Evaluating the design of four high street retail fashion sites
www.urbanoutfitters.com www.topshop.com www.riverisland.com www.allsaints.com
Page 1- Front Cover Page 2- Contents Page Page 3- Message from the editors Page 4- Urban Outfitters Introduction Page 5- Topshop Introduction Page 6- River Island Introduction Page 7- All Saints Page 8- Primary Research- Focus Group Analysis Page 9- Quotes from Focus Group Page 10- Questionnaire Analysis Page 11- Questionnaire Analysis Page 12- Questionnaire Analysis Page 13- Questionnaire Analysis Page 14- Market Share Page 15- Market Share Page 16- Objectives of web design Page 17- Online value proposition Page 18- Online value proposition Page 19- Online value proposition Page 20- Online value proposition Page 21- Customer Orientation- Audience segmentation Page 22- Customer Orientation- Audience segmentation Page 23- Customer Orientation- Audience segmentation Page 24- Customer Orientation- Audience segmentation Page 25- Customer Orientation- Audience segmentation Page 26- Customer Orientation- Audience segmentation Page 27- Customer Orientation- Audience segmentation Page 28- Customer Orientation Page 29- Dynamic design and personalisation Page 30- Aesethics Page 31-Aesethics Page 32-Page design Page 33-Page design Page 34- Page design Page 35- Page design Page 36- Navigation and Structure Page 37-Navigation and Structure Page 38-Navigation and Structure Page 39-Navigation and Structure Page 40-Navigation and Structure Page 41- Navigation and Structure Page 42- Interaction Page 43-Interaction Page 44- Interaction Page 45- Interaction Page 46- Interaction Page 47-Interaction Page 48-Conclusion Page 49- Referencing
Add screen shots of a few teaser pages
About us We are a group of three advertising and digital marketing students at Buckinghamshire new university. We have been working together on this project about website design. We have create our own agency, OWL.
The Websites The chosen websites were selected based upon our common interest in high street fashion and the on-
About the report The main aim of this report is to analyse, compare and review the websites of four chosen companies in the category of retail and fashion. Our main objective is to analyse online marketing and traffic building. The four websites selected are:
going competition between popular high street retail. We also have keen interest and general knowledge within the companies.
www.urbanoutfitters.uk www.topshop.com www.riverisland.com www.allsaints.com
Marketing and Business Objectives
Urban Outfitters is a American public company which was first established in 1972. There are 5 brands within the company and over 400 retail locations. Urban outfitters are known for catering to 'hipster' culture and fashion, which integrates an influence from past decades. They seek to create a 'differential shopping experience, which creates an emotional bond with the 1830 year old target customer'. Urban Outfitters' goal is to offer a variety of products and create an environment so distinctive that the customer feels connection with the brand and this lures them into buying.
The company's mission is to 'help our customers express and their individuality and connect with their interests, needs, passions and each other'. The way they achieve this is by creating 'experiential retail environments'. They embrace music, fashion, art, architecture, design and technology into their business to influence people’s individualistic approach to life. The company has grown to manage three distinct brands providing fashion essentials for diverse customers; Urban Outfitters, Anthropologie and Free People.
Marketing and Business Objectives
Topshop History Topshop was first established in 1964. It is a multi-national retailer specializing in fashion clothing, shoes, make up and accessories. They own a number of popular retail outlets including, Dorothy Perkins and Miss Selfridge.
Topshop is a British 'multi-national' retailer which specialized in fashion, clothing, makeup and accessories. They reflect a reputation for becoming a high street phenomenon. They have earned celebrity endorsement through their popularity with high street shoppers, and celebrities from designers and models have helped boost brand popularity.
Celebrity Endorsement Pop sensations Rita Ora and Rihanna have both modelled Topshop clothing. Other celebrity customers such as Kate Moss underline Topshop’s reputation as a ‘fashion heaven’. The company is committed to building long lasting relationships with customers, employees and suppliers. Topshop have a value to, 'strive for integrity, dialogue, transparency, excellence and innovation. The company intend to keep up their brand reputation and continue supplying their target audience with the latest up to date fashion. Company Objectives Their main objective is to supply products efficiently to the target market and offer top customer service skills.
www.topshop.com
Marketing and Business Objectives
River island is a family owned high street fashion brand. It was first established in 1982 and has over 300 stores worldwide selling women's, men's and children's clothing, footwear and accessories. The River Island mission statement is luring customers into their brand reputation and encouraging them to buy by distinguishing themselves and highlighting their customer service strategies. 'At River Island we try really hard to bring new and original fashion to you, with design at the heart of absolutely everything we do.
Almost everything is designed in-house and with one of the largest design teams on the High Street, this means we can have fabulous new fashion arriving in-store and online every week'. River islands key objectives are to build awareness and raise their profile. To target their audience, they tend to use online media platforms, and social media sites. This then generates website traffic ad build brand reputation. Another main objective is profit maximisation; to make as much money as they can as a business. The business is also trying to increase grow and market share within the business, which means they may have to accept lower profits as the cost will be higher, however the company use other ways to lure in their target audience. Celebrity endorsement, such as the 'Rihanna range' at River Island boosted sales and therefore this is their highest element within the store.
www.riverisland.com
Marketing and Business Objectives
All Saints is a British fashion retail company which was first founded in 1994. They sell menswear, womenswear, footwear and accessories in around 35 stores and 65 stand alone stores worldwide. All Saints sell menswear, womenswear, footwear and accessories in 35 department stores and 65 stand-alone stores across the UK, Europe, Canada and the USA. All Saints is known for offering, 'sharp edge' directional clothing. The colours consist mainly of blacks, browns, whites and greys. The clothing has been described as 'British chic rock'n'roll', 'a romantically pre-ages look that evokes past and post apocalyptic future. The customers are known to enjoy the atmosphere in the store, and All Saints keep a running theme, which is exposed brick, weathered wood and metal which is the same grunge theme as their clothing. The company have adopted a unique approach to their marketing, retail and online strategy. Their mission statement is, 'to create a brand that blends music and fashion into a potent formula of desirable clothing that expresses individuality and attitude'. They keep a certain theme to target their audience and specify themselves easily to their consumers.
www.allsaints.com
Focus Group Analysis
We decided to conduct a focus group with two groups of audiences; the first group was young girls aged 15-19 and the second group ranged from 40-46 year old ladies.
Our aim was to find out the way the two opposite audience interact with our chosen online retail websites. We also wanted to know which site they preferred and why. The 5 chosen younger audience members found it easy to navigate across the websites and found it easy accessible. They knew how to access different factors on the website and thoroughly enjoyed the interaction. We also asked them if they received updates from these particular websites and 3 out of the 5 of them received newsletters and emails from Topshop, Urban Outfitters and River Island.
Two of the group member’s preferred Topshop over all 4 sites due to the up to date trends and promotions. They also thought the website structure was easy and looked sophisticated. The other two of the group members preferred Urban Outfitters as they preferred the ‘edgy’ and ‘hipster’ style as well as up to date with the latest trends. They also found that they receive good student deals and this matched their demographic. The website was easy to use and they could find what they were looking for with barely any clicking. The final member of the group preferred River Island as she enjoyed the layout of the website and found it easy to access what she was refining her search to.
On the other hand, the second group of 5 aged 40-46 found it harder to access and navigate across the website. It was confusing and there was too much content on the page for them. They were slow with their reactions and spent a long time on each of the sites. The All Saints was a favourite from the entire group due to its high class look and simple structure with everything located in one area making it easier for them to access the website.
Older Age • “All Saints is simple for someone with a simple knowledge of technology, suits me perfectly!” • “There is too much content on Urban Outfitters, the front page is really loud and confuses me of where to go first” • “All I seem to be doing is clicking and I don’t really understand where I’m going” • Younger Age • “It’s so easy to get to where I want to go; I’m used to this layout on a lot of the sites I shop on” • “It’s like a natural reflex; I know exactly where to go or what to do on the sites” • “All Saints is a bit too simple and high class for my liking. I like a website that shouts at me, like Urban Outfitters, it’s appearance sums up the target audience”
Q1. Are you Male or Female? Male Female
41% 59%
A total of 100 participants took part in the primary research. To ensure non biased results, both male and female respondents were asked to complete the questionnaire. As shown above, the majority are women. Secondary Research (Mintel Studies) shows that female markets tend to shop online more so than men. (as confirmed above).
2. Which age category below includes your 55-64 45-54
Which age category below includes your age?
35-44 25-34 18-24 Under 17 0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
As shown in the second pie chart, the majority of respondents were aged 18-24, age? closely followed by 25-34 and under 17. Online shopping can be more common with consumers of these age ranges as they tend to have accurate skills within technology and a disposable income. The importance of keeping up with the latest fashion trends is also likely to be much more appropriate for the desires of customers around these ages.
Q3. What is your current employment status? 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% Employee Full Time (30+ hours per week)
Q3. What is your current employment status?
The bar chart above shows the majority of respondents work fulltime, part-time and full time education. Online shopping is much more common with people within these employment status’ as they have a higher income (wages, student loans for example) to purchase clothes and other accessories through online retailers.
you browse/shop for clothes/accessories ONLINE? Q5. How often do you browse/shop for clothes/access Never
Every 5/6 months Every 3/4 months Every 1/2 months Weekly Daily
Never
Every 5/6 months
Every 3/4 months
Every 1/2 months
Weekly
Daily
Q4 and Q5 pie charts suggest that browsing/shopping for clothes/accessories ONLINE is far more common amongst the respondents then IN STORE. As explained earlier, many recent reports and case studies prove that online shopping is becoming increasingly popular. The primary research reinforces this. Many people find online shopping much more convenient, easier and quicker to do than physically shopping in store. Customers are also able to shop for clothing through online retail websites through the comfort of their own company and home, so its no wonder that online shopping has become more common amongst customers than instore recently. However, there is always room for growth so the popularity of shopping via online websites and mobile is to rise over the next five years.
Also, Outfitters) 17% answered they f these best describes how ofte you visit the follow ing w ebsites? (Urban Ne ver Once e very 3 months Once e very month
“never� visit the All Saints website- this could mean that All Saints is unpopular with some customers and/or the target market prefer to shop in the All Saints STORE rather than online.
these best describes how often you visit the following websites (Topshop) Never Once every 3 months Once every month Few times a month Once a week Few times a week Daily
The results from the pie charts shown here have revealed that the majority of respondents visit Urban Outfitters the most often followed by River Island, closely followed by Topshop and All Saints.
The justification for these answers could be for many ese best describes how often you visit the following websites (River Island) reasons as all websites offer different price ranges, Never clothing styles, trends, Once every 3 departments etc. months 11% also stated they visit Once every month Urban Outfitters on a daily Few times a month Once a we ek basis whereas only 3% visit Few times a wee k the Topshop daily and 2% Daily River Island. Urban new content hese best describes how often you visit the followingOutfitters websitesadd (All Saints) to their website almost every day so consumers ae much more likely to visit the Never website daily than any other Once ever 3 months Once every month
How would you rate the following websites on the ease of use, design and customer support? (For example; 1= excellent, 3 = Average, 5 = Very Poor.)
Urban Outfitters – Ease of Urban Outfitters – Design Urban Outfittersuse? (colour, fonts, images etc) Customer Online Support? (help and contact info). Topshop- Ease of use?
Topshop-Design?
Topshop-Customer Online Support?
River Island- Ease of use?
River Island-Design?
River Island- Customer Online Support?
All Saints- Ease of use?
All Saints- Design?
All Saints- Customer Online Support?
The final question of the survey was quite complex compared to the others on both parties (the respondents and OWL Media Agency) as it was a rating scale based question. The average ratings were calculated for each question to gain a better understand of how the majority voted. Ease of Use Average Results Urban Outfitters: 3 Topshop: 2 River Island 2 All Saints 4 Design Average Results Urban Outfitters 3 Topshop 2 River Island 2 All Saints 1.5 Customer Online Support Average Reseults Urban Outfitters 3 Topshop 3 River Island 2 All Saints 1 As show, respondents found the ease od use best with River Island and Topshop. This may be because River Island and Topshop’s layout is fairly simple where all links can be found easily. Some may find Urban Outfitters website to be slightly cluttered and messy and so are unable to find what they may be looking for with as much ease with River Island and Topshop. However, the majority of respondents found All Saints design to be ‘modern and classy’. Urban Outfitters website uses lots of colourful images, graphics, fonts etc. Although the layout of All Saints is very simple, the use of imagery is fairly good and attractive. Finally those who answered the questionnaire felt All Saints customer service to be ‘excellent’ and they are known for their websites 24 hour Customer Service, with extremely quick response rate. Urban Outfitters, River Island and Topshop response rate and help in contact areas of the site are not always as helpful as All Saints, so these could be some reasons for the results shown.
In the graph above you can see that in the past five years, online retail purchasing has started to deteriorate. In order to try and increase sales, UK retailers are having to adapt to the accelerating technological developments. In order to progress technologically, mobile would be the next step forward. Go mobile Foreign growth is a core part of many UK retailer’s strategies, therefore keeping on top of accelerated technological developments is vital. The use of mobile technology is accelerating at a faster pace than the initial growth of online shopping. Newton-Jones says, and investment in the medium is crucial. “Mobile is going to be bigger than anything we’ve seen so far to date,” he says. “It’s growing at such a pace, faster than the internet in the early days. There’s a whole generation who are skipping the need to use a PC and go straight to tablet and smartphones. In certain countries you see generations who don’t even bother with the PC.” The importance of mobile is evident, 27% of Shop Direct’s traffic came from mobile devices during the week beginning May 21 and the retailer is expecting to generate half of its turnover from mobile within three years. “The reality is it will build and build. There’s no option but to go with the tide – you can’t swim against it. If that’s the way consumers want to shop you need to be there.” It’s not just all about transactional mobile sites either. Burberry, for instance, provides one of the best examples of how to use different kinds of digital technology. Whether it’s streaming catwalk shows or using iPads in-store, fashion retailers have often been at the forefront of the use of new gadgets. The problem for bricks-and-mortar retailers is that it is difficult to justify investing a large amount in new technologies if they only generate a fraction of sales now. Newton-Jones says: “The difficulty for them of course is that while it’s still a very small part of their turnover it is difficult to put enough investment into the technology to grow that part of the business.” However, the most innovative of store retailers will work on integrating the separate channels to provide services that retailers cannot, such as personalized offers on a mobile while a customer shops in store. The fashion sector has produced some innovative retailers over the past 20 years. With the development of digital platforms continuing apace, the rate of change is likely to be just as fast.
How we help customers: Design priorities do vary. For example some sites focus on service, other sites focus on sales, whereby other factors such as coupons and offers and leading-edge technologies were insignificant in comparison. Objective of Website design: The Primary aim of a company website is to full the business objectives set out by the company itself. Creating a great user experience is a mean to this end. A good user experience will make customers look favourably on the website and take actions that will generate the returns that a company wants. Satisfied users also provide many other benefits: they are considerably more likely to recommend your services becoming brand advocates and they are more patient when things occasionally go wrong. Enthusiastic users can also become valuble volunteers sharing ideas about how website and products can be improved being more valuable that focus groups. There are 3 main business objectives a company can fulfill through a website: Customer Rentention: keep customers through user generate and personalized content, emails and offers. Customer Acquistion: converting vistors into customers on site. Customer: Extension: selling other products and services to the same customer. Design Priorites The business objectives behind a website define the priorities of web design. 3 different types of website can be defined on the base of their objectives: Transactional e-commerce website: the main business contribution of the site is through sale of products and services. Service-oriented Relaionship-Building website: Provides information to stimulate purchase and build relationshops. Generates enquires or leads from potential customers. Brand-building website: provides and experience to support the brand.
Website Goals Business objectives determine the goals of a site from the company perspective but the customer point of view must be considered to determine the function and content of a website. So what is the purpose of a website from customers perspective? How can a website help its customers? In order to help customers use the website, the 5s’ need to be incorporated. Guidance in purchasing something the customer needs - Sell Easily accessible information - Serve Deals and postage deals to save money - Save Enables customers to talk to the organization easily – Speak Help them to enjoy a great web experience with fun design and decoration-Sizzle The four sites analyzed can be defined as service-orientated/relationship-building websites as they provide a considerable amount of information and they offer the possibility to join huge communities of people sharing the same interest about fashion and accessories. On the other hand, each website shows clear different features: Topshop, All Saints and River Island are focused on customers’ experience, Whereas Urban Outfitters are focused on e-commerce providing a wide range of products and lower prices. Serve: all the four sites try to provide a great web experience and seek customer satisfaction therefore they help them find information and keep them up to date through articles, news and blogs, as well pages on the most used social networks, newslatters and feeds. (show topshop and all saints social bar).
Sell: Again all four sites provide satisfying online web community, Topshop, River Island and All Saints provide a variety of product services including gift ideas for “him and her”; whereas Urban Outfitters emphasizes there current percentage off there products. Speak: All Saints shows there high online customer community where customers and visitors are able to ask questions and receive feedback daily, with there 24/7 customer service. Whereas the other 3 sites emphasize on social media contact, including, comments, experience pictures and competitions.
Having well content and usability are essential to make a good website, but that alone is not enough. By only conveying a companies’ existing proposition to the online audience does not work. Online media has unique positive assets, such as immediacy, interactivity and depth of content; these are mostly restricted due to imagination and resources. Taking advantage of these features, gives websites a higher chance at attracting customers. If a website is able to give a visitor a unique experience, this can be summarized in the online value proposition (OVP). An OVP is a clear and strong proposition that differentiate a website from others. The benefits of having OVP are: -It helps to distinguish a website from its competitors -It helps provide a focus to marketing efforts and enables company staff to be clear about the purpose of the site -If the proposition is clear it can be used for PR and wordof-mouth recommendations -It can be linked to the normal product propositions of a company or its product.
URBAN OUTFITTERS
OVP Formulation: OVP’s must be tailored for specific target segment that identify their needs and their behavior evidently. This is usually the first step of customer centric marketing approach. In order to articulate a prosperous OVP, marketers must understand the physiognomies of the Internet and its available online services and how those services are perceived, by the customers using them. OVP is usually based on a online variation of the marketing mix. This includes six elements, the 6C’s. Content: detailed, in-depth information to support the buying process or product usage. Customization: personalization of content, customertailored newsletter, personal recommendations. Community: social networking features and user generated content. Convenience: the opportunity for visitors to select purchase of use products or services at any time. Choice: wide choice of products and suppliers. Cost Reduction: the web is perceived as a low-cost purchasing place therefore prices must be convenient. Good content is a common characteristic among the 4 websites analyzed but each of them shows a prominent feature:
TOPSHOP
Urban Outfitters: Cost Reduction: An example from Urban Outfitters, where they use the main area of the site showing links to the main parts of their proposition, to help support the decision and highlight it with a good ‘hook’, image and large font. It’s often best to use a hybrid container with text and imagery to capture the visitors attention and avoid “banner blindness”. This has the advantage of making the OVP clear site-wide. Here Urban Outfitters show their multichannel ‘20% off’ offer.
River Island: Content: By using the area above or below the nav to emphasize delivery or returns policy. This has the advantage of making the OVP clear site-wide. Here we are able to see River Island’s multichannel ‘Free click and collect’ offer. They also have a panel on the top of the home page which enable visitors to select a language and also monitor their “basket” and valid currency to suit.
RIVER ISLAND
Topshop Community: One of Topshops main proposition is the social media opportunites. Here members and fans can share experiences, comments, pictures and enter competitions. This part of the site is structured as a social media, giving the customers/visitors the opportunity to share their personal shopping experiences, as well as receiving first hand information on offers and updates within the company. The user generate posts are constantly reviewed by the website editors who reply and take note of feedback daily.
All Saints Content: Again by using the area above the navigation bar to emphasize on free delivery on returns and on orders policy and 24/7 customer services. This has the advantage of making the OVP clear, site-wide. Here we are able to see All Saints multichannel offers. They also have a panel on the left side of the home page which enable visitors to select “customer experience”. All Saints has expanded its market offering more than magazines and in store. This is done by, showing a wide choice of products and recommendations through; the pages titled, “The Dress Collection”, “Men’s Coats”, “Women’s Leather Jackets, “Gifts For Her”, “Gifts For Him” and “Men’s Denim Jackets”. Due to these recommendations All Saints are able to offer other gift ideas for both genders and also appropriate clothing items for specific seasons.
ALL SAINTS
Search Engine Marketing Search marketing is the process of gaining traffic and visibility from search engines through both paid and unpaid efforts. The two key elements include: SEO: Search engine optimization PPC: Pay-Per-Click or paid search marketing SEO- (Search engine optimization) Search engine optimization is the process of improving visibility of a website or a webpage in a search engine, such as Google’s, ‘natural’ or ‘unpaid’ search results. The higher rank on the search results page, and the more times a site appears in the search results list, the more visitors it will receive from the search engine audience. There are different types of searches SEO targets; image search, local search, video search and academic search. SEO take into consideration and record how search engines work, what people search for, the actual search terms or keywords typed into search engines and which search engines are preferred by their target audience as an internet marketing strategy. PCC- Pay-Per-Click (Paid search marketing) Paid search marketing, sometimes referred to as CPC (cost-per-click) is the process of gaining tragic by purchasing advertisements on search engines. It is defined simply as ‘the amount spent to get an advertisement clicked’. It is used to assess the cost effectiveness and profitability of internet marketing. Paid search marketing has an advantage over cost per impression in the fact that it tells us something about how effective the advertisement was. By clicking on the advertisement it measures the attention and interest. In expensive ads that few people click on will have a low cost and a high pay per click. Once a certain number of web impressions have been achieved, the quality of the advertisement will affect click through rates and result in the pay per click
GENERAL
The top search traffic and key words for Urban Outfitters
The top search traffic and key words for Topshop
Comparison
The top search traffic and key words for River Island
The top search traffic and key words for All Saints
Comparison
Audience Demographics- Urban Outfitters
Audience Demographics- Topshop
Audience Demographics- River Island
Audience Demographics- All Saints
Comparison
Comparison
Meta Tags: A meta tag is a specific HTML tag used to define meta data on Web pages. The most commonly used meta tages are: • keywords • refresh • author • description Placed in the <head> of an html document, Meta tags. Typically, they are not displayed easily visible to the reader. They are used to provide further information about the page, either for databases and search engines or for the author of the site. This helps to keep a record of the pages. Meta tags are written using the <meta> HTML tag. Function of Meta Tags In order to help search engines understand and conduct a short description of what the website is about, designers create a document called a ‘Meta Data Page’. These, are then used by search engines to place pages in the search directory. The three major types of media data are; the document title tag, the document ‘descriptions; meta tag and the document ‘keywords; meta tag. Title meta tags Significant weighting on key-phrases are placed by search engines, within, is also the ‘call-to-action’ hyperlink on the search engine results page. This contains powerful, relevant copy causing the relative site to receive more clicks; therefore the search engine will increase portion in the natural listings. Description meta tags: Provide a short synopsis of the page, used by search engines. Designers usually put a brief description of the site in this Meta Data section. Keywords Meta Tags Search engines, to make the page easily searchable, use keywords. Words contained in the website that better describe the site itself are put in this section.
The internet allows businesses to create personalised content for their customers. They do this through customer registration, customers must fill out a small questionnaire of their details. Topshop, River Island, Urban Outfitters and Allsaints all have the option to subscribe to their newsletter where customers will receive information on latest trends and discounts. Collaborative filtering is another way these websites personalise their content. These fashion websites give predictions on what a customer may also like when they view another product
Urban outfitters homepage is a little more colourful, it has a pattern as its background but it is not over powering. Their use of colours and the Christmas decoration of their logo makes this website seem friendlier. They also have an eye catching image carousel.
Topshops background colour is white, which makes their image carousel stand out. The colour of their writing is black which makes it stand out from the background. This makes the Topshop home page look simple and easy to use as there are no over powering use of colours. The image carousel grabs attention as it changed through different trends Topshop have to offer at the moment.
River Island has the same white background as Topshop which means you focus more on the content. The page has more options than just the global navigation which makes the homepage look fuller and everything is quite close together. They also have an image carousel to show visually what they have to offer.
All Saints global navigation is on the side, they also donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have an image carousel, this makes their homepage different to the others. The colour scheme is all black and white which makes the homepage look dull, nothing stands out much on the homepage.
URBAN OUTFITTERS
TOPSHOP
RIVER ISLAND
ALL SAINTS
Navigation Every site on the internet has composition and structure, and the audience will base their first impressions towards the websites upon this. The navigation on a website includes the links, buttons and tabs which control the site. The function of navigation is to guide the audience and make it easier for them to understand what they can do and where they can go. The navigation elements on a webpage enable the audience to search further and the more they search the longer they spend on the website building the traffic and brand recognition. Structure A website is structured around the following factors; target audience, what the target audience will be looking for, and what action you want them to take. Before generating the website, the creators should consider what they want to achieve from their audiences visiting their site. This will help them organise their content and encourage visitors to stay on the site for longer. It is also important to take website usability into concern; the site should avoid the audience having to make more than three clicks to arrive on any page of the website from the homepage. If the audience looses focus and is confused by the structure, they are more than likely to leave the website. Another off-putting factor is too many sections, this can confuse the audience and be rather overwhelming. Breaking the content down into further subsections means the audience is able to refine their search easier.
The global navigation on the Urban Outfitters website is just below the header; this makes it easier for the audience to locate and access. The navigation includes the options, 'Womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s, 'Menâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s', 'Sale' etc; this is so that the audience can refine their search and orient them. If the audience hovers over the chosen section another drop down bar will appear. This entitles further searches such as specific clothing areas as well as style tips. The search box located at the top right hand side of the webpage, also known as the Utility navigation is there for viewers to access products through a specific code or key word. Urban Outfitters does not provide the audience with a home button; instead the audience are able to access the homepage by clicking on the main header 'Urban Outfitters', the clicker turns into a hand informing the audience this is another link. This is also another way to engage the audience with the brand identity. The footer navigation, located at the bottom of the Urban Outfitters webpage, it forms links to administrative content such as; help and information, delivery information, privacy etc. The overall structure to the Urban Outfitters website is easy for the target audience to use as everything is easily accessible from the main homepage. The structure of the website is there to satisfy customer needs and what you want the audience to achieve by visiting the site. The easier the navigation on the website, the more likely the audience will stay on the website for longer and shop more.
URBAN OUTFITTERS
Topshop has a sophisticated and classy structure to their website. The main content is located on the centre of the webpage in a linear format making it easily accessible. This content is additional style tips and seasonal offers Topshop are offering that particular week. The audience has the option to scroll through these options willingly as on the website there are arrows to guide the customer through some options available. As well as this content block, there are more links below this such as 'Competitions' and 'Look of the day'. These are not updated as regularly as the content above therefore is placed out in a different structure. The global navigation is located underneath the header in a horizontal format. It includes, 'New in', 'Clothing' 'Sales and Offers' etc, these options are finely refined as when the audience hovers over them a drop down box appears. This then further refines the search, for example for the 'Clothing' drop down, Topshop have allowed viewers to select whether they would like to shop by 'Category', 'Brands', 'Range' and so on. This then helps the audience move around the site easily without having to click on more than 3 links to find what they are looking for. The ‘My Bag’ section is also classed under the utility navigation as it is keeping the audience up to date with what they have bought and how much money they are spending as it adds the basket up as the audience shops. The footer navigation introduces the additional information such as ‘About Topshop’, background into the company, ‘Terms and Conditions’ which could guide the audience on any questions they have about online and offline purchases. The navigation tools on the website are easily accessible as they are necessary for the audience to shop with ease.
TOPSHOP
River Island has a simple structure which makes it easily accessible for the audience. The global navigation is at the top of the page where it usually is on websites as this is easy for the audience to locate. However, there is also another toolbar underneath, which is the primary nagivation. This is additional information, in this case it specific lines which River Island consider popular and that their audience tend to access. Placing it underneath the global navigation makes it easier for the audience to access it. One of the options is ‘Christmas Shop’, this is a seasonal option, and coming up to Christmas people are looking for gifts, therefore River Island have taken this into considersation and have helped people find gifts suitable for them. The footer nagivation is located above the global navigation as well as the bottom of the page. The ‘Cookies and privacy’ option tends to be located on the bottom, however River Island have highlighted this and located it to the top of the page, this could be due to importance and most people will access this if they have any difficulties or queries on the site.
RIVER ISLAND
All Saints has a more elegant structure to the website; everything is placed in one area, instead of the audience having to scroll down the entire the web page, all the options they need are located on the left hand side of the webpage. The vertical structure is neat and has subtitles to help the audience locate what they are looking for. The primary navigation is located at the top of the webpage where the global navigation tends to be; this is any additional information useful to the audience, such as delivery queries. This is a popular request, so placing it at the top of the site raises its importance. The search bar and basket is located on the top right hand side of the site, however, they are only demonstrated as images, there are no words, this is as the audience is already aware of what it is. The footer navigation is located underneath the global navigation on the left hand side, again, making it easier for the audience to scroll less, placing everything in one area.
ALL SAINTS
Comparison Urban Outfitters, Topshop and River Island all have a similar structure and navigation location on their websites, compared to All Saints. The search bar and basket on all 4 websites is located at the top right hand side, this does not change and therefore this is where the audience would automatically assume it is on other websites. The global navigation toolbar which refines the search for the audience for all websites apart from All Saints is located on the top of the WebPages. All Saints however has a continuous theme and keeps its information and links in one section to make it easier for the audience as well as keeping with the high class elegant theme. The webpage automatically stands out from the other websites due to the location of the navigation and this makes the webpage unique. The footer navigation is the additional information located at the bottom of each web page; on the All Saints website the footer navigation is placed last on the vertical list, therefore it still portrays the additional information factor to this. The target age for Urban Outfitters, Topshop and River Island is similar which is why the web pages are so similar. It is easier for that particular age group to navigate across the pages as they are used to that particular structure. However, All Saints is more high class and they show this through their distinctive theme.
Interaction on a webpage allows the audience to ‘get involved’ with different elements on the WebPages. Having a good interaction with the audience makes their shopping experience more interesting. This then means they stay on the site longer and access more things related to the websites such as blogs and social media sites. From this they can then keep updated with the latest news and offers from that company. The audience have control when they are interacting and this can make them feel more engaged. There are several kinds of interactive elements on a webpage; • Mouse clicks • Mouse Rollover • Drop down boxes • Drag and Drop Interaction on a website helps customers by learning (Newsletters, Selection choice), buying (Promotions, ‘Buy Now’, and ‘New in’), and the decisions they make (On the site) and the after sales support (Customer Feedback, FAQ).
On the Urban Outfitters, Topshop and River Island online websites, their global navigation introduces a drop down bar. When the audience hovers over the chosen category, a drop down box appears as shown. This introduces further options for the customers to access. Instead of clicking, this is an easier way to keep the website flowing and easy to use. Creating a drop down box avoids the use of clicking and opening new web pages, it stays on the same page and it generally easily accessible. As there are many options to choose from the drop down toolbar helps tidy up and structure the choices. This makes the overall visual aspect of the webpage neat and controlled. When drop down menus donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t function properly, it becomes confusing for the audience and also people who are using other touch screen devices or other technological devices. The proâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s of a website supplying a website drop down box is that the audience is able to navigate with fewer clicks, the menu can offer various searches refining the search further to suit the audience, retailers can place their most popular categories in this section where it is most visible. However, unlike the other 3 websites, All Saints differs. This is due to the overall main structure of the webpage. Instead of the audience hovering over the global navigation located on the left hand side, they have to click to open a range of options. However, the options are limited and this is an advantage for the website as it does not clutter or looks disorganised. The way the website is structured follows a specific theme.
Learning- Selection; This is where the audience chooses a specific area they want to shop from. By selecting a specific option they can then refine their search further. In this instance the audience can refine their search mainly based around Gender, the main element.
Deciding- Search The audience can filter their options by searching a specific item in the search option. This is a quicker way for the audience to find what they are looking for
Buying- Incentives;
After- Sales Support â&#x20AC;&#x201C; This includes Customer feedback and the returns policy, or any query the customer may have after purchasing their item. The customer feedback helps enhance the website and the general retailer.
These factors are what lure in the audience. The sale category would be the main option, as the audience are always looking for the best cheap offers. Anything from seasonal offers to 1 day promotions can engage the audience.
Learning- Selection
Deciding- Search
Topshop offers options suitable for the female gender only, the searches are more refined and therefore the audience does not need to click too much to find what they are looking for. The selection is the first step the audience takes when searching for a product
Similar to the other sites the search option is there as interaction tools to help the audience quickly find what they are looking for through key words and codes
Buying- Incentives
After- Sales Support –
On the global navigation toolbar, there is an option for Sales and Offers, this could engage the audience as they would be saving money and this gives them a reason to buy. Also, ‘free worldwide shopping’ is another incentive to make the buyer want to shop as the delivery would be free. Another incentive could be the ‘new lines added’, another option the audience could want to buy to keep up with the latest fashion trends.
This can be from Terms and Conditions, the audience may want to find something out about returns policy, for example with Christmas coming up, the policy would be different and the audience can find what they are looking for through these additional information sources.
Learning- Selection
Deciding- Search
Similar to Urban Outfitters, River Island offers their audience to search for their products by refining in terms of Gender and age. This is the first step the customer engages with on the website.
The search box is located just above the Global navigation for the audience to search for a specific item by typing in key words into the box. This could save them time if they know what the product is called as it would appear in the given options from the search
Buying- Incentives From this the audience is able to see the latest offers and promotions; this could influence their buying choice. The 20% off tops is an online only promotion, and this could encourage them to spend more as this offer is not available in store and they would want to make the most of it online. Another word which engages the audience is the word ‘free’, this is why the ‘free click and collect’ is located on the top as it would gain the most attention
After- Sales Support – Various options are placed here to guide the customer on any queries they have after their purchase. The delivery and returns is the main one as when shopping online the terms and conditions differ.
Learning- Selection The audience has as more sophisticated structure to choose their options from. The options are limited as All Saints have a restricted theme and amount of clothing they have on their website. This makes it easier for the audience to find what they are looking for. Again the search mainly refines the customer’s gender and then from there they can shop to suit them.
Deciding- Search This gives the audience an option to quickly find what they are looking for, either by typing in key words or a specific code
After- Sales Support –
Buying- Incentives
The ‘Customer experience’ can help the website creators to solve any faults, or the company in general. The customer can also access options to use after their shopping solving any queries they may have.
The incentive is located at the top of the webpage to catch the most attention. The promotion will lure the audience in as it is money saving offer, and also a seasonal offer. The free delivery and returns options could help online shoppers as it shows they have an advantage by shopping online, again saving them money.
In conclusion, OWL found that the four clothing retailer’s websites all work effectively, they all target their market well and have a large customer base. OWL discovered that the website design that run through TopShop, Urban Outfitters and River Island are all the same, their navigation and site design match. All Saints are the company whose website design is slightly different, but from our research we discovered they have a slightly older target audience and their pricing is more expensive.
From our research we discovered that online fashion retail is a growing market, more and more people are purchasing online and on mobile. Topshop and River Island already have apps where customers can browse and purchase products, therefore All Saints and Urban Outfitters should.
OWL held 2 focus groups to find out what a young generation and an older generation thought of the websites. Young adults found the websites easy to use and some of them are signed up to their newsletters, they liked Urban Outfitters and Topshop the most and AllSaints the least. The older group liked AllSaints the most as it was more targeted for them, they also couldn’t navigate the websites as easily as the young adults can.
Topshop Topshop design is very minimal and simple; OWL think Topshop should put a bit more colour into their website to make it more eye catching. Urban Outfitters OWL think Urban Outfitters has the best website design, its simple while also including colour and eye catching graphics to keep customers interested in the website. Urban Outfitters is also the website visited the most by the responders of our questionnaire. We Recommend they create an app. River Island River Island include colour in their website design. Although OWL found River Islands website design to all be quite close together and everything is in boxes. All Saints All Saints have a different layout to the other online retailer’s website as their navigation is at the side and there theme is slightly different with it being a higher end fashion retailer, the website isn’t as fun as the others.
Brand Republic. (2005). Superbrands case studies: Topshop. Available: http://www.brandrepublic.com/analysis/474559/Superbrands-case-studies-Topshop/?HAYILC=RELATED Cowan, M. (2009). River Island. Available: http://melanie-business.wikispaces.com/River+Island. N/A. (2011). ALL SAINTS â&#x20AC;&#x201C; BRAND PROFILE. Available: http://www.stylelogue.co.uk/fashion/all-saints-brand-profile/. Hibu. (2013). What is site structure?. Available: http://business.hibu.co.uk/knowledge/articles/what-is-site-structure/. IPC. (N/A). NME improved the brand perception of River Island.Available: http://www.ipcadvertising.com/case-studies/nme-improved-the-brand-perception-of-river-island/?CaseStudyCa N/A. (2006). The Motive Web Design Glossary. Available: http://www.motive.co.nz/glossary/navigation.php N/A. (2013). AllSaints. Available: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AllSaints. N/A. (2013). Allsaints.com. Available: http://www.alexa.com/siteinfo/allsaints.com. N/A. (2013). River Island. Available: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/River_Island. N/A. (2013). riverisland.com. Available: http://www.alexa.com/siteinfo/riverisland.com. N/A. (2013). Search engine optimization. Available: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Search_engine_optimization. N/A. (2013). TopShop. Available: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Topshop. N/A. (2013). TopShop.com. Available: http://www.alexa.com/siteinfo/topshop.com N/A. (2013). Urban Outfitters. Available: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urban_Outfitters. N/A. (2013). Urbanoutfitters.com. Available: http://www.alexa.com/siteinfo/urbanoutfitters.com. N/A. (N/A). All Saints. Available: http://www.allsaints.com/?uk_cpc&gclid=CKa_-suDirsCFa-WtAodQksAiA. N/A. (N/A). History. Available: http://www.topshop.com/en/tsuk/category/about-us-80/home?geoip=noredirect. N/A. (N/A). Pros and cons of e-commerce Drop-down menus. Available: http://www.tizunidigital.com/blog/pros-and-cons-of-e-commerce-drop-down-menus/#sthash.RTC8UdaU.dpbs . N/A. (N/A). River Island. Available: http://www.riverisland.com/ N/A. (N/A). TopShop. Available: http://www.topshop.com/?geoip=home. N/A. (N/A). Urban Outfitters. Available: http://www.jobbook.com/en/employers/urban-outfitters/about N/A. (N/A). Urban Outfitters. Available: http://www.urbanoutfitters.co.uk/ N/A. (N/A). What Is Search Marketing?. Available: http://searchengineland.com/guide/what-is-sem. N/A. (N/A). What Is SEM & Paid Search Marketing?. Available: http://searchengineland.com/guide/what-is-paid-search. N/A. (N/A). What is web site navigation?. Available: http://www.webdevelopersnotes.com/tips/webdesign/web_site_navigation.php3. Recipe. (N/A). Costs and Trading. Available: http://digitaladvertising.co.uk/digital-advertising-costs N/A. (2013). Urban Outfitters Inc.. Available: http://www.marketwatch.com/investing/stock/urbn/profile Young, I. (2002). Site Navigation: A Few Helpful Definitions. Available: http://www.adaptivepath.com/ideas/site-navigation-helpful-definitions/ LinkedIn. (2013). River Island. Available: http://www.linkedin.com/company/river-island. Last accessed 12th November 2013. LinkedIn. (2013). All Saints. Available: http://www.linkedin.com/company/allsaints. Last accessed 12th November 2013. LinkedIn. (2013). Topshop. Available: http://www.linkedin.com/company/topshop-topman. Last accessed 12th November 2013. LinkedIn. (2013). Urban Outfitters. Available: http://www.linkedin.com/company/urban-outfitters. Last accessed 12th November 2013. Wikipedia. (2013). River Island. Available: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/River_Island. Last accessed 12th November 2013. Wikipedia. (2013). All Saints. Available: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AllSaints. Last accessed 21st November 2013. Wikipedia. (2013). Topshop. Available: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Topshop. Last accessed 12th November 2013.