sing along and even leave a tip. Here is how, step by step, and how the same ideas can work for your business.
- 67 songs, each with its own page
- 20 videos in one wall
- 2 ways to tip
The starting point
Great songs. A site that didn't do them justice.
The songs were strong. The website just sat there. My job was to bring more people in from Google and give them a reason to stay.
Before
Songs sat in long lists. The player was plain and hard to use on a phone. Nothing invited you to stay. Fans had no easy way to support the artist, and page names did not help Google.
The goal
Get found. Keep them playing.
- More visitors from Google
- Music you can play in one click
- Fun things to explore on every page
- A friendly way for fans to say thanks
How I built it
Seven steps from plain to playable.
Click each step to see what I did and how the same idea can help your business.
01 / Listen
Listen first, design second.
Before I drew anything, I asked questions. Who visits? What should they do? What makes this artist different? He is a 60s to 80s rock and roll guy with an independent streak, so the site had to feel like a guitar amp after dark.
- Talked about goals and the audience
- Picked the one thing each page should do
- Kept what already worked
For your site: every project starts with a short talk about your customers. A pretty site that does not help your business is just decoration.
02 / Look
A look and feel that fits.
Dark backgrounds, warm orange-to-pink gradients and starry skies. One strong heading font and one easy reading font, set once for the whole site. Every animation is slow and smooth, drifts up and to the right, and uses golden ratio timing so it feels natural.
- A small style system: colors, fonts, buttons
- Classy motion, never jumpy
- Calmer motion for people who ask for it
For your site: I build your colors, fonts and buttons first, so every page looks like the same brand.
03 / Players
Make the main thing the star.
On a music site, the music is the product. So I built the players by hand.
- Audio player with a live wave, volume and mute
- Free MP3 download in one click
- Lyrics that scroll while the song plays
- Radio mode: the next song starts by itself
- Jukebox filters that sort without reloading
- Video wall: All, Videos or Audio only
- Counters that update themselves
For your site: your "main thing" might be a product, a service or a portfolio. I make it easy to find, try and love: a demo, a before-and-after slider or a gallery you can filter.
04 / Story
Tell a story on every page.
Each music style got its own animated hero. Love songs draw a heart with a heartbeat line. Blues rock gets a wall of amps. Rebel songs get raised fists. The Time Capsule page turned old liner notes into a cassette tape and a timeline that fills in as you scroll.
- A custom hero for each category
- Soft fades so sections blend together
- A timeline that fills as you scroll
For your site: your story builds trust. A company timeline or a team section that feels human helps people know you before they call.
05 / Help
Help without a help desk.
I added "Ask the Roadie," a small guitar-pick button in the corner. Click it and a friendly window explains how everything works in plain words, with topic buttons to jump around.
- Plain-word help cards
- Topic buttons to filter them
- Loads only when opened, so pages stay fast
For your site: a friendly help or FAQ button can answer the same five questions you get every week.
06 / Tips
Turn fans into supporters.
Asking for money can feel pushy, so I used humor. A Tip Jar page offers a cold beer ($5), fresh guitar strings ($12), a tank of gas for the F-150 ($75) or "your call." A glass jar fills with coins as the tip goes up. A gold coin button on every page opens a short popup, and the tier you pick there is already picked on the form. Try to close it and it jokes: "Bold move."
- Card or PayPal through Stripe and PayPal
- A $5 minimum checked by the server
- A playful "are you sure?" that never nags twice
For your site: the same idea works for deposits, booking fees, donations, gift cards or quick quotes. Make the first step small and friendly.
07 / Launch
Built for Google and for speed.
Every page has one main heading and clear headings after it. Page names match what people search for. Filters use # links, so Google never sees the same songs twice. I built it all on a private test copy, then moved it live and fixed every old link so nothing broke.
- Clean headings and page names
- No duplicate pages for Google
- Tested first, launched with nothing broken
For your site: good looks bring people back. Good structure brings them in the first time.
See it in action
The fun stuff, up close.
A few of the pieces that keep visitors clicking. Everything here is live on spidergroove.com.
The player. A spinning record, a live wave, free MP3s and lyrics that scroll on their own.
The tip popup. Pick a tip and the button changes to match. The form opens with it already picked.
The tip jar. Fun tiers, a jar that fills up, and card or PayPal checkout.
For your business
Same ideas, your website.
You do not need all of it. I pick the few ideas that will help your customers most.
Music player
A product demo or video tour
Let people try before they buy, right on the page.
Jukebox filters
Filter your services or work
Visitors find what fits them in one click, with no page reload.
Live counters
Trust numbers that stay true
Projects done, years in business or reviews, updated on their own.
Ask the Roadie
A friendly FAQ helper
Answer the same questions every week without picking up the phone.
Tip jar
Quick payments and deposits
Bookings, deposits, donations or gift cards in a few friendly clicks.
Coin popup
A popup with personality
A real reason to click, a little humor, and never pushy.
How I work
A simple path from idea to launch.
One person from start to finish, so nothing gets lost between a designer, a developer and a host.
-
Talk
A short call about your goals and your customers.
Day 1
-
Plan
A simple map of pages and features, plus an estimate.
Week 1
-
Design
A look and feel that fits your brand.
Weeks 1 to 2
-
Build
Built in Divi so you can edit text and images yourself. Custom code only where it really helps.
Weeks 2 to 5
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Launch
Tested on a private copy, then moved live with nothing broken.
Launch day
-
Grow
Small upgrades over time, based on what visitors actually do.
Ongoing
Want a site people actually play with?
Tell me a little about your business. I will send back a free estimate and a few ideas you can use right away. Most projects start at $500, and bigger sites or online stores run $3,000 and up.
- You send a few details about your site and goals.
- I reply by email with questions specific to your project.
- You get an honest estimate, usually between $500 and $3,000+.
Start here