design
Similarities? clothingattesco.com vs schuh.co.uk
A short blog post for you this evening because I’m about to enjoy a cubic foot of brioche and custard.
Sites do occasionally end up looking like each other out of chance: this I accept. However, is it just me, or can anyone else see a similarity between the homepage designs of www.clothingattesco.com & www.schuh.co.uk ? Bar the colours, they look…familiar:
- The header is virtually identical in terms of logo placement and spacing
- Baskets & associated tools in the same place
- Top nav disturbingly similar in layout
- Right navs identical in size
- Email address signup in bottom right
Here’s some helpful comparison graphics for those of you who’re still unsure.
I dunno: call me cynical – or maybe my judgement is clouded with thoughts of brioche. What do you think?
2Riverisland.com review: an SEO failure.
After reading the rather good eConsultancy review of the recently relaunched M&S site, it got me in the mood for taking a look at what else was around in terms of online clothing retailers. I spotted an opportunity to review the website of high-street brand name River Island.
Now, I’m no fashionista (updating my blog as often as I do generally precludes me from that particular gang), so this could work one of two ways:
- I’ll have no preconceived ideas about what works as a fashion site and therefore be open to persuasion, or
- I’ll be even more rigorous in my critique and will show absolutely no mercy or hesitation in being mean about their online offering
Which will it be? Do you even have to ask? Read on!
5Ryanair.com review
Having just been sent a great link to Ryanair’s response to the recent Panorama documentary, I thought I’d not only share it with you all (since it is inflammatory, funny and has a nice tongue-in-cheek approach to the whole thing), but also take a close – more critical – look at the Ryanair site. Panorama drew on the opinions of a web usability expert who, as far as I can see, has missed an opportunity.
So, predictably…
A review of www.ryanair.com
Ryanair are proud of the fact that they’re supposedly more popular than British Airways, and that their MD is “a kind and gentle, caring and thoughtful, sensitive and saintly human being widely beloved by all Ryanair’s 6,500 people and its 66m passengers”
Given that they’re so proud, how do you think their website will fare? Do you really have to ask? Read on!
8Bethere.co.uk – I’ve changed my mind.
I took a good long look at the BE site this eve, and I’ve decided I don’t like it after all. Functionality is all well and good, but there’s a balance between functionality and … well, pants. Structurally, the IA is fine, but the design itself really needs re-doing.
However, people on their forums need to get a grip: hysterical cries of “I won’t be recommending BE to anyone any more because of their branding!!!!” is quite simply retarded.
0A review of the new Schuh.co.uk site!
In the latest part of the on-going saga of my reviewing the Schuh website(s), they’ve relaunched their website today! So, without further ado…
A review of the new www.schuh.co.uk site
After my previous entries about the Schuh sites, you may recall some of the previous points:
- Ineffective design templates
- Bad site structure, both technically and IA-wise
- Bizarre graphics
- Inconsistent user journey
- Lack of hierarchy
Have they addressed these issues? Does the site now support the brand adequately? And – perhaps most importantly – do they stock those Dekline shoes I wanted all those months ago? Read on!
5A review of Directline.com
Whilst wandering around the web, I stumbled across the Direct Line website and thought I’d write a quick review of their web offering.
Being the most dominant direct insurer in the market brings great responsibility. Does your website support your brand and support your customer proposition? Can a visitor tell where they’ve arrived at? As the biggest fish in the pond, it’s easy to get complacent and neglect your website.
Have Direct Line done their duty? Or have they let it go to the dogs? Read on and find out!
1A review of www.graze.com
One could be forgiven for thinking that a) I’ve an obsession with online shoe retailer reviews, and b) that I only like to review sites that I think are complete pants…and, in a way, you’d be right. But I intend to break the mould this lunchtime!
Last year, I spotted www.graze.com – basically an online fruit & nut seller – with a vaguely unique proposition of delivering these lovely bowel-movement-inducing goods direct to your desk. Well, your office, at least. I promptly signed up because I was in need of an excuse to eat slightly better, and also because the design of the site was really rather good.
It’s been a while since I looked at the site, so without further ado, read on and find out whether it’s still tickling me in the designlustpants.
0A review of Admiral.com
What else do I do with my lunchtimes other than look at websites to criticise? Not a lot, it seems. The victim subject today is Admiral.com, one of the UK’s leading insurers, responsible for brands such as Diamond, Elephant and of course Admiral themselves.
Being in such an Admirable (haha!) position, you’d have hoped their site might reflect their customer ‘promise’ of “providing low cost car insurance for younger drivers, people living in cities and those driving performance cars.” Does it cut the mustard? What other condiments could it successfully incise? Read on!
0Top 5 stupid web design mistakes
Having reviewed a fair few sites over the last year or so, I’ve compiled a quick list of top 5 web design mistakes. It’s by no means exhaustive, but covers the basics. Read on!
0Image(factory) isn’t everything
In order to prove that I’m not obsessed with online shoe e-tailers, I’ve been on the lookout for other sites that are really crying out for a review…and I’ve been pointed toward Image Factory‘s site, a UK-based printing company owned by US print giant Quarto. So what follows, predictably, is…
A critique of www.imagefactoryuk.com
Perhaps naively, I thought a printworks would be chock-full of creative people who’d not let their company website look like the pavement outside an all-night takeaway. Was I right? Was I wrong? Read on and find out. I know you just can’t wait…
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