QVM's
website sucks for shopping. As the digital age matures into a useful aid for
consumers it is important to offer facilities that make you competitive, and
one of the world's great markets just doesn't achieve that. But maybe a website
isn't the answer anyway.
A
couple of years ago we published an article about the inadequacies of the QVM
website's search facility. When you typed "socks" into the search box
it came up with an article on horseradish that "knocks your socks
off". Conspiracy theories about QVM's neglect of anything non-food were
given a real boost. Things have improved a little and when you type in
"socks" now you get the following entries -
1. An article
on the 25 days of Christmas which presumably contains reference to socks.
2. An article
on the Traders Giveaway of December 2014 which also presumably includes a
mention of socks.
3. Bruce
Goose - a sock seller.
4. Father's
Day 2014
5. A photo of
a horseradish - yep, that is still there.
If
you were looking for socks at QVM you would not be impressed. But it is not
just that the search facility isn't fine tuned enough to be shopper relevant,
it is the sluggishness of the whole operation that will deter the most patient
shopper. All entries are graphically intensive and individually they look quite
magnificent but you can make a cup of coffee while you wait for them to
download (this might be due to my local internet service) and impatient
shoppers just want the information not the pretty pictures. Dare we say that
this is a website designed by designers with little regard for their intended
audience – the shoppers.
Let's
try another category - "shoes". Here is what the search will bring up
-
1. Binder
Enterprises - sheepskin footwear.
2. A Plus
Market - presumably mentions shoes in the article.
3. Radical
Yes - a footwear trader although it wasn't clear where they operate from -
presumably on Therry St?
4. A Plus
Market - yep, another entry for this market.
5. A Plus
Market - again.
6. Ausfireopals
- presumably selling opal footwear.
You
can see our point. This is not a shopper friendly website. In fairness to the
designers, it does a good job of informing on events and giving a general
overview of market operations.
But
back to our opening paragraph and the suggestion that "maybe a website
isn't the answer anyway". Contemporary business discussion does question
whether a website should be the number one gateway to a retail business. A
professional shoppers website can be very valuable, but increasingly apps are
providing the functionality that shoppers and retailers are looking for. A
professionally written app can provide enhanced interaction, with a website
being just a source of general information.
So
the choices would appear to be a slick, professional website that meets all the
customer’s needs or a slick, professional app with a website as an adjunct. QVM
has neither, and it is time that inadequacy was corrected.
By
Greg Smith