Topic 2: Website Usability. 1. Make the Site s Purpose Clear: Explain Who You Are and What You Do

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Felix Davila III INFO 202 16 March 2016 Topic 2: Website Usability Website: JackThreads Website URL: https://www.jackthreads.com/ 1.

1 Felix Davila III INFO March 2016 Topic 2: Website Usability Website: JackThreads Website URL: 1. Make the Site s Purpose Clear: Explain Who You Are and What You Do JackThreads is an online clothing website dedicate to selling men s fashion. The website contains a plethora of clothing options, separating them into distinct sections and categories. A snapshot of the front page is located below. As one can see, JackThreads, while lacking a tagline, displays its name in the upper left hand corner with a memorable logo design. When bookmarked, the site is saved under the title Men s Fashion & Style - Delivered Daily - JackThreads, which is descriptive in terms of the site s purpose, although lengthy for those who possess many bookmarks in their task bar. To assist that, their JT logo is stands out for easy reference. Their corporate information is located at the bottom of any page, listed as About JackThreads. This can be found in the top left of the image below.

2 The link directs you to a page providing background information on the website, including a Careers and Contact tab for press, employment or customer service inquiries including the requisite person of contact s Help Users Find What They Need Navigation on JackThreads is clean and simplistic. The visual appeal of the website greatly enhances this facet, as the clean interface provides an easy tour with blatant categories listed at the top. As found in the first image of the front page, the greater categories of Clothing, Shoes, Accessories, Br@nds, Sale and New Arrivals effectively breaks up their inventory into organize searches. This simplifies access and allows users to navigate to their specific needs quickly. Going from Shoes to Boots or Clothing to Sweaters or Jeans is logical and allows users to narrow down their preferences as they go. Nielsen also notes the necessity for a search input box, which is a necessity for any site (2002) and it is located at the very top at all times.

3 Clicking any of these tabs opens up a listing of subcategories, featured in the example images below. When finally choosing a category, the products display with a hub of filters to choose from including Color, Type, Brand, Style, and unique filters to products like Sleeve Length for sleeved tops or Fit for pants. The filters can be seen below in an example image.

It reveals contents and price total, along with a trending items listing.

4 If a customer likes a certain product, they can then add it to their shopping cart, referred to as Your Bag on this site. The Your Bag feature is located top right, on that top tab bar, represented by a shopping bag. It reveals contents and price total, along with a trending items listing. Shipping and Return policies are located here as well for easy access, and a Chat feature that allows users to consult a live JackThreads representative.

5 3. Reveal Site Content As seen in the image below, the homepage possesses a tab bar of general categories for products across the top. That bar remains at the top the entire time a user is touring the site, no matter what page they visit. This provides easier access to the variety of products available for purchase while facilitating site navigation so users can constantly move to a different form of clothing or product whenever they would like to. Very notable, as well, is the front page tile display that features the newest or featured content, making it easier to find either what s new or popular as well as the current big sale taking place. It updates seasonally, and they update the products on display accordingly. The bottom tab always remains the same as well, making contact information constant and social media links available. Subtle, however, is a link to JTEdit, that provides an in-depth description of the process to develop each product. This is an interesting feature of the site, but it is not prominently displayed enough for users to find unless they scroll to the bottom and find it themselves. In terms of Nielsen s guideline for Easy Access to Recent Homepage Features (2002), the website does have a New Arrivals option and Sale option at the very top to allow quick access to previous ads that were featured on the front page. 4. Use Visual Design to Enhance, not Define, Interaction Design The visuals of this website are fantastic.the subtle, simple formatting makes it easy to approach site navigation, whether browsing around or attempting to find a particular product. The ability to choose the respective filters that pop up according to each product, the ability to add the products to the cart, and the ability to navigate to other products after adding one without having to backtrack in browser history makes it seamless. The tile display located at the front page helps to catch a user s eye and intrigue them for future purchases. The save feature also helps users to easily save these purchases for future

6 reference. Every product has a variety of pictures from different angles, including some on a model. The site also lists the physical measurements of the model to help users compare the look and fit to themselves. Each page is not over formatted, with adequate spacing between photos of each product and between each product tab. I believe the formatting is excellent considering every product has its own window for sizes to pop up, there are subtle animations that make the site seem futuristic and stylish without making the site cumbersome with visual effects. JackThreads remains my favorite site for shopping fashion considering its clean interface, lack of clutter and logical organization of sale items. Based on Nielsen s guidelines, I believe the site fits the bill for excellent in design. Reference Nielsen, J. (2002, May 12). Top 10 Guidelines for Homepage Usability. Retrieved from

E2: Heuristic Evaluation A usability analysis of decorativethings.com. Jordana Carlin LIS Spring 2014

E2: Heuristic Evaluation A usability analysis of decorativethings.com Jordana Carlin LIS-644-01 Spring 2014 2 E2: HEURISTIC EVALUATION Executive Summary Decorative Things is an online retailer of unique