Today I received an interesting e-mail that actually had me thinking about shopping even when I didn’t have to.  It wasn’t the subject line that caught me, but rather the big red bow.

I was drawn to the writing beneath the picture saying “How to shop big on a budget” and felt compelled to click.  Now if you knew me, you would know that I am clueless to the term budget when standing in any electronics section of any store. 

What I did think about when reading this e-mail is all those affected by the current status of the market/economy and how Circuit City is trying to help those who have been affected.

Let’s take a look and see.

Click image for a larger view

I can see how Circuit City is trying to help the customer feel like it’s ok to think (and buy) small or so I thought until I actually clicked the link.

What I saw next had me wondering what was Circuit City thinking.

Now I don’t know about you, but I was thinking that I would learn a thing or two about budgeting.  I don’t think that is the case here.  I’m reading this as something that is telling me to go spend $400 on a gaming system (PS3) or Blue-Ray dvd player because, and I quote, “one sensational gift will wow the whole family.”

I guess it all depends on who the gift is really for and what the real intent is behind that gift.  I’d like to think that maybe Circuit City is really trying to help the consumer here.  Sure there are links to other products that don’t cost that much, but no matter how you look at this, the bottom line is get one gift worth lots of money because it will be better for the family.

I know that this is business and they’re trying to make money, but I’m just wondering if they are taking advantage of a situation here by relating today’s economic issues with purchasing big ticket items.  I can’t speak for all families, but if the guess is that people will only be spending around $466, why would you advertise a $400 product?

How did you feel the e-mail and corresponding page compliments the consumer?  Is this something you would agree with?

Your thoughts?

Cheers.

The reason I am calling this out is not because of the new layout of the account area, but rather the simple callout that Amazon makes to let the user know something has changed.

Here is a screenshot of the main account page.  Notice the red circle in the top right corner.

Click image for a larger view

I like the subtle hint that something has been going on with the page and I like it even more that Amazon invites the user to see what’s new.

Now let’s take a look at the subsequent page.

Click image for a lager view

Here you’ll see that Amazon calls out different features that may be important to the user.  They have also requested feedback and give you a link to “Let us know what you think.”  I feel the feedback form is adequate for most, if not all users, with 5 simple questions.

If you don’t like the new Account section, Amazon even gives you a link so that you can even go back and use the previous version of Your Account.  I wonder how long they will keep the link to the previous version up.

So tell me your thoughts.  Do you like Amazon’s new Account section?  What do you think about their preview of what’s been remodeled?

Cheers.

Here are two screenshots to show the different states of displaying this field.

The first image shows the initial state of the form the user sees.

Notice the link for “add another address line” is displayed just below Address 1 field.

The second image shows the form after clicking the “add another address line” link.

Notice that the Address 2 field now appears.

According the the United States Postal Service, “If you can’t fit the suite or apartment number on the same line as the delivery address, put it on the line ABOVE the delivery address, NOT on the line below.”

- http://www.usps.com/businessmail101/addressing/deliveryAddress.htm

I had no idea about this until a colleague responded.  It seemed there were many others that were unaware of this as well.

Why hide the Address 2 field? 

I asked several people if they use the second address line on address forms and received varying responses with the majority saying they use the Address 2 field all the time to enter their apartment number.

At first I thought it might be a clever way of hiding a field that (from my viewpoint) was hardly used. 

If you think about it though, it’s not helpful at all for those who do use it even if it is not used the way it is supposed to be according to the USPS.  The fact is it takes up the same amount of space that the Address 2 form field would have taken up.

Also, it would have been in plain site so that users who normally do use the field would not have to click the link just to make it display.  The fact that the field label is not bold like the other labels help users quickly determine it is not required.

So again I ask, why hide it?  Will users who normally use Address Line 2 know that they are supposed to click a link to add another address line or will they have some confusion and possibly overlook the link?

Here is another sample of an address form. 

Notice here that the Address Line 2 field is visible right away and is explicitly called out as being optional.  Does this make more sense to the user?

Your thoughts? If you had a preference, which one would you choose?

Cheers.

(currently listening to Coldplay - Talk (Junkie XL Remix) on Fusion Radio Chicago)

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.

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)

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.)

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.

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.

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)

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)