Amazon vs Blackwell - critique - draft

site purpose

Both sites have a clearly show that they are seller of books. Blackwell orientated towards selling academic books but Amazon's purpose all books and other items.
Because there are so many "other items" in Amazon's case it may be difficult to know what it doesn't actually stock and this could lead to some users spending time looking for things that aren't there.

finding the site

Type in the word "bookshop" into google and Amazon comes top in the sponsored links around third in the unpaid listings.

Blackwell is not on the front page. This could be in part because it is a book specialist and not a general book shop but could also be that it is penalised for it's badly written code that is unfriendly to search spiders.
It has done well to get the name bookshop in it's domain name, which would suggest there was some planning early on in it's development to be easily found.

Amazon code is also full of errors but has compensated google financially and has size on it's side.

Search using the works "bookshop academic" and Blackwell now is number one and the only sponsored link. This further demonstrates it's specialised academic purpose.


Navigation.

Both sites provide a link back to their home pages via their logo at the top left corner.
Blackwell tabbed navigation, as promoted by Steve Krug in the book "Don't make me Think" is very clear. Showing you where you are and it is easy to move between the tabs. There is additional navigation down the side. It's ever decreasing size shows how you are honing in on what you are looking for.
Amazon has recently changed it's navigation style which is a reflection of it's growing number of categories which have got to be too many for tabbed navigation which it had used, with great success for a number of years.

On both you can bypass the navigation and use the search facility and using this we found that Amazon and Blackwell sell for the same global suppliers.
Comparing the prices for when it supplies directly Amazon, for the examples we have tried is always lower in price.

Colour Scheme








Content

Amazon's content is driven by the user. It uses cookies, tracks your viewing, remembers your IP address and so builds up a database of what sort of user you are and delivers content to you that it thinks you would like to see. Very quickly Amazon has you adding things to your wish list. (And yes I have bought a book while writing this review!). It makes suggestions for books that could accompany the one you are buying and is always trying to increase the money you are spending.

Blackwell is database driven but is nowhere near as sophisticated as Amazon's. It simply provides the results of your search in a vertical list with no attempt to sell you anything other than exactly what you have asked for.


the end

493 words but needs some editing and something written on colour scheme.

Maybe you can have a think about that and maybe write something (50 words ish) .

Take a look at this website for a guide to colours and you will cover colour in Information Design.

http://www.mariaclaudiacortes.com/

Anyway let me know what you think.

website critique

tons of stuff you can google on how to do this

eg.
http://www.virtualpet.com/industry/howto/wsreview.htm

Post what you find

get blogging.

Hi

Thoughts ideas, interest relevant links.

Here's where to put them.

Need to have Rose's email to give her permission to getting posting.