Website Aesthetics and Design

It's interesting to think about website aesthetics and design from the standpoint of a consumer. I know when I am put off by a website either because it doesn't load fast enough or there is just too much clutter, but this assignment really made me think about what it is that draws me into a website. I guess I am a bit of a lazy internet users so I don't go to too many different websites, but when I am information seeking I am always relieved to use a site that is intuitive. 

Apple.com (Positive)

I think that Apple.com has a particularly effective website because it is organized, intuitive, and easy to navigate. It provides a lot of information without being overwhelming, because it anticipates its users needs. The first thing that I noticed about the main webpage is its simplicity. The background is white which I still associate with many apple products and it allows their print which is limited to shades of grey and black to stand out without overshadowing the advertised product. The product that they are promoting at the moment is the ipad Mini and on the front page, it is almost the only thing that shows color. That draws attention to the vibrancy of their product. Another thing that I noticed was that the apple symbol is always present in the top left corner on every page along with its main navigation bar, which stretches across the top of each page. As expected, there is also a search box in the top right corner for those who don’t want to scroll through the site for what they are looking for.

            Apple’s aesthetics speak to a target audience that wants their search for a product to be a similar experience to using an apple product. They want it to organize their goals (to buy an apple product), to have the experience be as easy and intuitive as possible, and to do as little work as possible to achieve what they want. In this case, it means not having to search through a bunch of text or competing images. Apple does this initially by providing their main navigation bar at the top of every screen and then providing images of more specific products directly below. For instance, if I am looking for a Mac, and I click on the Mac icon in the top navigation, it immediately brings me to a page where directly below my mouse are pictures and classifications of the different kinds of Macs offered. If I know what kind of Mac I am looking for, I can navigate to the next level of decision making by clicking there. If not, my eye will naturally wander to the large promotional type of Mac that they show directly below their standard products. Navigating the Apple site makes it easy to learn more about their products and get a feel for what their brand is all about.

Swagelok (Negative)

Swagelok has done a lot of things right on their website, but there are some potential problems that I have identified for users:

1.     1. The scrolling secondary navigation bar, while engaging, is confusing because just as I started trying to read the screen, it would switch! I found my attention drawn to the tiny print below the scrolling part where it gives a dry description of the company, just because the stuff above was so frenetic. This could be improved if placing ones cursor over the scrolling part would cause it to pause or if there were a pause button on it. The problem could also be ameliorated by doing away with the auto scroll all together… the tabs are there. If I am interested I will click on them.

2.   2.  There is simply too much information on the main page. It seems as though they offer at least 3 different ways on the opening page for how to reach their product line (along the top, under quicklinks and tools, in picture advertisements below that, plus a search bar). While this might seem to make the website dummy proof, I felt like I was being spammed from every angle. In the words of “Forgetting Sarah Marshall”, “Do less!”.

3.   3.   Finally, I found the text to be too small and there to be too much of it in relation to their photos. People don’t want to have to work so hard to learn about a company and their services. Perhaps this is more annoying to me because it seems that the website is more geared towards Business to Business interactions and not to the average consumer, but unless I was being paid by a company to research their and competitor’s products, I wouldn’t read that much about it.

Richsoil.com (Permaculture Articles By Paul Wheaton) (Negative)

          From what I can tell, this website is mainly a blog, but it’s not clear to me what its purpose is immediately by looking at the home screen. All I see is a lot of Times New Roman text in paragraph form with titles that make it difficult to understand what the particular blog post is about without reading further. In addition, I don’t like how the navigation bar is on the left side leaving the header of the page to be filled by an advertisement for advertising through Google. In addition, the different “articles” are the first things to be listed down the side and what is really the “main page” or “permaculture articles” is listed midway down the front page. Although the title “permaculture articles” is at the top left corner, it is in the same boring font as the rest of the content and does not function as a link to the main page. It is unclear to me what the purpose of this website is… I think I would have to already know what I was looking for and be linked directly to the page I needed on the site to find anything. The aesthetics are boring with regard to color and font and the images look like the kinds of stock jpegs that come included in a basic Word package.

            To improve this site, the owner needs to seriously rethink what the focus is of their website. It seems that this Paul Wheaton is a source for recommending “experts” on various permaculture activities, but I want to know who he is. He needs to have a page that says who he is, why he is qualified, what the purpose of his site is, and why it is helpful. I also think that a more simplistic and hierarchical navigation panel would be helpful. More authentic and engaging graphics would be helpful and links to social media would perhaps give consumers a hint as to how to absorb the information. For example, if I knew that I could “follow” Mr. Wheaton and that he would tweet links to articles, then I wouldn’t have to search his site for what I want (and don’t want). It would just come to me.

Toyota.com (Positive)

            My first reaction to the front page of this website is positive because it is engaging without being overwhelming. The brand logo is at the anticipated top left hand corner spot and then reaching out to its right is a toolbar that provides a search for a specific vehicle, help to find a dealer, shopping tools, a search bar, and even an option to view the page in Spanish. Something I also like about the front page is the footer which they call “Shop Assist” so I automatically would know where to go if I am in the market for a new car… a clear call to action. The color scheme is simple and the picture of the woman at a desk ready to assist me feels a lot like the experience I would expect to have if I were to walk into one of their dealerships… very personal. The “Explore” feature slightly further down the page is well organized with inviting pictures and unlike the Swagelok site, there isn’t too much text to burden my browsing.