A Comparative Review between Two Websites in Terms of Their Layout and Content - Report Example

Introduction: A website is for intents and purposes the one of the better methods of business communication and marketing with minimal input costs. The contemporary website is first window that a consumer sees about a given product while he ponders a purchase. A website therefore is in many cases, the force that would hinder or aid a sale. A bad website can actually hurt the business prospects of a given venture. Executive Summary: One must remember that internet consumers are difficult as a crowd to attract and hold given the vast variety of product available to them. If a given site does not look appealing, the idea transmitted is that the business is probably as bad as well. This might or might not be fair assessment but it would happen nonetheless. It is not necessary for a website to have a state of the art design for the website in order to attract and hold the consumer’s attention. There are just a certain number of criteria that a website should satisfy in terms of layout and design to produce desired results as far as the promotion of the product is concerned. The following report will put forward a comparative review between two websites in terms of their layout and content, thereby providing a set of merits and demerits for each of the websites for future reference and corrective actions. The Websites: The websites under consideration have been formed for the purpose of review is the official website for the “Gabriel Method” and “Ticketmaster”. At the very beginning of the report, it might be useful to state that the two websites have been created for two completely different purposes and as such there would be fundamental differences in their manner of working and the way in which they choose to present themselves. The Gabriel Method is in essence a promotional website-a site that chooses to promote and advertise the book and the CD in the short term and the Gabriel Method as scheme of diet and weight loss in the longer run. Ticketmaster on the other hand is a website that has been created mostly for surfing and downloading purposes. It is more like a search engine than other things and provides links and information about music, sports and art an theatre among other things. The layout of the two websites would therefore differ in the structural manner. Having said this one could analyze the two websites against the yardstick requirements of the basic format that is requisite in a correct website related format. Content- The most important factor in any given mechanism is content. The issue with respect to the Gabriel website is that it being a primarily promotional website the website is full of speeches, writings and testimonials that recommend the method as being effective. But there are problems here given the fact that after a while the matter seems to look more like propaganda and less like an effective dietary program given the fact that there is no real, tangible information available on the website with respect to the actual intricacies of the method. The website therefore commits the cardinal sin of having been designed on the presumption that it being an offshoot of design there was no real need to focus on website content. Most stories are a year old which would further mean that the craze must have died down. Ticket master on the other hand hits the jackpot with respect to content as the website is extremely rich in that particular arena. Content writing on the website is clear and concise, information available is compact and doesn’t take one ages to find. Browser compatibility - The common mistake of most website design companies is to just disregard the importance of browser compatibility. The site might have an awesome page but if it couldn't be viewed in a different browser other than IE then you are surely going to lose a lot of possible customers. People these days are starting to use a browser other than IE so it is important for website design companies to put importance on the browser compatibility aspect. The biggest mistake in this respect would have been the use of large image files. The idea is that most images viewed on the net do not need fine image quality. Instead of waiting on your site to load, customers will simply search for something else. Here again there are issues with respect to Gabriel website. The site has huge videos and pictures that took some time to upload, while Ticketmaster uploaded with relative ease. However, neither were too slow and adhere to the 30 second upload rule. Navigation-Navigation buttons and bars are easy to understand and use. It should be consistent throughout web site, the buttons and bars should provide visitors with clues as with respect to their position, navigation back should be easy and frames if used should not be obtrusive Good usage of graphics - At these times, websites with static text would no longer be everybody's favorite. There would automatically be the need for 3D images and attractive graphic designs. It is necessary for website designers to come ensure the use of creatives that are eye catching and graphics and high tech photographs on the sites. Another important thing to consider is for sites to get rid of pages that take over 10 seconds to upload as users get impatient and will quickly surf to some other site before the page would start loading. Colors used on the site should be harmonious or fit what the site is promoting about. Colors as well as the logo designs need to be considered as this represents the whole site. As far as graphics at Gabriel are concerned, they are nothing out of the ordinary. The colors used are bright and attractive in keeping with the tone of the book-blues and greens highlight the templates used in the website. Beside this, it also makes use of the images that further the weight loss message. Ticketmaster on the other hand, makes use of dark tones, there are a lot of blacks and brown hues that characterize the website. The graphics used manifest in the form of the advertisements. There are no pop-ups and rotating visuals. Therefore as far as the visual pleasure is concerned, both websites fall short of the desired goal. Most people disregard website design and choose to use default themes and designs. Well, we cannot blame them if they want to save on costs and effort, but a great website design can bring your business far. There are people who are very particular about the design, plus it is the first thing that visitors of your site will see. So, why not grab the opportunity that they are spending time in your site by creating a good impression? Navigation-Bad site navigation would surely turn off site users and so it is a must for companies to come up with proper navigational elements. The search functionality should be user-friendly. This has been kept in mind as far as Gabriel.com is concerned given the fact that the matter of concern has been kept in everyone’s eyes and is easy to reach. There are no round about turns and the goal does not look like treasure hunt. As opposed to this Ticketmaster, is characterized by links that are color coordinated with the overall website theme and yet is takes one some time to realize the methods and the keys to be used to that the desired page could be loaded. Neither of the websites makes use of the technique whereby links are underlined so they are instantly clear to the visitor. Conclusion: Finally if one was to make a summary or an overview of the requisite needs of a easy to use and popular website one would find that the requirements are of pages that download fast and not make the use wait eons; the first page and the home page should ideally fit into 800 x 600 pixel space; all other links and related pages need to have the immediate visual impact within 800 x 600 pixels. There is a need for the use of graphic elements (photos, subheads, pull quotes) to break up large areas of text. This is a problem area for both websites as they are both focused more on videos and pictures. There is no compact text introducing the site or the products that they endorse making the user wonder about the feasibility of the site as a whole. There is a tendency of the user to get lost in the website without coming up with concrete search results. Every web page in the site should look like it belongs to the same site. In conclusion therefore it maybe stated that while both websites are average as far as the layout and content is concerned there is still room for improvement and they both leave a lot desires in terms of consumer satisfaction. Reference: Ticketmaster, accessed November 1, 2009, < http://www.ticketmaster.com.au/browse?category=60&root=10001&rdc_select=n1095&dma=&type=selected&tm_link=tm_music_header_l1> The Gabriel Method, accessed November 1, 2009, < http://www.gabrielmethod.com.au/> Williams R, Good Design Features, accessed, November 1, 2009, < http://www.ratz.com/featuresgood.html> Web design ideas, accessed November 1, 2009, < http://www.entheosweb.com/website_design/design_ideas.asp> Marks C, The Importance of a High Quality Website, accessed November 1, 2009, < http://ezinearticles.com/?The-Importance-of-a-High-Quality-Website&id=3144216> Read More