New Site www.spotajavacoffee.com for review

StePPer · #1 (**permalink**) 05-03-2004, 09:36 PM

I'd like to get some input on the content of the site, see sig. The site is a template, so the form and function can't be changed. What can be changed is the content. What I'd like you to focus on is, is there enough info to lead a visitor to make a purchase? And is there any compelling reason for the visitor to make a purchase or not? If not, why not, and what can be added to the current content to give a visitor a reason to make a purchase?

TIA

~~Stepper~~

Dcrux · #2 (**permalink**) 05-03-2004, 11:35 PM

The site has a lot of coffee choices. What users need is proper choice managment. People want to be shielded from the complexity. This site throws people in figuring they'll sink or swim.

Check out Peet's Coffee selection system.

Coffee is almost like wine, at least some have drawn that parallel. Check out Best Cellars catagorization system. An attribute map, but I still like it better than most. The reason is they don't use the classification of experts, but of casual users who don't know wine.

The coffee site has to make a lot of unknowns accessible to buyers. Dumping a laundry list of a zillion more choices to the choice saturated is not the best idea. Popular opinion has it more choice is good; if the competition offers 600 choices, we'll offer 1,600. Thowing choices at users isn't the way. Helping them navigate those choices with tools they can find meaningful is.

chartsky · #3 (**permalink**) 05-04-2004, 12:14 AM

"Yes, now you too can fulfill A Fantasy…Be Recognized As an Authority…or even…Satisfy Your Secret Ambition!...."
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LOL.... yup... and for $6.95, anybody can buy a domain, pay a minimal hosting fee.... and offer to be a king-maker these days.... my daughter has a few websites up at 14.... she would have a really good guffaw at the above.... :)

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"The site is a template, so the form and function can't be changed. What can be changed is the content. What I'd like you to focus on is, is there enough info to lead a visitor to make a purchase?
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Of course there is enough info to make a purchase.... it is just very poorly layed out and THAT alone will discourage buyers..

It's usually not the best aesthetic choice to use the main logo typeface for navigation links... it is a little overdone.. If everything is stylized exactly like logo.... there IS no logo.... or no identity = NO TRUST.... (functional limitation)

It looks like a Viking's essay...... LOL

There seems to be no method for navigating back to the homepage... Once a user has clicked off the homepage "master list"..... they're on their own..... most people are not comfortable with modifying their URL to get back to your homepage afer clicking deep into your site, when standard web site navigation techniques dictate providing "back" navigation and "home" links.... Users will get frustrated and leave therefore losing sales due to functionality... (functional limitation)

I would put the product info beside the product image on the actual product pages... you are forcing the user to scroll for absolutely no reason....
(functional limitation)

This template is sub-standard in usability and any and all suggestions in the world on content improvement are very unlikely to increase conversion beyond the current limitations imposed by the lack-luster functionality....

Content is the flea in your cage of problems...

Now.... having said that.... I am sure you will sell some product anyway, despite my diatribe....

Go forth and sell, sell, sell... :)

Cheers,

Chris

StePPer · #4 (**permalink**) 05-04-2004, 07:35 AM

Chris,
I don't remember asking about your daughter...nor do I care about your daughter! That phrase that you quoted, just proved it's worth...off the wall & irrelevent...thank you very much...very poorly laid out...you didn't see fit to expand on your statement...perhaps your wallowing in your diatribe prevented you from offering anything worthwhile to build on...sorta dilutes your diatribe.

Next you mention...again ignoring the main request of the review...not the best aesthetic choice to use the main logo typeface for navigation links...followed immediately by...There seems to be no method for navigating back to the homepage...make up your mind...I'm sure that the Vikings would have little trouble finding their way back home...do you read Viking?

This template is sub-standard in usability and any and all suggestions in the world on content improvement are very unlikely to increase conversion beyond the current limitations imposed by the lack-luster functionality...could this be your excuse for your mindless and pointless malediction...I'm not defending the template, rather looking to better the content despite the template...a point lost on you...get well soon Chris.

Cheers back at ya,

~~S~~

StePPer · #5 (**permalink**) 05-04-2004, 07:42 AM

DCrux,
Points taken. I thought that the navbar would take care of that. I did look at both of the sites that you suggested...peet's site gives the visitor a choice of how to navigate...both via a chart and a list. I have 3 categories of coffee, all of which are listed in the navbar. I had had the affordable flavored coffee page as the homepage. I found that visitors were not exploring the site and exiting from that page without any further page views, thus not even looking at what is being offered. My thought is to offer the visitor an immediate, (impulsive choice) without any distraction. KISS. So the idea of having more page visits via link clicks or a chart, does not seem to be valid for this site, or at least I have discounted that idea ATM. I don't know that for a fact at this point in time, as the site is new. I will build a page to test your suggestion once the current test has run it's course...thank you.

~~S~~

Dcrux · #6 (**permalink**) 05-04-2004, 08:29 AM

Quote:

5 items or 5 orders

Experiment with something like a five item pack for two or three design targets. That would be like decafe drinkers, newbies, intermediates (Coffee house crowd), and the "impress your friends" type.

Note I'm talking about people, not coffee. This means testing, with people. Unless you already have done this step. This way you can do a small experiment. From this you can get some idea where you want to go next.

You may want to check into this idea of a coffee tasting. It seems to me you could build this into a monthly, high value, subscription package. Just don't expect to simply offer the package, you'll have to also try different ways of introducing, pricing, and packaging it.

StePPer · #7 (**permalink**) 05-04-2004, 09:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DCrux

Quote:

5 items or 5 orders

Experiment with something like a five item pack for two or three design targets. That would be like decafe drinkers, newbies, intermediates (Coffee house crowd), and the "impress your friends" type.

Note I'm talking about people, not coffee. This means testing, with people. Unless you already have done this step. This way you can do a small experiment. From this you can get some idea where you want to go next.

You may want to check into this idea of a coffee tasting. It seems to me you could build this into a monthly, high value, subscription package. Just don't expect to simply offer the package, you'll have to also try different ways of introducing, pricing, and packaging it.

DCrux,
Excellent thought...I just added the coffee table last Sat. How long would you suggest I test different ideas in order to get valid results/baselines? Where do you think that I should offer your idea on the site ( note: the affordable flavored coffee page is actually the homepage...that's where the "FAB's" are located )? ATM, what I'm finding is that visitors don't explore the site...less than 2 page views per visitor. This is what I'm currently testing, as well as to find out, if I put the main object/product in front of the visitor first thing, without any explaination, what is the result. This is the impluse buy method...like most large chain stors use at the checkstand.

TIA

~~S~~