Redesign proposal for authorgregtodd.com. Prepared for Greg Todd, October 2026.

A reading room for Greg’s books.

The current site has the right books and the right message. It loses readers in three places: pages that are broken, a homepage that doesn’t lead anywhere, and a look that reads as a template. Some of this can be fixed in a day; the rest needs a redesign built around how people actually use a Bible.

Open the redesign concept Read what we found
6trust problems a visitor can hit today, including two pages that don’t exist
7font families in visible text on the homepage, none of them chosen as a system
0homepage book covers that link anywhere

Before and after

Current homepage: dark blurred photo with centered Times New Roman headline and a video pause button over the text
Today. A blurred photo, a centered headline in Times New Roman and a video pause button over the words.
Redesign concept: Caslon headline God is still writing your story, a shelf of five book covers and thumb-index tabs on the right edge
Proposed. His mission as the headline, the books themselves as the picture and a thumb index down the edge.
Current homepage on a phone
Today, phone
Redesign concept homepage on a phone
Proposed, phone
Current Pauline series grid with repeated brown buttons
Today, Pauline series
Redesign concept Pauline series with thirteen thumb tabs, four published
Proposed, Pauline series

Fix this week

These don’t need a redesign. Each one is a moment where a reader, a pastor or a bookstore buyer decides the site isn’t looked after.

  1. “About Greg” is a dead page

    Top menu on every page. /about-greg shows “Page Not Found. No page is linked to this domain.”

    FixPublish an About page, or point the link at the story section of the homepage until one exists.

  2. A free workbook link leads to the same dead page

    “Temptation, Leader Study Workbook” in the Free eBooks menu and its “Download Now” button both go to /landing, which doesn’t exist.

    FixPoint both at the working sign-up form, or remove the offer until it works.

  3. An internal QA note is visible to readers

    Inside the preview pop-ups for the Bible Made Clear Participant Guide and the Temptation Leader Workbook:

    “…signup routing still needs a controlled check.”

    FixDelete the sentence from both pop-ups.

  4. The newsletter page is titled for another business

    The free Participant Guide sign-up page shows “Free 30-Minute Marketing Strategy Session — Meridian Growth” in the browser tab and in bookmarks.

    FixRename it to “Free Bible Made Clear Participant Guide, Greg Todd”.

  5. Search results show the builder’s placeholder

    The homepage description reads “View this page published on www.authorgregtodd.com.” Google and Facebook link previews show this.

    FixWrite a real description that names the books and who they’re for. The concept uses one you can copy.

  6. The menu changes from page to page

    On the Contact page the “Free eBooks” menu disappears.

    FixUse one shared header on every page.

About Greg page showing Page Not Found
/about-greg today
Homepage book row with covers that are not links
Homepage covers: no titles, no links
Pauline series section of the books page
Books page: one brown button repeated on every volume

What the design is costing

  1. No type system

    Times New Roman (hero), Raleway (mission), EB Garamond (button), Helvetica capitals (name), Alegreya Sans (menu), Arial (Free eBooks menu) and Georgia (pop-ups). The hero font isn’t even loaded; it falls back to the computer’s default.

    ProposedTwo families with a reason each: Caslon for reading and headlines, Schibsted Grotesk for buttons and menus.

  2. The homepage is a dead end

    Five covers with no titles and no links, then one “Explore Books” button. A visitor can’t tell which book is for them.

    ProposedA shelf where every cover links to its book, then a contents page that starts from the reader’s question.

  3. Greg is missing from his own site

    No photo, no bio and a broken About page. His strongest story, 30 May 1999, is hidden in a pop-up for an unreleased book.

    ProposedA dedicated story section with the date, the five turns of the story and a portrait.

  4. Free guides are hidden

    Four good lead magnets sit behind a “Free eBooks +” menu. There’s no sign-up on the homepage.

    ProposedOne form, the guides listed with covers, readers choose which ones they want. The timeline PDF stays a direct download.

  5. The Pauline series reads as unfinished

    Nine identical “Coming soon” labels in a grid of thirteen.

    ProposedThirteen Bible thumb tabs, Romans to Philemon. Four are filled in and the rest are dashed, each with “Notify me”. The gaps now show that the series is in progress.

  6. Heavy and hard to scan

    About 4.2 MB on first load, two competing H1 headings, and centered body text over a photo.

    ProposedNo background video, sized cover images, one H1 and left-aligned reading text.

The direction: a reference Bible

Greg’s readers already know how to use a study Bible. The site borrows its parts instead of a startup template, so it couldn’t belong to anyone else.

Thumb-index tabs

The edge of the page carries cut tabs, like the edge of a Bible: Begin, Books, Paul, Story, Free, Write. The tab for the section you’re reading slides out in gilt. On a phone, the menu uses the same tabs.

The reference margin

Every section has a narrow margin with a King James verse, set like a cross-reference with its verse number in rubric red. In the books section, the margin becomes the local index.

Thirteen epistles, thirteen tabs

The Pauline series is a row of Bible tabs that fills in as volumes are published. Readers can see the progress, and each unwritten volume collects emails for its release day.

Paper#F3F1EBThin Bible paper. The ground.
Ink#1B1E26Body text.
Leather#14213AThe navy of his Pauline and Bible Made Clear covers.
Rubric#9E2A20Red-letter. Only for verse references and errors.
Gilt#C9A24AThe gilt page edge. Tabs and one button. Never a gradient.
Vellum#EDE9DFText and plates on leather.

Who’s the pilot?

Libre Caslon DisplayHeadlines only. Caslon’s types set much of 18th-century English printing, the era of the 1769 King James text Greg writes about in A Bible You Can Trust.

Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

Libre Caslon TextReading text at 18px. It’s the same Caslon drawn for screens, so long book descriptions stay comfortable.

Buy on Amazon   Read a sample   Notify me

Schibsted GroteskButtons, menus and labels. A newspaper house’s grotesk: plain and editorial, not a startup default like Inter or Poppins.

No italics, anywhere. Emphasis comes from weight, size and the rubric color. The italic accent word is one of the most common signs of an AI-generated page, so this design leaves it out.

What we borrowed, and what we left

References from shipped sites on Mobbin. We took structure and behavior from each one, not its look.

ReferenceWhat it doesWhat we took
Shopify EditionsCovers stand on a real shelf with a dated index underneath.The hero shelf, and the 13-volume row as a visible index.
Faculty Department, publicationsBooks shown as physical objects, with a plain caption under each.Real cover renders on the paper, with title and format underneath. No cards.
Faculty Department, heroThe book itself is the hero image.Greg’s books replace the stock photo.
BüroA company story told as a dated chapter index.The five turns of Pilot to Co-Pilot, with 30 May 1999 marked.
KinfolkOne cover, two plain actions: Buy, Read.Each book offers Buy on Amazon and Read a sample. Nothing else competes.
KalstoreThe founder’s story beside a portrait.The story section pairs the book with Greg’s portrait.
DescriptSign-up form with a plain consent line under the button.The free-guides form says exactly what subscribing means.
Left outIntercom illustrated book tiles, Patch all-caps “DOWNLOAD TODAY!” form, Daylight italic accent words.Template tiles, shouting and italics all read as generic.

The new homepage, in order

  1. The shelfHis mission as the headline, with all five books standing below it. Every cover is a link.
  2. Where to beginSix reader questions, each leading to the right book: “Why do I keep losing the same battle?” leads to Temptation.
  3. The booksEach book with its guides and workbooks, Buy on Amazon, Read a sample, or Get it free.
  4. The Pauline SeriesThirteen tabs. Published volumes link to Amazon; the rest collect release-day emails.
  5. His story30 May 1999, Who’s the pilot?, the five turns, the cover and his portrait.
  6. Free guidesOne form for every free guide. The timeline PDF downloads with no sign-up.
  7. Write to GregChurch and group orders, questions about a book, or a note about what one meant to you.

States we designed

  1. Volume not out yet“In preparation”, with an email field for that volume’s release day.
  2. Form errorsShown under the field and specific: “That email looks incomplete. Check for a missing @ or dot.”
  3. SendingThe button reads “Sending…” and is disabled, so it can’t be pressed twice.
  4. SuccessNames the result: “Guides sent. All 2 guides are on the way to you@…”
  5. No guide chosen“Choose at least one guide above.”
  6. Missing portraitA marked placeholder until Greg sends a photo.

Next steps