Week 3 Part A: Aesthetics, Design, and Branding

 When I read this weeks prompt, I immediately had a website come to mind. Zara (https://www.zara.com/ us/) is one of my favorite stores to shop at, however buying clothes from their online store is one the most challenging things to do. The website is clean and looks very modern, but finding and navigating is tricky. The most difficult thing is looking through the different types of categories. For example, the main page looks professional, but does not give much direction. Then from there the user would click the three bars at the top corner to be taken to the different types of clothing like shorts or dresses. After clicking one of those options it takes you to one picture of a model who isn't necessarily modeling any specific clothing item. It is hard to know what is exactly being sold. After scrolling down the outline of the page is out of order and hard to just scroll through. It takes an attentive mind to really shop. For me, I prefer something quick and easy to scroll through and be to check yes or no in my head whether or not I like the item or not. I think by adding more navigation and more direction, this site could be easier to use. In my opinion, Zara's website is sleek and modern, but not user friendly. I would much rather just shop in person. 

Another website I  think could be fixed is http://gatesnfences.com/. At the first click onto this website, my eyes hurt. There is a lot information on the initial page and this could create confusion to the user. Having to put a lot of effort into trying to even figure out what the business does creates user frustration and they will most likely click off to find something else. The options on the side is long and not needed. Something I would change is summarizing most of the information on the first page and taking the extra information and putting it onto a "About Us" or a "What We Do" page. This would create a nice organization in the website to be more user friendly. Another thing I would do is take away the randomly placed pictures and make it more into a slide show or put a gallery page somewhere on the page. I would also take away most of the tabs on the left and create a smaller and more organized section like a grid. I think this website isn't very professional, and if I was a consumer I would immediately click away. 

One website that comes to mind when discussing user friendly browsers, is Apple (https://www.apple.com/). Immediately when arriving on the website it is clean and modern, but gives the user direction. You are greeted with their newest product with bright and clear pictures. The website is organized while also giving enough details to make the user satisfied. I played around with the website and browsed the iPhone 12. The website takes you through steps of first asking which color of phone do you want and then you go through the process of answering each question like choosing which type of plan you have or giving you a total trade-in value if have a old iPhone. The website is precise and helpful when it walks you along through this buying process to give the user exactly what they want. It is professional and gives a modern approach to buying cell phones and other products. The use of this sleek website boosts customer sales and overall creates customer satisfaction. 

Another modernized and user-friendly website is Tesla (https://www.tesla.com/). This electric car company has changed the game in cars and a user can see that through their website. Like Apple, the user is greeted when arriving on the site by their newest model with summarized information and clean pictures. Following this, the user can choose to purchase a custom order or see existing inventory. Clicking on the existing inventory, the website has you enter in your zip code and model types you are interested in. It then gives you a detailed and organized selection of what is in your area along with the features and cost of the car. If the user does decide the customer order the car, the site walks you through each step including giving details and prices for the extra additions. One helpful feature Tesla includes is offering a ChatBot in the bottom right corner. This allows users to ask questions and have those questions answered immediately. The site allows customer to browse cars by model and allows them to be sorted by price, mileage, year, or distance. This sleek and innovative company creates this environment for users to feel comfortable and organized when purchasing a car. It is so easy that Tesla allows customers to purchase the car online and have it delivered to your doorstep within a short amount of time. They allow the customer to feel welcomed and satisfied all while doing something that can be very stressful. 

The overall design and aesthetics a website has can be a big impact for a company. This can either drive or eliminate sales. A website should be user friendly and give the customer a feel of trust and satisfaction. Purchasing something online can be risky and hard to trust, but by creating a website that gives honesty and reliability will leave customer feeling happy.