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theculturetrip.com

thomas crossman w13567886

+ theculturetrip.com

“With our one-stop website we aim to provide customers and businesses with books, films and music for every country in the world. We also offer background information, discussions, news and travel updates for each country.”

thecultruretrip.com is essentially a content management system for catalogue of books, music and film with the search emphasis on where the media originates in the world.

Articles, blogs and comments are also implemented to give a sense of community and enforcing the value proposition of cultural knowledge within media artifacts.

“We want to inspire people to be thinking travellers, wherever they go, wherever they come from.”

+ anatomy analysis

1.  site id

2.  search

3.  utilities

4.  page name

5.  sub-section navigation

6.  country sub navigation

7.  continent main navigation

8.  sub-section navigation

9.  featured content

10.  120x600 ad-space

11.  genre sub-navigation

12.  728x90 ad-space

13.  footer & utilities

1 2 3

45

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

+sitemap

homepage 00

search results 01

explore continent 02 item page 03explore

country 03

books 04films 04

store

articles 04editorials 04

explore

submit 04

links 04comments 04 map 04

about us xx

terms & conditions xx

disclaimer xx

advertise xx

customer services xx

B2B xx

contact us xx

about the catalogue xx

utilities

shopping cart 01my

account 01

logged in area

notes

- product page can be accessed from multiple levels.

- utilities do not appear on homepage but are static throughout rest of site.

- 'comments', 'links' & 'map' are embedded into most pages of the site however only 'comments' & 'links' click through to their own page, 'map' is an embedded google map.

- from the product page, users can 'add item to basket' to purchase, this then follows flow as detailed in order analysis.

- 'travel bag' page is only available as an offshot of the 'explore country' page.

travel bag 04

+ anatomy critique homepage +  set in 1000px centered container

+  5 column grid layout holds together the site design

+  menu-style homepage giving links and options to the user

+  prominent search feature, placed at first place a western user looks on a web-site

+  custom ‘HeroLight’ sans-serif font +  map metaphor for navigation

enforces notion of travel

+  full-page background image used as a device to emotionally connect users to travel and excite and engage.

+  body content similarity & proximity forces Gestalt grouping

+  ‘featured’ items similarity & proximity forces Gestalt grouping

+  navigation buttons reverse colour on rollover making identifying them easy for the user

+  product images, text and ‘call to action’ button clickable

+  two main ways of purchasing, via search and via exploration (as detailed in task analysis)

+  featured items change to give new perspectives of cultural relevancy

+  site employs a network tree structure

search site id

navigation

info

feature

body

the fold

+ user analysis

theculturetrip.com is aimed at individuals with interests in;

- travel - culture

- learning This range of user would typically be very sociable, of middle to upper demographic and be of a good standard of education.

They will typically have proficiency in using the internet and web applications to accomplish tasks and be used to using sites such as amazon for purchasing online. They value the opinions of others, especially those of the same disposition and love to share stories and experiences of their travels.

The value of using theculturetrip.com for the target user would be the ability to directly tie the media artifact with the country of origin. This ability to search gives rise to exploration of new media that is also produced in the country.

Being comfortable with using technology means that theculturetrip.com would be used in a multitude of environments using tablet, mobile or other handheld internet as well as through a desktop browser.

thecuturetrip.com lends itself well to having a strong mobile strategy but this analysis focuses on the dektop browser version.

‘I am interested in the cultural relevancy of my media’

Key goals We must

We must not Behaviours

•  Understand background of media

•  Explore the place she is in through media

•  Share opinions with likeminded people

•  Implement Search by country/continent

•  Provide social connectivity

•  Allow her to share experiences

•  Travels a lot on her own and connects with people whilst traveling using social media

•  Enjoys reading cultural articles and opinions

•  Plans trips with culture in mind

•  Doesn’t like to be sold to

•  Focus on the commerce aspect too much but still provide purchase opportunities

Katy

+task analysis - current

CheckoutItem detailsConfirm order

Existing customer

New customer

Type search term into search box

Browse results page Add item to cart View Basket

Confirm details

Continue as Guest

Add new customer details

Billing Details

View item details

NoteEach of the steps in the 'checkout' process open up a new page, to have these parts as sections on a single page would improve user experience.

Enter homepage

Shopping environment

NoteUser has to re-search or click on homepage or 'explore' button to continue browsing site for further purchases.

Confirmation

Confirmation page

Goal: To search for and purchase a novel related to Mexico - Flow1, Using search box

If results are not relevant, user will change and re-submit search

NoteThere is no recommendation based on 'near-searches' or 'did you mean'

View Basket

Create Account

Login

Shipping Details Shipping MethodPayment Page

(external - SagePay)

+task analysis – proposed improvement

Enter search term

CheckoutItem detailsConfirm order

Existing customer

New customer

Browse results page Add item to cart View Basket

Confirm details

Continue as Guest

Add new customer details

customer, billing & shipping details

View item details

Improvement3 steps reduced by having all required information for order completion on one page in sections

Enter homepage

Shopping environment

Improvementbasket should be always on screen to allow user to continue searching and exploring site

Confirmation

Confirmation page

Goal: To search for and purchase a novel related to Mexico - refined

If results are not relevant, user will change and re-submit search

NoteThere is no recommendation based on 'near-searches' or 'did you mean'

ImprovementAs search is the only main feature on homepage this is now a semantic step

View Basket

Create Account

Login

Payment Page (external)

Search colour same as background in Chrome

Products is too high is site hierarchy. Why am I coming to TheCultureTrip? If I want to buy I will go to amazon. Focus should be on the cultural thoughts, social aspects, sharing information, discussion articles and the e-commerce aspect should be more subtle but embedded every step of my site exploration. *1

Whilst background is visually impressive, it can be distracting, adding an semi-opaque container could work better.

n  site critique - design

Links on Profile page to products are good, this should be given high hierarchy and the links should be given in every blog/article.

Facebook Friends, Twitter Feed, Images, Info can be shown live rather than as static link.

The map metaphor is lost as soon as I explore regions. Could use Google Map API and overlay to dynamically explore world.

Why are these products featured? Brief editorial about their cultural importance and comment/discussion on each would improve social connection. Products neither fit into ‘low-cost’ or ‘premium’. *3

There should be no differentiation between Explore and Store. Convenience is key, if I am browsing articles/blogs etc I should be able to purchase in same cognitive process. *2

n  site critique - functionality

All of these should be accessible as one section to provide cultural overview of country

Secondary/Tertiary navigation should be available, I shouldn’t need to navigate away from current page to explore other regions/countries.

Secondary/Tertiary navigation should be available, I shouldn’t need to navigate away from current page to explore other regions/countries.

Good idea for links by they navigate away from site and are ‘counter-sticky’. Each site links to their own commerce and has ads, why would I come back to TheCultureTrip? - When the links are longer than content it disrupts flow of page causing confusion.

Potential for Network advertising. Can be very niche and be geo/IP/behaviorally targeted.

Opportunity to incorporate cultural videos and interactive media. *4

Facebook ‘like’ uses captcha image not product image.

n  site critique - social

+ mobile recommendations

+ Location based service when travelling to engage in blog/articles/products of relevancy.

+ 4square/facebook/twitter check in – recommendations from other users based upon location.

+ Mobile e-commerce.

+ Access as App not internet *5 – full download for all platforms.

+ Push notifications when area of cultural interest ‘exit through the gift shop’ -theory.

+ Travel ‘mood’ lasts longer than excursion, notifications can last ‘after-trip’.

+ Barcode reader to link info from book in real-life to cultural info on TheCultureTrip.

+homepage re-design

about | contact | facebook | twitter

enter country or city

film/books/musicculture by country

+  Site ID and logo prominent and in same position throughout site

+  Simple header and tagline

captures mood and value proposition of website

+  Full-page background image

used as a device to emotionally connect users to travel and excite and engage. Use of contrasting colour images important on homepage so elements stand out.

+  Use of international web

safe symbol for ‘search’ +  Homepage focus on the

search and exploration by country or city and not providing distraction to the user.

+  Utilities are simply placed

at bottom of browser on static footer. *redesign inspired by mark-making.com & bing.com

+ site considerations

+  Partnership/API with sites such as trip advisor, expedia etc. +  Continuous social interaction - comment integration with facebook/

twitter. +  Video integration inc video advertising. +  Split focus on commerce/social causes confusion. +  Submit article should be in form of upload not just providing link to

contact details. +  Links away from site should be kept to a minimum and where

unavoidable should open in new tab in browser. +  Streaming music should be provided using API from spotify/7digital

etc. +  No cohesive link between product and blog/articles/social. +  Further twitter/quora interaction – build branding, trust and loyalty. +  No use of breadcrumbs to show user where they are in purchase

process.

+appendix n  1 - Usefulness will make your site the one of choice

Richard Madden, Marketing Week article.

n  2 - Convenience is central to users experience Promise senior consultant Thea Bowden, Marketing Week interview.

n  3 - Market leans to either low cost or premium brands Leapfrog Research and Planning, Marketing Week article.

n  4 - Video is proving useful for getting users interested The British Video Association’s (BVA) Trends in Digital Content study, Marketing Week.

n  5 - Apps will be replaced by hosted services but is dependent on the internet coverage Paul Owers, operations director at fashion retailer Jigsaw, Marketing Week interview.

+bibliography n  1 – Simple & Usable Giles Colbourne 2010

n  2 – Communicating The User Experience Richard Caddick & Steve Cable 2011

n  3 – About Face 3 Alan Cooper, Robert Reimann & David Cronin 2007

n  4 – Undercover User Experience Design Cennydd Bowles & James Box 2010

n  5 – Don’t Make Me Think Steve Krug 2005

n  6 – Above The Fold Brian Miller 2011

n  7 – Presentation Zen Garr Reynolds 2008

n  8 – Logo Design Love David Airey 2010