UCD Concepts

Did I get your attention?

Well this e-mail from Peapod sure got mine.  I can’t even begin to tell you how much I want to order from them based off the e-mail they sent me.

Tell me if this is enticing to you.

This has got to be one of the best looking sundaes I have ever seen.  It is seriously making my mouth water it looks so good.

Anyway, what do you think?  Did Peapod hit the nail on the head with this one?  It’s simple, direct and let’s you know when the deal expires so you make no mistake knowing when you need to order by.

Great job Peapod!  I’ll be placing my order now.

Carson Pirie Scott sure has.

I woke up to receive an e-mail with the subject line “It’s Your Birthday This Month! Celebrate with 25% off!”.

Ok, it’s an e-mail from the sender “Carson’s Birthday Wishes”.  Now how nice was that?

This was something completely unexpected and a pleasant surprise.

Now take a look at the page the e-mail links to.

Cool, I have been wanting to buy an iPod Nano and I can use the 10% off right now to buy online. 

Oh wait, no I can’t.  The coupon is not good for Internet orders.  Seriously?  Carson’s just lost a sale.

What’s the point of sending out a coupon to your online subscribers if you are not going to let them use the coupon online?

Let me break down the experience.

1. Yeah, I got a coupon in the e-mail and I was just looking to buy an iPod.
2. Awesome, I get an extra 10% off the price.
3. What, can’t use the coupon online?
4. Ok, I’ll just go to Apple’s website and get one for $20 more, but at least I have the convenience of not having to leave my house to purchase it.
5. I am satsified with my purchase on Apple.com and even got free engraving on my new iPod.

Well, there it is.   That’s how I roll.

I am guessing that Carson’s was just trying to get me in the door (and possibly buy more while I was there), but I just don’t have the time to drive off to find a Carson’s to purchase from.

I realized I still have a warm, fuzzy feeling from Carson’s though.  They went above and beyond by offering me something as personalized as they did and it me me feel good about Carson’s overall.  I hope that they offer me something I can use online in the future though.

Have you been given that personal touch lately?  If not, I hope you do soon.

Cheers.

(currently listening to the sounds of the city from the 30th floor)

I’m back after some web hosting issues, but only long enough to pack up my PC before I move.

The website has been moved to a new server and I tried installing Magento for testing, but the first pass at install did not work.  I will try again tonight and see if I can get it working before I begin packing up the home office.

I have been tracking a few things lately and will have plenty to write about once I get my PC set up at the new place.  If all goes well I will have Internet access Tuesday night.  Keep your fingers crossed.

This should be my view the next time I write a new post … minus the fingertip on the right. (edit - it seems the fingertip disappeared from the picture after I added it to the blog.)

Let’s talk about passwords for a minute.  How many times have you forgotten your password logging into a website or application?  How long before you were able to figure it out?

I have been unable to access the admin area of my blog two days in a row now.  Why, you might ask.

Well, I forgot my password or maybe it was my username.  I’m not really sure which one I forgot first because I thought I had both of them correct.  Error after error and I tried to go the “Forgot your password?” route and that didn’t work either.  I got so confused I just left it alone for a while and left the site.

Now I can’t imagine that I am the only person this happens to so let’s discuss a very important area of the checkout process for online retailers.  You know that point where you leave your shopping cart and begin the process of buying your items?  What do you think happens to those who can’t remember their login credentials? 

You stop the momentum of buying, right?

It’s almost like walking up to the cashier and forgetting your driver’s license when they ask to verify it is your credit card, or maybe it is forgetting your phone number so they can’t pull up the information already stored in the computer system.

How do some retailers resolve this issue?  They offer anonymous checkout.  It might take a little bit longer to complete the checkout process, but you don’t have to go through the hassle of trying to figure out your username or password to purchase.  If you try and fail too many times, your account could very well get locked down.  That’s just one of many reasons why I would advocate the username to actually be the e-mail address.  It is easier to remember and is unique.  I can’t tell you how many times I decided not to register on a site because I couldn’t think of a good username that was not already taken.

Anonymous checkout is great and our usability testing has proven anonymous checkout to be a clear winner over registering if the user has a choice.  Why is that?

Well, it depends on your users.  Security is obviously a contributing factor and some users are afraid to have their information stored online.  Those who preferred anonymous checkout also said that they would consider registering if they were to frequent the site and purchase more often though.

What does this mean for online retailers?

By forcing registration, you increase the likelihood that the sale will not take place.  By offering the flexibility of registered and anonymous checkout, you will give the user the opportunity to proceed through the checkout process anonymously and enter all of their information, and hopefully they will register because they won’t want to fill out their information each time.

So let’s take a look at the different areas registration would be helpful.

Shopping Cart –> Log In

The Log In page would be a great start for the user to register, but you need to be careful not to remove them from the checkout process and you certainly don’t want to lose any items from their cart when they do register.  If a user wants to register, this is the first place they will be looking to register during the checkout process.

Billing Page –> Order Review

Here’s where things get a bit tricky.  Some online retailers have a Billing/Review page, others separate the process of billing from review.  Does it make sense to have it at this point?  Sure, but it will only make sense after the user has entered their billing information so they have finished entering all of the information that will be stored with the user’s account.

Personally, I would prefer to have the user enter their e-mail on the Order Review page if it is separate from the Billing page.  The reason for this is the user will have reviewed the order and will then be ready to purchase so this is the most relative area to ask where they want a confirmation e-mail to go. 

Another thing to keep in mind is how much information you will be requiring the user to enter (aside from their shipping/billing information) to become a registered user.  Will the e-mail address and a password suffice?

I believe those two things are all you need to get the user to register.  You can then use the e-mail address to pre-populate the e-mail address field in the registration component so all the user has left to do is enter the password.

If you throw in the Security Question, you will be forcing the user to have to think about the process of registering and it could put them off a bit or skip the registration altogether. 

Remember, we want this to be seamless within the checkout flow and you can always ask them the security question the next time they visit their profile.  Let’s just get them to go through with the transaction first.

Order Review –> Confirmation

So now we come down to the end of the checkout process and the user placed their order.  We found users are least likely to register on the Confirmation page.  You would think that the user would be happy to do so after filling out all of that information, but nope, all they want is to see that confirmation # and they’re out of there.

So what’s the key to offering registration on the Confirmation page?

Placement and visual treatment.

Keep the registration in close proximity to the confirmation #, and maybe even set the registration component higher in the visual hierarchy so that, as the user scans to see the confirmation #, they will also see the registration component.  By doing this you will be increasing the likelihood that the user will see registration and finish the process.

The key to a quick registration is to pre-populate the e-mail address fields and only ask for the password and be sure to have them re-type the password so that they have a better chance of not putting the wrong password in.

It would be great to share some usability testing results (anonymous of course) to see what others in the field have found regarding Log In & Registration.  If any of you have performed usability studies on this process, please feel free to comment.  After all, that’s why I created this blog.  So that other UE practitioners can learn from each other.

I look at user experience like being a doctor.  It doesn’t matter what team your on, we are here to provide the best user experience we can for the user.  Sure, we may not be performing brain surgery, but we are trying to optimize the processing a brain has to do.

Cheers.

I previously posted about a really cool concept from Intava called Indigo.

Last week I received a comment from Linda Bustos asking a couple questions regarding this concept.  I am happy to say that Intava responded with answers to her questions.

Does Indigo keep track of the store’s inventory?

Yes, Indigo can be integrated with a store’s existing inventory infrastructure, enabling it to intelligently suggest only items that are in stock.

Does it allow you to select other colors and check other store’s stock?

Yes you can select other colors and sizes.  The retailer can also set options that determine whether stock from other stores is shown.  The availability of items at other stores can be displayed on staffers’ handheld devices, enabling them to give shoppers instant, on-the-spot answers to availability questions.

Does it check online stock?

When integrated with a retailer’s existing inventory system, Indigo can report on online stock, as well as stock in other stores.   Ultimately, these features depend on the accuracy and sophistication of a retailer’s inventory system, which can vary from retailer to retailer.

A big thanks goes out to Intava for getting these answers out to the public.

I never really paid attention to the Lightning Deals section in Amazon.com’s Gold Box until tonight.

Check the bottom left corner of the picture above.  Do you see how much time is remaining?  I’ve got 1 hour and 20 minutes to purchase and 60% of the product has already been claimed.  The time remaining is also ticking down as I stare at the page.

Do you feel a sense of urgency while viewing this product?  Is feeling that sense of urgency going to increase the chance you will purchase this item?

Amazon is limiting the amount of time an item is on sale and showing a percentage of stock already claimed.  In turn, Amazon is creating a sense of urgency for the shopper to purchase.

Let’s take a look at the Amazon’s Lightning Deal one hour later.

Hmm.  One hour later and 72% of the items have now been claimed.

Do you feel the anxiety kicking in now?  Time is running out and you can see the timer ticking down.  How does it make you feel?  Do you feel motivated to purchase in any way?  Imagine this was an item you were somewhat interested in and then answer the questions again.

After the deal time expires, Amazon relays how much of the stock was actually claimed.

I like how Amazon takes a more direct approach to the countdown.  Keeping the user updated as to how much time is left and basically how much stock is left of the item.  I think the information helps motivate the user toward making a decision to purchase.

I have a feeling not many people have actually sat on the Lightning Deals page and watched a deal come to a close, so I wanted to give everyone a glimpse at the experience Amazon provides.

Cheers.

(currently listening to MGMT - Kids)

This should be an excellent opportunity to learn more about online conversion, persuasion and customer focus.

Who: Bryan Eisenberg, Holly Buchanan, Jeff Sexton and select members of the FutureNow team.

What: Our most popular seminars return to New York City for this exciting two-day training event. Get first-hand advice from FutureNow’s leading experts in online conversion, persuasion and customer focus.

In order to keep things relaxed and ensure that guests have a chance to get all of their questions answered, class size is limited, so act soon!

Choose one seminar and save. Choose both and save big.

Persuasive Online Copywriting is co-led by two of our most popular writers, Holly Buchanan and Jeff Sexton. Learn how to make the words you use online more persuasive and speak to a variety of segments and customer motivations at the same time. Not only for copywriters, past guests for this class have included C-level execs, marketing directors, entrepreneurs, and others who just want to improve their online communication skills. Packed with practical, real-world examples and “how to” exercises, the focus is on giving you simple-yet-effective techniques that you can implement right away to persuade visitors to take action. (Read more about this workshop.)

• Monday, June 2 | 9 am - 5:30 pm EST
• Only $695 until May 9th ($795 after)

Call to Action, led by Bryan Eisenberg, best-selling author and co-founder of FutureNow, is based on the Eisenberg brothers’ best-selling book, “Call to Action: Secret Formulas to Improve Online Results.” You don’t need to be an expert in web analytics, web design, usability, social media, and search engine optimization to appreciate this seminar. Bryan will show you how Persuasion Architecture makes sense of these disciplines by merging your business goals with the goals of your visitors. If you want to boost online sales and conversion, this one’s for you. (Read more about this eye-opening course.)

• Tuesday, June 3 | 9 am - 5:30 pm EST
• Only $795 until May 9th ($895 after)

As an added bonus, Bryan will discuss themes from his forthcoming book, Always Be Testing.

When: June 2-3, 2008

Where: New York’s Hotel Pennsylvania | 401 Seventh Avenue at 33rd St. | New York, NY 10001

Why: Because you know that in order to get results like these, the words you use, how your website is structured, and knowing what to test is what makes all the difference. Besides, New York in June is a beautiful thing.

Early Bird Discount: Register here by May 9th to receive $100 off admission for each single seminar or $300 off when you register for both!

Group Discount: Want two or more of your staff to attend? No problem. Just register everyone at the same time and save $50 per additional person when you register.

What a great opportunity for all of those who will be able to attend.  The closest I am going to be able to get is reading the Call to Action: Secret Formulas to Improve Online Results book.  Not that I’m complaining because the book is outstanding so far.

If you do make it, please let me know how it went.  I would be very interested in people’s feedback and maybe I will be able to make it to the next series of seminars.

Cheers.

(currently listening to Bloc Party - Flux)

Well, my web hosting company Hostway is nice enough to move my site to a new web server.  I have been a happy customer since 1999.  Only once did I ever have a problem and it was fixed within 24 hours.  I have found them to be reliable and always willing to help. 

The reason I requested to move to a new server is so that I can test an e-commerce platform I ran across called Magento.  Some of you may already be familiar with Magento, but for those that aren’t, it is a highly customizable open source e-commerce platform.  I’ve seen some screenshots and played with the online demo and was quite impressed that I had to test it out myself. 

I spend my days designing user experiences for a large online retailer and there are times when I want to plan out processes from beginning to end and I am hoping this platform will allow me the creativity to do just that and help me become better at what I do.  Now I don’t have a real store or real products to sell, so this solution works best for me to test on since it is FREE.

If any of you have any experience with this platform, please leave me a comment and let me know what you think.

Cheers.

(currently listening to Los Campesinos - You! Me! Dancing!)

I received my first cart remarketing e-mail from Circuit City recently and was pleasantly surprised.

Well, how often does your shopping cart take the time to contact you while you’re offline?  I subscribe to a few retailers and register at those I purchase from.  Sometimes I am forced to register and sometimes I am not.  Either way, none of the retailers have actually gotten my attention as much as Circuit City has this past week.

Sure enough, I open my e-mail to find the words, “Having trouble deciding? We can help.”  Now, granted, I don’t recall looking at the Polaroid 32″ LCD HDTV, but I must have if it is displaying there.  I do recall the rest of the items though and that led me to believe, even more, that I must have looked at the 32″ television.

So have you received a friendly e-mail like this from one of your retailers? If not, expect to in the near future.

Cart remarketing is a great tool for increasing conversion, but there is a fine line between building the customer relationship and being annoying.  At first I had to ask myself whether I was feeling violated that Circuit City was keeping track of the items I viewed or if I was happy they took the extra step of contacting me so I wouldn’t forget about the items I viewed.

Here is how I really feel.  I’m not ecstatic that these items were added to my cart, but I understand that it is one step less for me to perform if I wanted to purchase any of those items.  Maybe they should have added the items to my Wish List so that I could then choose when I wanted to purchase instead of being forced to make a decision the next time I visit my shopping cart.

If you don’t know about Circuit City’s Wish List, I reviewed the functionality in a previous post.  I have grown fonder of their Wish List functionality since I last reviewed and think it is the perfect choice for storing items I may want to purchase in the future.

Aside from this e-mail, I expect to also see remarketing e-mails geared toward items I may have left in my cart or added to my Wish List and then left the site.  The key is knowing when to send these e-mails and to which shoppers. 

I am certainly not an expert on cart remarketing, but you can find some good information out there in From talk to reality: Successful remarketing techniques written by Angel Morales over at DMNews.

Cheers.

I have been researching the subject of virtual/video merchandising lately and came across a really cool concept by a company called Intava.  The company designs and builds dynamic touch screen systems for major retailers throughout the U.S. and is becoming well known for their innovative solutions.

So what does Intava have to do with fitting rooms?  Well, they have designed a concept called Intava Indigo for apparel retailers.  I have attached four screenshots and their descriptions to explain the process.

Intava Indigo equips apparel store fitting rooms with a digital touch-screen system that connects customers to staff roaming the retail floor. Shoppers beam requests for different sizes and colors to roaming sales associates equipped with wireless devices. Customers get help without leaving the fitting room. Sales associates can serve more customers and make more sales without breaking stride. Intava Indigo also suggest-sells logical additional items and accessories to the customer.

Indigo eliminates the shuttling between fitting rooms and garment racks on the retail floor. When a customer in the fitting room selects another size, the message is beamed out to a salesperson.

Entering information in the privacy of the fitting room, apparel shoppers using Indigo can request different sizes with honesty.

Indigo is designed to increase items purchased per store visit by automatically suggest-selling complementary goods.

After reading this, I became a big fan of the concept.  I don’t shop for clothes as much as some people, but I have been caught in the fitting room with the wrong size one to many times, that this type of system would have become my best friend in minutes.  The experience alone is something to think about and really gives the consumer a better shopping experience overall.

Another added benefit is the suggested selling opportunities it could bring to retailers.  Tie something like this in with your product recommendation system and you could have a handful of choices without ever stepping out of the fitting room.  All you would have to do is touch the screen and let the sales associate do the rest.

So the next time you are out shopping, think about how something like this might benefit you and maybe even suggest it to the store manager.  You never know, they might be in the market for something like this.

If you liked this post or maybe have some questions, let me know about it.  Maybe I could contact a representative of the company for a small interview.

Cheers.