Starting a new periodic series today called “Don’t do that”. The purpose of these posts will be just what it sound likes… a quick hit review of small and easily solvable problems I see on websites in my every day Internet wanderings. Unlike a post from a blog such as Websites that Suck, these sites don’t suck. But, they have a fundamental flaw worth noting. Without further ado… Don’t do That, Erika wants that purse edition.
Last week at a networking event, I saw a purse from across a crowded room and was instantly in love. After getting the information about the purse from the associated human, I immediately visited the website when I returned home that evening. I glanced through the purse options and then looked to answer my number one question, knowing that the purse I saw was purchased in SoHo, NYC, where could I see these bags near me in the Washington, DC area?
Voila, the site had a “retailers”area for me to see who was selling the bags. I started to scan the retailer list and found stores in Massachusetts, Illinois, Ohio, North Carolina. What? A quick review revealed that Highway was displaying the stores alphabetically by store name. Who is that designed for? There is a drop down box to Filter by state, but it is easy to miss and the natural inclination when everything is displayed is to scan. Why should I need to scan through stores in Montana (have I ever mentioned that when I was young I was convinced Montana didn’t exist? Long story) and Quebec to find that the purse of my dreams is sold in three stores locally?
So, don’t do that. Organize lists in the way that you expect will be useful for visitors to your website. The free information in this blog post is very valuable, now shouldn’t you buy me a purse?