Transactional Website

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Thomas Bontoft Transactional Website

Transactional Website

A transactional website is website that allows customer to transactions over the internet such as buying, selling or bank transfers. Usually a transactional will do two main things obtain details and collect payments. They obtain details such as the customers address etc. and collect payments via a debit/credit card or through payment sites such as PayPal.

Wellgosh

The website I have chosen to investigate is Wellgosh, I have chosen this as it is a local company that I Am familiar with. They sell items such as clothing, shoes and other clothing accessories; they attract an audience that is interested in clothing. The website has regular sales to attract more customers. As well as selling clothing they also offer gift cards that can be given to someone for an event such as a birthday or Christmas. They aim to be one of the leading and most respected websites of its kind. The website does not offer any services as it is only a small company so would not benefit from features such as live chat etc.

Structure of the website

The website features a black, grey and white colour scheme which is very simple yet effective. This makes the products stand out from the website. The colour scheme is consistent across the website as it is the

same on every page.

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The website has navigation across the top of the page which has the following headings: Brands, clothing, footwear, accessories, girls, sale, blog and help. When each button is hovered over it displays a drop down menu with more options for that particular category e.g. brand menu displays all the brands that they offer so when clicked on it will take you to the relevant page.

The font Helvetica is used throughout the website although for the titles it is type in all capitals whereas text such as description is typed in the standard format as this is easier to read. It is the same on every page as this gives a professional impression of the website.

The logo used is very simple but very recognisable. It matches the colour scheme used across the website and the use of black and white means that the text contrasts from the background. The font used in the logo is a standard font but like before it is very recognisable. A good logo gives a professional impression of the company.

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The homepage of the Wellgosh website is in some ways similar but also different to companies that sell the same products. Like the size? website they have a picture slideshow on the homepage which displays new products or products that are soon to be released and any other relevant news. But unlike size, Wellgosh shows the latest additions to the website with the prices just like the actual clothing page. This means there is more chance of people seeing something they like instantly so this could increase sales.

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The website has a dedicated page for the sale items. This means that they are separated from the full price items and can be views easily. The sale prices are in red which means that they stand out from the white background. This is important as it makes it eye catching meaning that it is likely someone will buy one of their products. The downfall is that the red writing doesn’t fit with the colour scheme across the rest of the website so this doesn’t look as professional.

The website occasionally runs competitions although when I looked there wasn’t any running. They also run other competitions over their social network sites such as Twitter and Instagram which would acts as a way of advertising their company.

When searching for a product on the website you can select the brand from the dropdown menu or search it using the search bar which is located on the navigation bar. When I selected ‘Fred Perry’ from the drop down box it came up with the relevant products as shown in the picture below. I was then able to click on my desired product to view more information about it or go on to buy it. When viewing the results of the search it enables you to use advanced setting such as order the products from prices low to high or view the newest products.

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When using the search bar I typed in ‘Adidas’ which then came up with a predictive search so it allowed me to click onto searches such as Adidas trainers and Adidas Clothing which saves time for the user and makes it easier to use.

When clicking on a chosen product it will take you to a dedicated page for the item as shown below. The page allows the visitor to read a brief description of the product and then select options such as sizes and colours. This means that there are fewer products on the main page so it’s not as cluttered. This makes the site easier to use and more customizable to the particular user.

Ways to capture information

Overt Methods

The website allows user to sign up to the newsletter by entering their name and email address. They will send an email every so often to a database of email addresses. The email could include information about latest products or promotions. The users will be interested in the email as they will have purposely signed up to the newsletter.

When purchasing items users have the option to sign up for an account. This means they can access their purchase information from recent purchases quickly and also store card details and their address for quicker transactions in the future. This is good as it makes the website easier to use and will attract more customers back to the site.

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Covert Methods

The Wellgosh site uses cookies to store information about customers such as IP Address, the browser they have used ad operating system. This useful as this can help the company to understand what a particular customer wants. For example they may choose to customize the website for that particular user based on certain products they have viewed in the past. Some companies choose to share the cookies they collect with third parties. A copy of their terms and conditions is shown below.

“Collection of Information

We collect personally identifiable information, like names, postal addresses, email addresses, etc., when voluntarily submitted by our visitors. The information you provide is used to fulfil you

specific request. This information is only used to fulfil your specific request, unless you give us permission to use it in another manner, for example to add you to one of our mailing lists.

Cookie/Tracking Technology

The Site may use cookie and tracking technology depending on the features offered. Cookie and tracking technology are useful for gathering information such as browser type and operating

system, tracking the number of visitors to the Site, and understanding how visitors use the Site. Cookies can also help customise the Site for visitors. Personal information cannot be collected via cookies and other tracking technology, however, if you previously provided personally identifiable information, cookies may be tied to such information. Aggregate cookie and tracking information

may be shared with third parties.

Distribution of Information

We may share information with governmental agencies or other companies assisting us in fraud prevention or investigation. We may do so when: (1) permitted or required by law; or, (2) trying to

protect against or prevent actual or potential fraud or unauthorised transactions; or, (3) investigating fraud which has already taken place. The information is not provided to these

companies for marketing purposes.

Commitment to Data Security

Your personally identifiable information is kept secure. Only authorised employees, agents and contractors (who have agreed to keep information secure and confidential) have access to this information. All emails and newsletters from this site allow you to opt out of further mailings.”

Techniques to retain and engage customers

It is important that the company retains previous customers and also makes the company attractive to potential customers. The web site is simple to use. The simplicity may make

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previous customers want to return if it was a stress free experience and easy to complete they may choose to return. The advantages of having an online shop and also a physical store are that people can get help wherever they are. The website allows people to email with any problems they may have and they should get a quick reply. A newsletter is a constant reminder of the shop to the customers as they won't forget about it. The website is constantly updated with new products so this means that there is always a reason for people to look back at the website. The use of competitions over social media such as Instagram helps the company spread word about their company. Customers can repost an image to enter the competition, which means followers of the customer will become aware of the company. In essence, it is a way of advertising and the only cost is the prize(s) of the competition.

Usability & Accessibility

The Wellgosh website has good features and features that could be improved. A good feature is the layout. It uses a standard layout, which many visitors would be familiar with. It features a navigation bar and the products below. The navigation bar has different categories which they can select and this is something used on many other similar websites. The pictures of products on search results and different categories are big enough to view the product, but not too big so that this is a large number of pages. A feature that I feel could be improved is the predictive search box. This sometimes displays searches that are misspelled, which doesn't give a professional impression of the company. I think they could also offer more offers, such as discount codes to attract more customers and retain existing customers. I opened the website using Internet Explorer and Google Chrome as shows below and it opens and works correctly in both.

Security

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Security features are important as it is vital that companies keep the details of their customer safe and secure. The details could be addresses or card details. If anyone got hold of these details, they could commit serious crimes such as fraud. In their privacy policy it states that they keep all data secure and only certain people that have been given permission can access this information. To the right is a screenshot of their privacy policy. It is important that a company displays a good security policy as this can reassure some customers.

Conclusion

The websites sole purpose is to allow the company to sell their products online. I think that they do this very well as they have a very good website and also good customer service. The website they have created is easy to use and can be used by almost anyone. It is available to users on computers and also other devices such as tablets and smartphones. They provide a good level of customer security as they ensure that all information is kept safe and secure. They are able to retain existing customers and engage potential use of customer with the use of newsletters and competitions, which are ran frequently. This is a type of low cost advertising which they have taken advantage of. There are some ways in which they could improve the website, such as the advanced search, but other than that, the website contains some good features for a company of their size. I only came across one spelling mistake on their website, so this gives a good impression of the company. It is easy for users to access contact information resulting in a good level of customer service.

Documents

Transactional Website