RATING: 4/10
Dick Smith hasn't done too badly with its online venture. The screens were relatively easy to move around, and product layouts and descriptions were extensive. Most frustrating then was the fact we could only purchase two items from our list--incredibly, the elusive items were either not offered for online purchase, or they were out of stock. Further to our disappointment, the site was not compatible with Mac OS, with the main navigation system totally disappearing, leaving Mac users staring at a picture of a "ready to shop" family.
The inability to purchase the full range of items was a real surprise, and unfortunate, as the site itself is essentially well laid out. Sure, it would have been handy to view some items simultaneously and the search function could use some work, but none of it was much use anyway, due to the minimal amount of products available for purchase. Therefore, the customer rating is more reflective of their disappointment at the range of items available to them than the actual quality ofthe site. The moral for Dick Smith and others: if you can't buy it online, then don't tell us about it and don't direct us to your offline store--why are we on the Net in the first place?
Hits
- Descriptions of products were extensive, with clear pictures and loads of useful technical detail.
- The site's "Bookmarks" are a useful feature for when you are shopping and want to return to an item.
- "Reduced to clear" and "Top 10" listings are great!
Misses
- The site was not compatible with Mac OS.
- We couldn't view items simultaneously, which was a disadvantage.
- From our tester: "I was ready and able to buy a $2600 laptop but was told I could only purchase the item at a retail store". Or they could always buy it from a competitor online!
- The range of items available was limited (eg, the only Palm available was the Palm V, and the optical mouse was out of stock).
Member Benefits
- None apparent.
Purchasing Process
- Our tester had to register before they could purchase, this was a real negative from the tester's point of view.
- Once we had registered we were left in limbo. It would be preferable to be taken back to your shopping cart, or be provided with some form of direction.
- A large number of redundant screens are provided until you finally get to enter your credit card details and proceed.
- It was clear to the customer they had completed the purchase, as the final screen was informative and directed the customer back to the "shop front".
Search Facility
- Searching using the "product search" facility was very slow and provided many accessories but no matches to the specific items we were looking for. Browsing for computers was more fruitful.
- Items displayed would benefit from a small picture on the same screen, rather than moving to another screen to view a single item. General Usability
- The search function needs improving.
- The "Category selector" page feels unfinished and customers were waiting for it to finish downloading--unfortunately it already had.
- The site is essentially clean and clear--it was easy to navigate through and locate items of interest.
- The use of frames on the site is a bonus and also strongly recommended, as this means scrolling the product list does not mean losing your navigation system.
- The site does not comply with W3C accessibility guidelines.
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