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Website Critique   URGENT - Need Help Fast!  
 
This question has been closed, and points have been awarded.
Directory Usability Critique And Sales Suggestions
Posted By: Scott Crumpton* on 7/21/2005 5:56 PM (CST) 500 Points
I'm looking for a usability critique and general suggestions for improvement on our bed and breakfast directory. Two specific areas come to mind:
1. Imagine yourself as a potential guest trying to find a place to stay.
2. Imagine yourself as an innkeeper evaluating whether to sign up for this directory. How could we improve the sales appeal or process?

Any suggestions or criticisms would be most appreciated. Note: probably the only suggestion which wouldn't help is that we need more listings as that's a sales issue ;-)

Thanks in advance!

Posted by: michael Accepted Answer
7/21/2005 6:09 PM (CST)
Scott,
1)Nice site and very user friendly. I found some places that I know very well in Iowa.

2)It may be overwhelming to a B&B owner. Do you have some generic sites they can just plug into? Also, I didn't look real deep, but an owner-only area where they could live chat or message board. Also could look at bulk buying. Maybe a company like ECOLAB would offer a discount to member.

Michael
 
Posted by: mbarber Accepted Answer
7/21/2005 6:14 PM (CST)
Scott its a tad hard to critique the site without knowing where to go.

So the best I can suggest is you take a look at the following site to find out how NOT to do it.

The key thing needs to be easy for the end user so BIG text boxes and easy functionality are key.

Consider how the search process works. Will most people search by destination or 'type' of venue? This gives you two potential search criteria frames for the user. The benefits to the end user are that the search process is quick and is likely to give them a ready range of choices.

Ease of use will maximise the chances of a selection. That leads then to the 'sell' criteria for the inn keeper. 'This site is so easy to use and gives your potential customers geat options in selecting a destination that you really should consider being on it because simlicity means more customers'

So the website to look at to find out how NOT to do it is www.yellowpages.com.au and for an alternative on how you might do it try www.wotif.com.au
 
Posted by: Scott Crumpton* Author Response
7/21/2005 7:03 PM (CST)
Thanks for the comments so far. A couple quick notes to help...

Pretend you're looking to stay in Ashland Oregon. One of the ways we differ from most directories is that we provide a link straight through the web site of our clients. Do you like or hate this? In other words, would you rather see a standard listing page where everything (photos, contact info, amenities, etc. are all in standard places?)


On the sales suggestions -- what I'm looking for is this. Pretend you're a B&B innkeeper. When you visit the site -- is it clear how to sign up to be included? Is this clear from every page in the site? Is the sales process done well enough or are we not really selling our service well enough. Any suggestions here would be appreciated.

Lastly on the comment about how not to do it -- LOL! there are plenty of examples within our industry of how not to do it ;-)
 
Posted by: mgoodman Member Response
7/21/2005 7:16 PM (CST)
Nice job, Scott. From the perspective of a guest, the site is very appealing, easy to navigate, clean. Gives me some confidence that the information is reliable and the inns suggested are similarly well run. You did a really good job.

From the perspective of an innkeeper, it's good, not great. Could use some images, even if they are just other innkeepers. Need to set the right tone, and pictures are a good way to do that. Of course, it has to be professional and businesslike, but a little right-brain appeal would help.

Overall grade: A, because guest info is A+ and innkeeper is B or B+. (I didn't spend as much time on the innkeeper part.)

Do you do your own website design? If so, you're really good at it! If not, you've found a great designer.
 
Posted by: Colleen Sharen* Accepted Answer
7/21/2005 8:20 PM (CST)
After wandering around a bit to find it, I finally found your site.

Here are a couple of comments. You claim to be a directory of B&Bs in the United States and Canada. Yet your search box indicates that the person should look for a state or city. Canada doesn't have states. We have provinces.

I checked out your Ontario B&Bs, and chose Goderich (since I live about 30 minutes south of Goderich). Only problem is that your map appears to have Goderich out in the middle of a Lake - somewhere near Sandusky Ohio. (Trust me, Goderich is about 3 hours north of Detroit on the Canadian side of the border). I looked for Port Stanley and it too appears to be floating in the middle of a Lake. Apparently the maps you are using show the US, and Canada to the north is one solid blue colour.

I'm not sure about the rest of the site, but your credibility is shot with me.

From the Innkeeper perspective, I thought that you had your pricing buried - I was looking for it before I started the signup process. I'd also like to know more about the amount of traffic to your site and your click through rates. It would give me a good way to assess whether this expenditure will drive ROI.

If you're planning to sell people information, you need to get it right - ditch your mapping function (at least for your Canadian listings).
 
Posted by: Scott Crumpton* Author Response
7/21/2005 8:29 PM (CST)
Ya know, I saw someone else leave off their web address and then I did the same thing. It's certainly a test for all of you and you've certainly all passed ;-)

Here's the stie:
http://www.bbexplorer.com
 
Posted by: virago* Accepted Answer
7/21/2005 9:30 PM (CST)
I have been reading alot about Usability testing over the last couple of weeks and it sounds like you are looking for design/usability answers for your website.

You are looking for the thought processes, problems and techniques people do with yours (and other) similar competitor websites.

I suggest you do some Usability Testing of some kind. At the end of the day it's like doing market research. Google it or look into these suggestions I have found.

User Interface Design for Web Applications

Details of a Usability Study

Matching a Design to a User's Goals

I think by doing this study you will know your competitors better (and get one step ahead of them), understand the customers better and able to design a better website based on the results of the tests.

Hope this helps.
 
Posted by: KSA Accepted Answer
7/22/2005 12:27 AM (CST)
Scott,

You've done a fantastic job on the site. I agree with the comments about the innkeeper side, though. Here are some things to consider:

The only way to get to the innkeeper info from the homepage is the Innkeeper Info link, as far as I can see. While that is very elegant, it probably doesn't get noticed very much. I'd make it much more visible, and call it something like List Your B&B. People skim on the 'net, and sometimes you need to hit them over the head.

I'd also change the name of the link at the bottom of the pages where the Site Index is, from B&B Membership Services to List Your B&B. If I'm not a member, I don't think I'd use that link to find out how to become one.

Then, rather than a Get Started link, I'd call it something like Not Listed? Find Out More Here, you know something catchy. Get Started, to me, sounds weird since I haven't even decided if I'm going to list since I have no info, prices, etc. People may think they are committing to something by using a Get Started link.

I'd also figure out what percent of the B&B's have their own websites. I didn't have time to look around a lot, but it seems if they don't have a site, you can make a great-looking page for them. Would it make sense (and be technically feasible) to let them point a domain name at your pages so they could use it as their own? Maybe for an additional fee?

Hope this is helpful,

Kathleen
 
Posted by: amy* Accepted Answer
7/22/2005 8:44 AM (CST)
Scott,
I'll take a stab at this from the traveller's perspective as I have just recently been involved in heavy research for trips to San Diego and Italy. The sites I found most helpful were those that allowed me to sort by a number of different methods ... price, quality, features. I also much appreciated interior/exterior photos. The most productive sites for me provided enough of a description on the summary page to enable me to hone in on the establishments that had features I was looking for at the time. Also, good location data -- e.g., distance from a known landmark and/or multiple venues plotted on a map of the city -- was helpful. One site I went to had a feature where visitors could rank the location and provide comments. This was REALLY helpful and let me get a sense of each place's unique merits and deficits ... "clean and inexpensive", "Sally and Bob really make you feel like one of the family", "beautiful, romantic room with fireplace". Obviously, this will not be for weak-hearted B&B clients, as I did read a couple of, "I would never stay there again" comments. Overall ... just don't make me "click" alot to get the information I need. Hope that helps.
 
Posted by: PatCope* Accepted Answer
7/24/2005 8:17 PM (CST)
Scott, a usability assessment focuses on a specific task. Rather than a mock walkthrough as "a potential guest trying to find a place to stay," as you suggest, a usability task would be along the lines of "find a place for two people to stay for five nights, including Friday/Saturday, on the coast of Oregon, not over $x/night."

Being specific requires that you first think about your key target markets, then drill down and find the stumbling blocks for each. For your site, those could possibly be:

1. No ability to search by key variables other than the current geographic region (e.g., price, minimum stay, near landmark locations).

2. Difficult to quickly scan lists and compare inns without a standard description format including items such as distance to/type of public transportation, minimum stay, meals included (full breakfast, continental breakfast, afternoon tea, cocktail hour, etc.), mid-week/long-stay discounts, nearby landmarks and distances, and so on. I looked up inns in Seattle, which I know well, and some are in nearby towns without convenient/frequent public transportation for those who want to spend time in the city.

Another staple of usability testing is personas, or composite personalities representing major categories of visitors, to identify key usability issues important to each persona.

Example: 60-year-old retired schoolteacher, adventurous, in good physical condition, hikes and bikes a lot, likes beach or mountain settings, stays at B&Bs about 6 times a year, wants a one-week stay; limited budget to $x max for the week, prefers full-breakfast-included. This persona would want to search by different criteria than the young-20s professional looking for last-minute weekend getaways, price not so important as amenities and distance, and so on.

You might devise 3-4 personas and/or tasks, and do a walkthrough of the site for each. You probably already know the key user groups and what consitutes B&B value for each; test for site ease-of-use against those values.

Notes on the home and inside pages:

1. Home page rotating picture. Usability tests show that changing the picture on the home page each time a visitor returns within the same session slows and confuses the visitor. Visual memory is strong, and visitors who see a different picture think they must have gone to the wrong page, so waste time trying to figure where they are. Frustration + time wasted = click to another site.

2. Key home page area. Wasting key real estate and message impact with the "Welcome to..." statement. It simply repeats the functional tagline (what we are: a directory of B&Bs) in your banner head. Appeal to the emotions, instead. This message placement leaves no room "above the fold" (as in a newspaper) -- the most important spot on the page -- to show your featured inns, which are what will attract users (and innkeepers); they're hidden "beneath the fold," where users must scroll to find them. Get the main message up top, and make it appeal to the emotions: "Need to get away and recharge your batteries? Find the perfect B&B, whether mountains, seashore, or city, in the US or Canada." (Note: North America, which you use, includes Mexico -- where you have no locations.)

3. Map area in upper left would fail a usability test with many users. First try: "Start Here" implies a click, which doesn't do anything. Second try: "Click to Show Map" also does not respond to a click. Third try: Click the arrows following Click to Show Map. Nothing. Fourth try: Click map, US portion: then must click a state. (Note: if a user on the state maps page clicked the small "Show Canada" icon, then wanted to return to US, clicking the main US map on the left -- which many would click instead of the Show US icon -- wouldn't return user to state maps. Nothing happens, further frustrating the user.)

4. State pages: need location context. Using the Washington state page as an example, the prospective first-time visitor has no idea where these cities or regions are located. How would a first-time visitor from Pennsylvania know whether to click Belfair, Squim, or Vancouver or any of the 34 cities (plus at least as many again under "additional cities")? Or South Coast vs. Southwest region? Possible solutions are to add maps and/or two-level navigation (regions then cities). And what about the user whose key selection criterion is finding a place by price or other variable, and would quickly tire of plowing through each city and then each inn within the cities?

5. State pages: edit text. Terrific non-rotating photos; they convey the feeling of each state. Suggest tightening the text to focus on what the user wants, not site features.

Example, current text: "Finding a Washington Bed and Breakfast has never been easier! With listings in all parts of this beautiful northwest state, you are sure to what you are looking for. Seattle, the Olympic Mountains, southern Washington - we have them all! Start finding a Washington bed and breakfast by clicking on a city or a region."

Edit down, and focus on the user, not the technology/navigation/site features: "Relax and unwind in Washington's emerald mountains or quiet seashore and islands, hike or bike its many trails, visit vineyards and wineries in the eastern side of the state, or indulge your urban cravings with Seattle's spectacular views of mountains and water, innovative local cuisine, and pedestrian-friendly downtown shopping. Find your perfect B&B by city or region."

6. State pages. Links at page bottoms to "nearby states," some of which are Canadian provinces. This will alienate Canadian visitors. Suggest change to "nearby states or provinces" or something neutral, such as "border regions."

Enough for now. This should help narrow the usability issues, so you can test, prioritize and implement them by their cost/potential impact tradeoffs.

Good luck.
Patricia Cope
 
Posted by: JHM Accepted Answer
8/1/2005 8:47 PM (CST)
great site..

Navigation comment;

When I go to let's say, california - instead of featured inns showing up primary in the middle can they maybe go to the right? It threw me off a bit from my "path" of search. - just a suggestion.

This tagline should be the main tagline;

"The Bed and Breakfast Explorer - Helping you find the perfect B&B Inn"

Instead of ;

"Bed and Breakfast Explorer - A Directory of Bed and Breakfasts and B&B Inns"

Hope that helps! The site overall is great and very intuitive.
 
Posted by: Puru Gupta Accepted Answer
8/6/2005 3:25 AM (CST)
Scott,
Great Suggestions for a Great Site ... have already been given.
Just to add to the discussion, a few more points from my side -

(a) Some of the links do not hold the parent frame, because of which it is difficult to back track and return to your site.
For Instance
http://www.bbexplorer.com/alaska/ - Jewel Lake BnB has an independent site. You could retain the parent frame in this case.

(b) I am not sure about the others, I would personally recommend a slightly lighter shade of Blue for the sidebar - something on the lines of the Search Toolbar that you have. A lighter softer shade would enforce a softer image, which goes well with Hotels.

(c) Why does the B&B Explorer bar need to come at the bottom? The Bookmark option can go at the top, and you can do away with the Footer. Only the Designer's Name and link can remain as the Footer.

(d) On the "Get listed in the Bed and Breakfast Explorer" page, you can add a few more testimonials by a few more inn keepers.

(e) Alluding to the same point, you should look at providing some tangible benefits that inn-keepers have made, using the bbexplorer. An increase in Profits or RoI, as mentioned before, does attach significant credibility to your proposition.

(f) On the Membership Services page - it is more of a Member Login Page than a page that specifies the Services on offer for members.
I would recommend a name change for the page as "Member Login" rather than "Membership Services"
Same goes for "Innkeeper Info" on the Home Page.

(g) Why do you have 2 search Bars on the Home Page? It conveys redundancy at the onset itself.

Finally, linking to the Clients site is a good idea. But do all your clients have their own websites? If that is not the case, you should look at forming a page for each of them then.

Hope this helps!
Regards,
Puru
 
Posted by: carrie77 Moderator Response
8/9/2005 8:24 AM (CST)
Hello all. I am closing this question since it's more than 2 weeks old. We do this to reward the contributions of participants in a timely manner + to give increased visibility to the newer questions.

Thanks for participating!
Carrie (Production Editor)
 


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