Archive for the ‘Design and Usability’ Category

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The possibilities of social ecommerce

Wednesday, October 7th, 2009

Social  media and online retailers go hand in hand these days, retailers are wisening up to the fact that social media plays a powerful role in the marketing mix and provides an influential platform for promotion that nothing offline could compete with. However, where the high street will always come up trumps is the sociability factor, yes we can Tweet about an item we want to buy but online shopping still lacks the personal and social interaction many people experience when they are shopping on the high street. Being a keen shopper, both online and on the high street, I always wonder how far online retailers can push the boundaries in terms of creating a user experience that has the best of both worlds. Many are almost there but shopping online still hasn’t turned into the social experience shopping on the high street is, whether that is possible I don’t know but I feel online retailers could be taking greater risks in an attempt to try.

Facebook have a wealth of ecommerce applications letting you recommend products to friends, try clothes on a virtual you and view upcoming collections similarly there are a host of ecommerce social websites where members can chat and browse products amongst other things.  However, there seems to be a distinct lack of retailers bringing social media to their ecommerce website, yes they may have a link to their Twitter and Facebook page but there isn’t anyone really introducing social media into the mix.

It all makes sense in my mind, on the high street it is ritual for girls to go shopping together picking outfits together and assuring each other that ‘no your bum doesn’t look big in it’- I dare say males are in on it as well shopping with friends or at the very least shopping with a girlfriend. This is because shopping is a social activity and shopping online should be no different. Whether you are shopping for an all in sound system or an outfit for a Saturday night it is fair to say that we value the opinion and view of our friends.

With this in mind it got me thinking of the possibilities of online social shopping…

With a large retailer such as Amazon social shopping is definitely a possibility. Imagine if in the not so distant future you were able to go to the Amazon website, log into your Facebook account, and ask your friends what their opinion is of a specific product or alternatively make product suggestions- a functionality that, as you could imagine, would work a treat at Christmas!

One retailer already venturing into such social territories is Asos who this year introduced Asos Community. An online social community for existing Asos customers to chat, keep up to date with the Asos news, post photos and discuss fashion. A brilliant idea and excellent use of social media and with over 60,000 members it is obviously popular but I have to wonder how many of these people actively use the Asos Community as I notice that all existing customers are automatically made community member.

Everyday millions of people log into Facebook (or Twitter, LinkedIn, Bebo or MySpace) and the average number of friends a user has is 130- all it takes is for one friend to recommend a product to his entire friend list for that retailer to gain a couple more customers- some of which may have never even been on the website before!

It really is a simple process, logging into a social media profile is daily ritual for many people and once logged in we often stay logged in for the entire day popping back on every so often to see what the chat is. Is it possible for users to be logged into Facebook, go shopping and on participating website be given updates for that specific website- what your friends have been looking at, what they are recommending to other, what they are reviewing and even what they need your advice about. So far it seems the biggest leap retailers have made is to provide a link where you can Tweet about an item or post it on Facebook through their branded application, which is a bit long and tedious. Social shopping should be easier than that and offer greater interactivity amongst users.

I imagine that we will soon start seeing greater fusion between social media and ecommerce, so far the majority of retailers have taken tentative steps towards introducing social into their ecommerce shopping carts, however, I predict that it will soon become an essential way of enhancing user experience with retailers pushing social shopping to the max.

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Design Crush – edition 16

Thursday, September 24th, 2009

 

Back again with another instalment of Design Crush. This time we are talking about current colour trends. While web design has had a long history with colour it hasn’t always been pretty. In the years gone by, when websites were in their infancy it was common place to see cyan used throughout. But we are not here to discuss the past, we are here to discuss the present colour trends that are occurring within web design.

One recent colour trend that is cropping up throughout the web is the use of Autumn colours.  With this time of year descending upon us, it’s no wonder designers are turning to the autumn season for colour inspiration. According to Linda Chadbourne’s article for thewebsqueeze.com these autumn colours are not necessarily your typical browns and reds. There is an array of warm pinks, greys, blues and natural tones that are storming the web. Below are the top picks:

Here are a few examples of where some websites have successfully used these new autumn colours in their design:

Of course there is a lot more to be said about colour other than just being a trend. Colours can not only promote a certain feeling and atmosphere within a design but they can also make a website more (or less) user friendly. Colours are a major part of any website design and by using these new autumn colours, websites are sure to be fresh, warm and welcoming.

Check back soon to find out what other colour trends catch our attention, in our search for design inspiration.

Let us know what colour trends you are linking at the moment…

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Starbucks changing the way we buy coffee.

Thursday, September 24th, 2009

Starbucks appear to be on the cusp of changing how consumers shop on the high street.

They have just launched a new IPhone application, currently only Stateside, that will turn users IPhones into their Starbucks Card.

Along with allowing users to view their outstanding balance, top it up and receive free refills when in a coffee shop the application will soon allow customers to pay for their skinny caramel caffe latte using an innovative mobile payment feature. Currently only available in a select number of US stores Starbucks are enabling customers to pay using a barcode produced by the Starbucks Card Mobile app, the barcode can be used in the same way as the Starbucks Card.

If this payment method goes live world wide it has the potential to change how we shop offline. Without a doubt it will influence the future of loyalty cards but in terms of mobile payments in store it may work better with some retailers than others. I foresee it being a big hit with habitual purchases- the purchases we make every day and always for some reason end up scrambling around in our purse/pocket to scrounge together the exact change to pay for it.

The ability to prepay on your mobile will make these small and regular purchases much easier. Much like the Oyster card in London mobile barcode payments could be very successful for commuting, making the customers life a lot easier! Similarily whats stopping nightclub and bars from introducing a similar set up; already several nightclubs and bars across the UK are introducing microchip payments, where a microchip connected to an account is inserted into a patrons arm, allowing them to socialise without a wallet. A mobile payment scheme offers all the same benefits without the pain factor.

So Starbucks might just be on to a winner with their new mobile payment application! We will have to wait until the scheme is launched across the entire company before we get to experience it for ourselves, but even at this early stage it is clear that Starbucks is on to a revolutionary way of enhancing the customer experience- one which has the potential to change how we shop forever.

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A grand day out at the FOWD event, Glasgow (part one)

Tuesday, September 15th, 2009

Future of Web Design (FOWD), Glasgow – Part one.

Three of the 360 development team were excited to get the opportunity to head off to the FOWD event held yesterday at The Glasgow Film Theatre. The schedule featured an array of highly regarded Web Evangelists and Developers from the names such as Opera, Microsoft and other well know independent web agencies from around the UK.

The morning sessions were delivered by edgeofmyseat.com developer Drew Mclellan, Microsoft developer Mike Tautly and Fuzzy Orange developer Matt Gifford.

Drew Mclellan on – “Making Your Content Discoverable with Microformats”

Drew’s presentation was based around the practical uses and benefits of Microformats, which are perhaps most easily described as a ‘simple set of data formats that help share common meaning and data that goes beyond standard HTML’ – for example: an address or event information.

The presentation was really well structured and provided an interesting, practical insight into the value of how and why microformats should be used in the process of marking up web pages.

You can read more about microformats from microformats.org or visit Drew Mclellan’s blog for musings on a wide range of things Web.

Mike Tautly on – “Silverlight and Expression Blend”

Mike’s presentation was again interesting and one which gave us some background and usage examples with the Microsoft alternative for delivering RIA for the Web. Platform and Browser independent Silverlight is a plugin which builds on the Microsoft .NET framework.

As a designer often looking at how to improve workflow from initial sketches, through prototyping to production artwork; Mike’s outline of Expression Blend provided interesting options to effectively demonstrate ideas to a client using something called a SketchFlow prototype.

It seems Expression Blend is also pretty useful when needing to show interactive page flow and behaviours in prototype format – this can then be built upon to the point of detailed production graphics using Photoshop layered files, with reusable components.

All in all – perhaps one to take a further look at.

For more information on Mike Tautly check out his personal blog

Matt Gifford on – “Getting Started with Adobe Air”

Matt Gifford it seems was drafted in to step in to the breach after a colleague couldn’t make the conference – he did a great job! And along with free Kinder Eggs and T-Shirts Matt gave all us Adobe Air novices an hour long insight in to the possibilities with Air for building and deploying RIA’s.

Some of the most interesting elements of the presentation for me included the integration with web content, applications and data stores (such as mySQL DB’s) in real client situations.

For more information on Matt Gifford check out his blog.

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Building a relationship between your shop & your website

Tuesday, September 15th, 2009

The fact that the high street is suffering at the expense of the Internet is no new news. For several years now the Internet has slowly been acquiring more and more shoppers who are deserting the high street and going online in search of bargains and wider selection. However, figures from this summer have revealed that the high street is fighting back, heavy reductions and promotions have led to a 16.9% increase from last year.

Now is the time for retailers to be bringing both channels together using the shop to drive people online and using the website to bring people instore.

A good example of this is John Lewis who recently introduced an online reservation facility whereby customers can reserve items online and pick them up in store. Similarily, in a previous post we discussed the merits of offering online vouchers which is another very successful way of getting more customers through the door.

So what else can retailers do to bring their website and shop together?

  • Bring the Internet to your high street shop, allow customers to actively look at your website whilst they are browsing the rails. Let them see style pages, photos of outfits and push further products; this is a great selling tool because it is efficient, puts the customer in control and, if done well, can be an excellent way to incite a desire to purchase in the shopper.
  • Further to this having a customer web portal instore also provides an excellent opportunity for retailers to get customer data such as email addresses which can then be used to send through newsletters and promotions. Retailers should display their Twitter usernames and Facebook page URLs on literature and POS encouraging customers to seek them out online.
  • Larger multi store retailers can also give customers the opportunity to order items online from the shop, allaviating any out of stock issues.
  • To get people into the shop through the Internet utilise the website and social media to promote vouchers, special events and promotions available only in store. You still want to make products available online and for people to buy through the website but you want to give them reason to visit the shop. Offer online shoppers the ability to book instore consultancies for free and like John Lewis give shoppers the ability reserve items in store so that they can test or try the product before purchasing.
  • Another option is to use your website to create a members only section where fans of the shop can log in, preview items and recieve recommendations from the shop. Advertise the members only facility in-store encouraging shoppers to go online to recieve additional benefits.
  • Perhaps consider giving customers unique voucher codes on every reciept which give the customer discount when used online, encouraging them to go home and continue their shopping online.
  • Do like Topshop and offer online exclusives, products only available through the webstore; an added reason for customers to go online.
  • The most basic method of advertising the website is of course including the URL on everything; stickers, tags, sales literature, banners, flyers, on the shop front…. Similarily online the best way to advertise the shop is to shout about it, of course focus should be on the products for sale but make sure customers know you have a shop and its location.
All these suggestion of course are not suitable for every retailer but without a doubt certain elements can be incorporated into any retailers on and off line marketing activities. After all every retailer can provide special offers, why not use the website to do it and why not encourage customer to go online and look at your products, services and testimonials, no matter what industry combining the high street and the Internet can be done.
Select tools for hire online at Jewsons
Select tools for hire online on the Jewsons website.
Although not available for purchase use the H&M's online fashion studio to select and match outifts.
Although not available for purchase use the H&M Fashion Studio to preview collections & style outfits.
Book a test drive at your local Renault dealership online
Book a test drive at your local Renault dealership online.
Recieve exclusive offers with the online Priority Club for Johnson The Cleaners

Recieve exclusive offers with the online Priority Club for Johnson The Cleaners

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Design Crush – edition 15

Monday, September 7th, 2009

Arguably one of the most used and important elements of any website design is the menu or navigation. The main menu is where users refer to when they want to navigate through the website. Therefore good navigation has a lot to answer for when it comes to creating successful usability in a website. And creating a menu that is not only easy to use but that enhances the look and feel of your website is something that can make all the difference to the overall usability of the site.

Website menus come in all shapes and sizes, colours and designs making them an interesting focus for this edition of Design Crush. There are many options when designing a menu; colour can be used to differentiate between options, icons can be used to make the menu options more easily identifiable or unique roll-over elements can be employed to add interest. There are many techniques you can employ when designing a menu, and putting in that extra detail can really make all the difference to the website design as a whole.

Here are a few examples of successful menu designs that I have come across recently:

Employing these different techniques can make it easier for you website menu to be well constructed, easily used and intuative. A well designed menu can encourage users to look through the website while a badly designed menu can put users off completely. Giving your site a unique and personal menu will not only keep users on your site but will add that all important sparkle that can set it apart from all the rest.

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Shopping cart abandonment

Wednesday, September 2nd, 2009

Shopping cart abandonment in the US has risen, with 60% of US online retailers seeing shopping cart abandonments increasing to over 20% (econsultancy). This is obviously a big issues not only for US retailers but for retailers in the UK, as many of the issues leading to consumer clicking off a shopping cart are universal.

  • High shipping costs
  • Lack of security at check out
  • Complicated payment procedure
  • Change of mind
  • Lengthy forms to fill in

These are all reasons for customers not completing a transactions, many people also add items to the shopping cart with no intention of purchasing them at all. Instead using the shopping cart as a wish list style functionality- digital equivilant of trying a heap of lovely clothes on in the shop just for the fun of it.

How can retailers prevent shopping cart abandonment?

There is no sure answer, if someone isn’t going to buy then they won’t buy, but there are certain ways that you can further entice a customer, make it easier for them to purchase and give them comfort as they purchase.

Many experts discuss the value of having a seperate shopping cart. An enclosed shopping cart, as it is also known as, is one which leads the shopper to an isolated page whereby they cannot easily refer back to browsing, there are no menu options to continue shopping etc. Once in the enclosed shopping cart the shopper will have very little distraction to lead them away from the job at hand.

Simplify the check out process as much as possible. One of the most effective online retails must be the iTunes store, why? They make it so easy to randomly buy items, you don’t have to add things to a shopping cart, you see something, you click to buy and voila you have bought some music. Dangerous for compulsive shopppers, good for retailers. Apple go to great strengths to simplify the purchase proceedure and have practically eliminated the shopping cart completely from the iTunes store. Although not an option to every online retailer it does exemplify a very obvious point that by simplifying the payment procedure you will make it easier for customers to spend money in you store.
Minimise the steps people have to go through, avoid a complex form and allow returning customer to save their details.

Security is a major factor when it comes to whether a shopper buys or not, with online fraud on the rise a customer needs peace of mind that they are buying from a safe, secure and reliable business. Make sure you communicate clearly the secure server and payment gateway you have in place.

If shopping cart abandonment is high then it is always wise reassessing the postage costs, are they too high? Look at the competition P&P and ensure you are lower. Play.com is an example example of this, although they have low prices they are not necessarily the lowest, but customers will return time and time again, why? Because they offer free postage and packaging on all items.

There is no guaranteed way to seal the deal with customers at the checkout, the best you can do is provide an easy to use, non time consuming and safe shopping cart which they can trust, couple this with good prices and reasonable postage and packaging then you should be laughing.
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Design Crush – edition 14

Thursday, August 13th, 2009

Recently we have been receiving CV’S for web designers and graphics designers looking for positions within 360. This got me thinking about how designers can make a company like 360 take notice and take action. While the CV is very important, in terms of the information that it holds, the portfolio is even more so. Why? Because it shows companies your style and skill set first hand and can be the making or breaking of a future job.

Designing and building your own portfolio site would be the best way to get your work from your head to your potential employment. However if you don’t have your own site to house all your unique work, then don’t worry. There are plenty of resources available to you that still let you have an effective online presence. Online portfolio sites like the examples below would be a good place to start.

While thinking about all this, I decided to write down a few tips that may help any budding designers figure out what to include and what not to include in their portfolio.

Tip 1 Define the purpose of your portfolio. What do you want your portfolio to achieve? Portfolios can be used for many things including selling your services, promoting your services, getting a job, building a reputation and networking.

Tip 2 Whatever you want your portfolio to do, make sure you get the message across crystal clear. Targeting your portfolio to your intended audience is important to make it more effective and achieve your  desired outcome.

Tip 3 When deciding what to include in your portfolio make sure you don’t put any old rubbish in. Only include your best work. Remember its quality not quantity.

Tip 4 One of the most important tips is to make it different. Your portfolio is an expression of your work therefore it should be totally unique and should be able to make a statement of who you are a designer.

Tip 5 And finally, with all portfolios, keep it up to date. Its amazing how over time, work can look dated and can make a portfolio (including mine) look less than impressive. So whenever you have completed a new project and its worthy of showcasing your talents, stick it into your portfolio.

 

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Using free online image editors to control the imagery on your Blog or Content Managed Website (Beginners guide).

Thursday, August 13th, 2009

So you have just taken ownership of your spankingly new online presence – be it a blog or a content managed website you’ve had developed.

You’ve read the manual, had the training and put on your best typing hat (ok, so that’s just me then! ) and you are ready to show the world your dazzling linguistic ability.

That’s all very good but its often all too easy to undo all of this good work with poor use of supporting imagery and bad formatting, making your posts or pages difficult to read, and ultimately affecting your user’s experience and perception of your online presence.

By taking a few simple steps to ensure the visual side your posts are properly cared for you can really help to improve the overall user experience.

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First ever criminal prosecution for domain name theft

Tuesday, August 4th, 2009

Domain name theft is no rare occurrence, and the numerous incidents that have made the tech headlines including the theft of Adios.com, have went unprosecuted, this may change after the recent arrest related to the theft of popular website domain name p2p.com.

On Friday July 30th a New Jersey man, Daniel Gonclave, was arrested on suspicion of stealing the rights to p2p.com and selling them to Mark Madsen, who coincidently plays for the NBA team the Los Angeles Clippers. The full extent of his arrest includes theft by unlawful taking or deception, identity theft and computer theft.

Was is Domain Name theft?

The illegality of domain name theft is no different from any other form of theft.

Basic definition of theft

1.–

(1) A person is guilty of theft if he dishonestly appropriates property belonging to another with the intention of permanently depriving the other of it; and ‘thief’ and ‘steal’ shall be construed accordingly.

A domain name is essentially a piece of real estate online, hacking into an account and selling it unlawfully is no different from breaking into a house and stealing a vase off the mantel piece. In the present case Daniel Gonclave is accused of hacking into the previous owner of the p2p.com domain and transferring all rights to himself, the p2pcom domain was then sold by himself on ebay to Mark Madsen for $111,000.

Why is Domain Theft so common?

Many entrepreneurs make a living from buying and selling easy to remember and desirable domain names, at the time of the theft the p2p.com domain was valued at $200,000, therefore in any situation where there is money or items of value there is also a black market equivalent; criminals hacking and stealing popular domain names and selling them on to unsuspecting buyers.

What now?

This is the first case of its kind and it brings to light to lack of law protecting people online and although many domain name registry companies have safeguards in place it is evident that many unlawful registry transferrals are slipping through the net. Perhaps the biggest safeguard would be to issue domain name owners with title deeds, similar to when you buy a house? Fingers crossed the p2p.com case will bring to light a suitable solution for this online criminal activity.

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