The purpose of
this blog is to discuss the usability of a website. For this task I will select
the Student Bookstore (SBS) website, www.sbsmsu.com. I will provide
my analysis in the form of answers to the following questions:
What were you
trying to do?
I was trying to locate a particular textbook for a class at
Lawrence Technological University (LTU). This particular bookstore is close
enough that it allows me to save on shipping costs, by picking up the textbook
at the store. However, to save on gas I like to verify the book is in stock
before driving over there (approx. 35 miles).
How easy was it
to do what you were trying to do?
Particularly difficult without knowing which Lansing
Community College (LCC) course or Michigan State University (MSU) course is
comparable to the LTU course. Even if you decipher the acronyms for department,
you would still have to choose the correct course and section numbers.
What would have
made it easier?
I think being able to search for books by titles, authors,
and/or ISBN would be extremely helpful. Customers can ask a sales associate to
help with these searches, but that would require making a trip to the store and
wasting time if you they don’t have what you want. The website has the option
to search by keywords, but fails to produce accurate results when trying to
search by title, author, and ISBN.
How did your
experience impact your perception of the company?
I would say this experience impacted my perception a little,
in a negative way. I always felt that SBS had a good selection of textbooks at
a reasonable price, and I would like to continue giving them my business. However,
it appears SBS is content with selling books only to LCC and MSU students. I
think this limits them to only a small percentage of the market share. With a
growing number of people seeking changing career paths and going back to
school, demand for textbooks is constantly growing. Online degrees and
university partnerships have lead to a somewhat standardized approach to which
textbooks are required. Since a lot of the same textbooks are used from
university to university, being able to search by title, author, or ISBN would
help ensure your customers are able to find what they are looking for and not
going elsewhere.
I've conducted business with the Student Book Store twice. Each time was for a textbook for LCC courses and the first time they didn't even have the LCC course codes figured out. That time I had visited the store in person. The second time I actually ordered a book off Amazon that happened to be sold from SBS. When I received the book it was in much worse condition than expected. Overall I've been pretty disappointed with this particular dealer.
ReplyDeleteI definitely agree with you SBS expanding their market share would definitely be an advantage on their end, especially along with the demand on education. Great post.
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