Hello headsetwebmaster,
Let me start with first impressions. The site looks professional, and
I don't get the impression that this is just a tiny one-man operation
or a mom and pop store. A minor point is that my browser doesn't
default to a white background, and no bgcolor is set on the page so
things don't look quite right. A simple fix.
I'm not entirely convinced that the site layout is as intuitive as it
could be. For instance, if I was a catalog customer it's not
immediately obvious to me where to click to place a catalog order. I
wonder if it might make sense to place an "order by catalog item
number" link directly below the search box in the top left corner.
One possible problem for users may be the font size used throughout
the page. Running at 800x600 resolution the font size is fine, but at
1024x768 the text is a little small for my eyes.
Overall usability is quite good. I didn't spot the interactive
headset wizard at first, so it took me longer than I wanted to search
according to the criteria you suggested. I looked at all the menu
options listed at the top without success before eventually spotting
the wizard. Once I found it it was a great tool though, so maybe it
could be more prominent. Even using red or another color instead of
yellow for the text would help in this, but it might make sense again
to have this option available nearer to top of the screen since that's
where the user tends to look first.
The wizard was very easy to use and I especially liked the easy
comparison ability. However, one major issue came up while I was
using it. The first time I selected two products for comparison. I
then viewed the details of each one and returned to the side by side
comparison page. I clicked the 'add to cart' button on the product I
liked best, but my result was:
Software error:
Bad format file: No row definition.
For help, please send mail to the webmaster (site1), giving this error
message and the time and date of the error.
Whatever causes that really needs to be fixed.
After that I tried removing one of the products from the comparison
matrix by clicking the remove button. At that point I had only one
product in the comparison matrix, which obviously doesn't do me any
good. The site was smart enough to mention this and told me "You have
only one item in your compare basket, please add more items to compare
them side by side." The problem was it didn't then give me any way to
add products to the matrix without going through the whole process
again. Perhaps it could have briefly listed the products in the list
I first selected from. But that's a minor point, since most people
aren't too likely to remove all but one product I don't suppose.
Since I couldn't order from the comparison matrix I went back to the
original list of products that matched my query in the wizard. I
added the product to my cart and it was easy to choose to order 50.
That worked fine, though I would have liked the total to be a bit more
prominent, even if it was just in bold. A larger font and prominent
color would probably be a good idea.
I was a bit mystified by the "you saved $xxxx by saving from
Headsets.com" though. How was I saving that much? Was it savings off
the MSRP, savings compared to other sites, or savings because I'm
ordering so many? I figured it's probably savings off MSRP, but it
should probably say that if that's the case.
The last comment about the order page again relates to making the most
important thing on the page more prominent. In this case the thing
you want to emphasize is the Checkout button, right? Presumably you
want to walk people through this process as easily as possible. So
why is the checkout button the same size, shape, and color as all the
others? If it was green I'd be drawn to it faster.
So at this point I clicked checkout. I entered in my information, and
then thought that maybe I didn't want regular shipping service at all,
but instead wanted 2 day air, so I selected it. Well, that was a
mistake, because sure, it updated the prices, but it also erased
everything in the boxes I'd just filled in. Annoying. If you can't
fix that by changes to the javascript programming (and even if you
can), you might want to set the page up a little differently with a
step-by-step sort of process. Step 1: Select your shipping option.
Step 2: Enter your shipping information. Step 3: Enter your billing
information. Step 4: Place your order.
I entered my information again and clicked the order button. My order
was placed. Now, I wonder if maybe it would be sensible to have an
information confirmation page that displays the information the user
typed in, just so they can see if they maybe made a mistake. This
could be a complete review of the order. I think Amazon does this,
and it's a nice touch because then everything about your order is
shown on the same screen before you give the final go ahead to spend
your money.
The confirmation screen nicely summarized my order, but here again the
vital information should be more prominent. In this case it's the
confirmation number. Presumably you want people to write this down so
that if they call you you've got something to punch in to your system
to track the order. Make the confirmation number big and bright, and
remind the customer to write it down. I'd also like information about
how I can contact you with any questions I might have about my order.
An email address or a phone number should be prominent here.
After the order I got my confirmation email very quickly. The email
could use a little work I thought, though the key information was
there. First, I wonder if you might consider an HTML email. It has
the advantage of looking more professional if done properly. Even if
you don't want to use HTML messages, you might want to touch up the
message text. For example, your message starts out as:
You've just ordered from Headsets.com! Below we've listed the details of your
order.
Please call us if you need any assistance with your new headset. Our toll free
number is 1 800-450-7686. We hope you come to love headsets just as much as we
do.
Presumably, since I just spent seven thousands dollars on my fifty
headsets I already know that I ordered from Headsets.com. Perhaps the
message could start with a thank you, and maybe include my
confirmation number right there. The second paragraph could also use
fixing, even if it's just the format of the phone number. I've never
seen a phone number written like that and it just strikes me as a
typo. And though you may hope that I come to love headsets, why are
you telling me here? I don't find that it really fits with the other
sentences. Finally, why is your address and other contact information
listed before my order information? What's more important to me,
where it's coming from or what I just purchased? I would consider
something along these lines:
-------
Thank you for placing your order with Headsets.com! Your order
confirmation number is #CF72947.
If you have any questions about your order, please call us at 1 (800)
450-7686. We're available to help you from Monday to Friday 7am - 4pm
PST.
Your order details are listed below:
50 x (#3333) Noise cancelling headset
@ $159 ea
subtotal: $7997.50
Shipping: UPS 2 Day air @ $303.00
Total: $8301.00
Shipped to:
Valued Customer
Address
Payment details:
Card type: VISA
We appreciate your business. Thank you for ordering from Headsets.com.
Headsets.com, Inc.
One Daniel Burnham Ct, #310c
San Francisco, CA 94109
Phone: (800) 450-7686
Fax: (800) 457-0467
Email: info@headsets.com
-------
I don't know how important the confirmation number really is to you,
but if it's something you actually want the customer to take note of
you might want to mention it in the subject of the email. Instead of
the subject "Your Headsets.com order" you could send "Headsets.com
order confirmation #CF77231"
These aren't major flaws, I'm just trying to point out everything that
you might want to look at.
From the standpoint of trustworthiness, I never felt uncomfortable
with the site. I liked that you reinforced your money back guarantee
and free return shipping with the graphic boxes on every page.
The menu system in the top banner works well and is easy to use. I
would maybe think about placing the shop by brand, other products,
conference phones, and other similar links all in one place. Maybe
those could go in the left banner which could become more of a product
navigational banner. Right now it has the catalog, live help, the
product wizard, and the 'other products'. It seems like they were all
dumped there for lack of a better place to put them. Take a look at,
for example, the site http://www.ncix.com and see how they're using
their left banner. Product links at the side, navigational links at
the top. It's a bit more intuitive.
So, in summary, the main things both pro and con:
Pro:
- easy to use, the menus are generally simple and helpful
- the product wizard is a great tool once you find it
- product comparison matrix is easy and useful
- site design is professional and reassuring
Con:
- text is small for people with poor eyesight
- the most important features aren't emphasized enough, especially the
product wizard, the ordering buttons, and the instant credit (a very
appealing feature that I only noticed after being on the site for
several minutes)
- the product matrix is great until you try to order something from it
and it spits out an error
- the order process doesn't let me review my order before finally agreeing
- the confirmation email is cluttered and doesn't flow exceptionally well
I hope this give you enough feedback to work with. Unfortunately the
way the Google Answers system work you won't get any other answers for
this question, so if you want further opinions you'll have to ask your
question again. If you want any further detail about the points I've
made though, you can request a clarification for this answer.
Good luck with the business,
Hibiscus |
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