Electronic Commerce
Web Site Analysis
E-Commerce: Selling on the Internet
Know why you are on the Web???
E-Commerce: Selling on the Internet
 To make money
 To disseminate information
 To stroke your little ego
Reference: Flanders/Willis; Web Usability Specialists; www.webpagesthatsuck.com
E-Commerce Roadmap
While developing an ECommerce presence, it
is important to know
where you are now as
well as the appropriate
destination for your
business.
.com
Level 5
End-to-end
Fulfillment
 Workflow


Level 4
Integrated
Online orders, payments
 Order tracking, queries
 Funds transfer

Transactional
Level 3
Registration
 Forms
 E-mail

Seamless connectivity
to back-end system(s)
 Minimize/eliminate
manual input on
transactions.
 B2B automated
processes

Level 2
Advertising
 Marketing
 Information
Interactive



Secure transaction processing
Online payment authorization
Authentication and validation

Static
Level 1


No company web site
Can access other sites
No
Capability

Access




Web site connectivity to database
application(s) and email accounts
Web site
Content development & updates
Internet access through ISP
Email accounts
Legend
 - Functions at Level
 - Requirements to achieve next level
Adapted from:www.mepcenters.nist.gov/public/ecommerce-summit.nsf
What do E-Customers Want?
E-Commerce: Selling on the Internet
Reasons Why People Shop the Web . . .
• Easy to place an order - 83%
• Large selection of products - 63%
• Cheaper prices - 63%
• Faster service and delivery - 52%
• Detailed and clear product information - 40%
• No sales pressure - 39%
• Easy payment procedure - 36%
www.useit.com
E-Commerce: Selling on the Internet
Factors driving repeat visits to a Web site . . .
• High quality content - 75%
• Ease of use - 66%
• Minimal download time - 58%
• Updated often - 54%
Reference: Forrester Survey; 1999
E-Commerce: Selling on the Internet
The key is consumer confidence . . .
 Fun and easy to navigate sites
 Pages that appear professional
 Clear and accurate product information
and representation
 Real time answers through self help
features, e-mail, and a toll-free telephone
number
E-Commerce: Selling on the Internet
The key is consumer confidence . . .
 Good prices and clear representation
of all charges
 Payment options
 Secure transactions
 Easy to use return or exchange policy
 Quick processing time and delivery
 Shopper privacy
Navigation
E-Commerce: Selling on the Internet
 Where am I?
 Where have I been?
 Where can I go?
Don’t make me think!!!
E-Commerce: Selling on the Internet
 Navigational Tools
Text, Graphics, Frames
 Location
 Consistency
3 clicks
and you’re out!
Professional
Pages
E-Commerce: Selling on the Internet
“People want to do business with
people they believe to be professional.”
Reference: Flanders/Willis; Web Usability Specialists; www.webpagesthatsuck.com
Product
Information
www.thomasville.com
Customer
Assistance
E-Commerce: Selling on the Internet
Contact Us:
 E-mail
 Telephone number
 Fax
Ordering
Process
Payment
Options
E-Commerce: Selling on the Internet
 Snail Mail
 Telephone
 Fax
 Intermediary
 Online Processing
Secure
Transactions
Shopper
Privacy
E-Commerce: Selling on the Internet
Privacy disclosure . . .
 Data gathered
 Use of information
 Disclosure of information
 Protection of information
 Use of cookies and tracking
 Access to account information
 Customer consent
 Customer input - Tell us what you think?
Technical and Design Considerations
E-Commerce: Selling on the Internet
Elements to consider . . .
 Bandwidth
 Browser compatibility
 Color palette
 Continuity
 Frames
 Homepage
E-Commerce: Selling on the Internet
Elements to consider . . .
 User Interface
 Screen compatibility
 Readability
 Text only default
 Accessibility
Bandwidth
E-Commerce: Selling on the Internet
Download time . . .
 1-2 seconds
 < 13 seconds
 > 20
GONE!
E-Commerce: Selling on the Internet
Decrease download time by . . .
 designing for 56k modem
 keeping page sizes <35k
 applying the KISS rule
E-Commerce: Selling on the Internet
“Remove graphic; increase traffic.
It’s that simple.”
Reference: Dr. Jakob Nielsen; Web Usability Specialist; www.useit.com
Browser
Compatibility
NETSCAPE
EXPLORER
NETSCAPE
EXPLORER
E-Commerce: Selling on the Internet
Browser Testing - view your site in
as many browsers as possible:
 Netscape
 Explorer
 AOL
 Web TV
 Lynx
Color Palette
E-Commerce: Selling on the Internet
Color Considerations . . .
 Artistic
 Cultural
 Sales
 Technical
Continuity
Frames
E-Commerce: Selling on the Internet
Frames . . .
 Browsers don’t like them
 Printers don’t like them
 Search engines don’t like them
 People/customers don’t like them
FRAMES
Home Page
User
Interface
E-Commerce: Selling on the Internet
How are your customers accessing your site?
 Desktop
 Laptop
 Hand-held
 Web TV
E-Commerce: Selling on the Internet
How are your customers accessing your site?
 PC
 Mac
E-Commerce: Selling on the Internet
Recommendation . . .
 Specify pages in terms that enable
browsers to optimize the display
for each individual user’s circumstance
Screen
Compatibility
E-Commerce: Selling on the Internet
Recommendation . . .
 Resolution-independent pages
 800x600 pixels (770x430)
E-Commerce: Selling on the Internet
Resolution Testing - look at your site
with monitor set to resolutions:
 640 x 480
 800 x 600
 1024 x 768
 1152 x 864
 1280 x 1024
Readability
How’s this for readability?
E-Commerce: Selling on the Internet
Recommendations . . .
 Good background/text contrast
 Avoid patterned backgrounds
 Easy to read fonts
 Make words count
 Short paragraphs
 Bulleted lists
E-Commerce: Selling on the Internet
www.cedcc.psu.edu/ritter/web-demo/elements.html
E-Commerce: Selling on the Internet
serif
sans-serif
Text Only
Default
Accessibility
E-Commerce: Selling on the Internet
The Law: Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act
[Selectable Image] Bobby Approved Symbol. A friendly
uniformed police officer wearing a helmet displaying the
wheelchair access symbol. Words “Bobby Approved v3.2”
appear to his right. Links to “http://www.cast.org/bobby”.
www.cast.org/bobby
Resource
Designing Web Usability
The Practice of Simplicity
by
Jakob Nielsen
www.useit.com
Resource
Web Pages That Suck
Learn Good Design by Looking at Bad Design
by
V. Flanders & M. Willis
www.webpagesthatsuck.com
Resource
Don’t Make Me Think!
A Common Sense Approach to Web Usability
by
Steve Krug
www.sensible.com
Resource
Business to Consumer E-Commerce:
Selling on the Internet
www.ext.msstate.edu/fce/homebus/ecommerce.html
E-Commerce: Selling on the Internet
The Bottom Line . . .
 Getting customers to come to your site,
 Getting customers to make a purchase
once they get to your site, and
 Getting customers to return to your site and
purchase again, again, and again!
Beth Duncan, Ph.D.
Small Business Specialist
Mississippi State University Extension Service
bethd@ext.msstate.edu
Electronic Commerce
Web Site Analysis