Below there are some screenshots of how it works:
Monday, 20 December 2010
Search Feature
Today I have been working on the search feature I want to have on my site. This will allow the users to search for products by entering key words into the search box that will be on all the pages on my site.
Below there are some screenshots of how it works:
Below there are some screenshots of how it works:
Monday, 6 December 2010
Upload Image Form
Today I have been working on an image upload form so if users are logged into the site, they can upload an image when adding a new product to the website. So far I have managed to get it so the user can click 'browse' to select an image from their computer, click 'open', click 'upload' and then their image is saved into my 'uploaded images' folder and they are told that the upload was successful. Next I need to figure out how to get the image information from that folder and into the products table in my database so the image is also displayed when the data about a product is pulled out of the data and is displayed on the web page. Below is the code I have used so far and screenshots of how it is working at the moment.
Above: Code used
Above: User clicks browse to select an image to upload 
Above: The user selects an image from their computer
Above: The selected file is shown here and then the user then clicks 'submit'
Above: The user is then told the file uploaded successfully
Above: The uploaded image in the uploaded images folder
Above: This is the image the user uploaded
Above: Code used
Above: User clicks browse to select an image to upload
Above: The user selects an image from their computer
Above: The selected file is shown here and then the user then clicks 'submit'
Above: The user is then told the file uploaded successfully
Above: The uploaded image in the uploaded images folder
Above: This is the image the user uploaded
Sunday, 5 December 2010
Updated Designs
(to complete: explain why they are different colour, different words used, different questions asked etc.)
Thursday, 2 December 2010
Emailed Boutiques
Today I emailed the gift boutiques on Princes Avenue and Newland Avenue to explain again what my project is about and I asked them which would be the easiest way for me to get some images of products for the site. Just waiting for them to reply now.
Monday, 22 November 2010
Tuesday, 9 November 2010
Design - Male & Female Users
I decided to make the design of my website aimed at female users but I have thought about it again because I wanted to aim it at both genders. I thought the design would have to be quite simple and may look a bit boring if I tried to design the site so it appeals to male and female users but I have now thought about maybe having two different designs for my website, one for female users buying gifts for females and one for males buying gifts for females. This would allow me to create a girly design I was originally going to do for females users but also allow me to create a design aimed at male users. I think this is a good idea because I would like male users to use my site because I think it would give them ideas for gifts that they wouldn't have normally thought of so my site could change the way men think when coming to buy gifts for females.
There are already sites out there that have done this before and here are a few examples:
http://www.animal.co.uk/
When users vistit this site they are take to a page where it asks the user whether they are male or female. When the user clicks the female option, the user is taken to the women section of the site which has a dark purple/pink header. When the user clicks on the men option, the user is taken to the men section which uses a black header.
There are already sites out there that have done this before and here are a few examples:
http://www.animal.co.uk/
When users vistit this site they are take to a page where it asks the user whether they are male or female. When the user clicks the female option, the user is taken to the women section of the site which has a dark purple/pink header. When the user clicks on the men option, the user is taken to the men section which uses a black header.
When the user visits this site, they are taken to the female section of the site which displays the header and some of the links in pink. When the user clicks on the 'mens store' link, the user is taken to the mens section which displays the header and some of the links in blue.
Friday, 5 November 2010
Second Visit to Princes Avenue
Today I made a quick visit to two of the gift boutiques on Princes Avenue to inform them of what my project was about and what I intend to do. The purpose of this visit was to find out whether or not they would be interested in advertising their products on my website. The two gift boutiques I visited were Polly Anna and Bogoh Boutique.
(to complete)
(to complete)
Thursday, 28 October 2010
Promoting Website
I have thought about how I will promote my website so people will know about and visit it so I have done some research to try find out the most effective ways to promote websites. The methods I felt were suitable for my site and the ones I could use are:
- Social networking sites
- Online forums and directories
- Leaflets
Social Networking Sites:
Social networking sites can be a good way to promote businesses and websites and used to advertise products and services because these sites have many users that visit the networking site regularly. The site I have chosen to use is Facebook. This is because my website is aimed at a young audience and a lot of young people use Facebook (the average age of users that use Facebook is 26yrs). The way I would promote my website would be to create a Facebook page and include information on that page to persuade users to visit my website. In the about section, I would have a short paragraph saying what the gift finder site is about and how it works. On the main page I would post special offers, new products etc when they come available but I would try to make sure I posted quality content so people are not put off the page. There would also be my website address and email address in the information section.
Online Forums & Directories:
From research I have done to find out how to promote websites, I have found out more about link building. Link building helps a website perform better in search engine results because they look at the websites popularity and this helps the search engine position each website in their results. Search engines use page ranks to determine a websites position and the higher the page rank, the higher the position so it is important to get other websites to link to my website. The way I could get more sites to link to my website would be to add my web address to web directories and forums. This would not only improve the website's performance in search engines but would also take people from the forum or directory direct to my website so I could potentially get more users visiting my website.
Leaflets:
Another way to promote my website would be to design and print leaflets with information about the website and the web address. Leaflet dropping would be an option so a lot of people would get to know about the website and also these could be placed in shops and noticeboards in different towns and villages around Hull to promote the Princes Avenue and Newland Avenue area of Hull.
Websites used for this research:
www.socialmediatoday.com/smc/78505
www.wilsonweb.com/articles/checklists.htm
Saturday, 23 October 2010
Development Schedule
October: Project Proposal
By the end of October I would like to have completed my project proposal document
November: Visual Designs
By the end of November I would like to have completed all visual design including wireframes, sketches and mock-ups.
December: Information for site
By the end of December I would like to have collected all the images and information about each product that will be on my site and put this information into my database for my site.
January: PHP
Start working on the PHP and by the end of January I would like to have created a search box so the database can be searched and return relevant results to the keyword the user enters in the search box. Then start working on the log in section.
February: PHP & design
By the end of February I would like to have completed most of the PHP work and start working on the look of the website.
March: Design & Coding
By the end of March I would like to have completed all the designing and all the coding for the site.
April: User Testing
By the end of April I would like to have carried out some user testing and also made the appropriate changes to improve my website.
May: Hand in
In May 2011, hand in all work for this project including all documentation, website files and finish online blog.
By the end of October I would like to have completed my project proposal document
November: Visual Designs
By the end of November I would like to have completed all visual design including wireframes, sketches and mock-ups.
December: Information for site
By the end of December I would like to have collected all the images and information about each product that will be on my site and put this information into my database for my site.
January: PHP
Start working on the PHP and by the end of January I would like to have created a search box so the database can be searched and return relevant results to the keyword the user enters in the search box. Then start working on the log in section.
February: PHP & design
By the end of February I would like to have completed most of the PHP work and start working on the look of the website.
March: Design & Coding
By the end of March I would like to have completed all the designing and all the coding for the site.
April: User Testing
By the end of April I would like to have carried out some user testing and also made the appropriate changes to improve my website.
May: Hand in
In May 2011, hand in all work for this project including all documentation, website files and finish online blog.
Monday, 18 October 2010
Sunday, 17 October 2010
Mood Board
I chose to do a mood board for my website which shows how I want my site to look and feel. The images I have used show that I want my site to look cute, girly and colourful.Saturday, 16 October 2010
Project Structure
The website will have both global and local navigation. The global navigation will be consistent though-out the site and the local navigation will be different within each section. The dark blue box on the structure shown above is the home page. The lighter blue boxes underneath the home page are the pages that can be accessed by clicking on the links on the navigation bar. This is the global navigation as these links will be on every page in the same place on the page so it is consistent. The light blue boxes underneath the global navigation show the navigation that will be within each section. This is called the local navigation because these links will not be on every page and will only be on the pages that are within a certain section.
Friday, 15 October 2010
Project Content
The main component I will be producing is the actual gift finder website. Within the website there will be a number of different sections. The main sections on this website will be the home page, gift page and the boutique page. The home page will be important because it will show the user the different ways they can search the websites for gifts. It will have a search box where the user can enter keywords to see if there are any gifts available that are similar to what they are looking for. There will also be a search feature where the user chooses an option within each drop down box e.g. a price range, preferred colour, category etc. and the website will try and return results that match all the options they choose e.g. if they chose the jewellery category, colour purple and price range under £10, the results could return a purple bracelet that costs £8. Another way the user will be able to search the site will be to view products by category, price, colour or boutique so on the home page I will make the option clear by using icons for each one under a heading that reads ‘Search by’. The final way to search is to simply click on the ‘gifts’ link on the navigation bar at the top of the home page.
When the user clicks on the gift link on the navigation bar, it will take the user to the gifts page. This page will display all the gifts that all the different boutiques sell. There will be options at the top of this page above the products that allows the user to filter the results and also sort the results. They will be able to sort the results by choosing an option from the drop down box e.g. sort by price: low>high, newest gifts etc. The user will also be able to filter the results by viewing results by category, colour, price or boutique and then the site will display relevant results. When the products are displayed, each product will show the product name, product image and product price. That is the only information that is shown about each gift on this page and if the user wants to find out more they would have to click on the product and then it would take them to another page which would display more information such as the a description, boutique name and where the boutique is located so they would know where to go to find the shop.
When the user clicks on the boutique link on the navigation bar, it will take them to a page that shows all the boutiques that have products on the website. For each one, the name of the business and an image of their shop will be displayed on this page and when the user clicks on one, they will be taken to another page that displays more information. This information will be about the boutique, information about who they are and what kind of products they sell. This page will also provide the user with contact details such as address, telephone number, email address and a map of where their shop is located.
Another main section that will be on my website will be the log in section. This will be for the businesses to enter log in details and then be able to add, edit and remove products to and from my website. They can add new products, edit information such as prices, and remove products they no longer sell. There will be a small link in the footer of the website that they can click on which will then take them to a screen that will ask for their username and password. Once they are logged onto the site there will be a page that will let them choose whether they want to add a new product, edit an existing product or delete an existing product. If they choose to add a new product they will be taken to a web page with a form where they would enter information about the product such as name, price, and description and then upload an image of that product. If they choose to edit a product they will be taken to a web page displaying all the products they sell which are on my site and when they click on one to edit, they will be taken to a form like the form to add a product except all the product information will already be there and then they can just make the changes they want and click update. If they choose to delete a product they will be taken to a page displaying all the products they sell which are on my site and then they click on a product to delete, they will be asked if they are sure they want to delete it and when they click yes, the product will be removed from my site.
As well as my website, I would also like to create a newsletter that would be sent to users that have signed up by entering their email address on my site. The newsletter would include information about new products that have been added to the site and any special offers the shops have. This newsletter would be sent out monthly because I don’t think there would be enough new information to fill a newsletter to send out weekly or fortnightly.
I will also be keeping an online blog which shows everything I have done for this project and when I did it. This will include ideas, research, sketches, prototypes, and any other tasks I will do for this project.
When the user clicks on the gift link on the navigation bar, it will take the user to the gifts page. This page will display all the gifts that all the different boutiques sell. There will be options at the top of this page above the products that allows the user to filter the results and also sort the results. They will be able to sort the results by choosing an option from the drop down box e.g. sort by price: low>high, newest gifts etc. The user will also be able to filter the results by viewing results by category, colour, price or boutique and then the site will display relevant results. When the products are displayed, each product will show the product name, product image and product price. That is the only information that is shown about each gift on this page and if the user wants to find out more they would have to click on the product and then it would take them to another page which would display more information such as the a description, boutique name and where the boutique is located so they would know where to go to find the shop.
When the user clicks on the boutique link on the navigation bar, it will take them to a page that shows all the boutiques that have products on the website. For each one, the name of the business and an image of their shop will be displayed on this page and when the user clicks on one, they will be taken to another page that displays more information. This information will be about the boutique, information about who they are and what kind of products they sell. This page will also provide the user with contact details such as address, telephone number, email address and a map of where their shop is located.
Another main section that will be on my website will be the log in section. This will be for the businesses to enter log in details and then be able to add, edit and remove products to and from my website. They can add new products, edit information such as prices, and remove products they no longer sell. There will be a small link in the footer of the website that they can click on which will then take them to a screen that will ask for their username and password. Once they are logged onto the site there will be a page that will let them choose whether they want to add a new product, edit an existing product or delete an existing product. If they choose to add a new product they will be taken to a web page with a form where they would enter information about the product such as name, price, and description and then upload an image of that product. If they choose to edit a product they will be taken to a web page displaying all the products they sell which are on my site and when they click on one to edit, they will be taken to a form like the form to add a product except all the product information will already be there and then they can just make the changes they want and click update. If they choose to delete a product they will be taken to a page displaying all the products they sell which are on my site and then they click on a product to delete, they will be asked if they are sure they want to delete it and when they click yes, the product will be removed from my site.
As well as my website, I would also like to create a newsletter that would be sent to users that have signed up by entering their email address on my site. The newsletter would include information about new products that have been added to the site and any special offers the shops have. This newsletter would be sent out monthly because I don’t think there would be enough new information to fill a newsletter to send out weekly or fortnightly.
I will also be keeping an online blog which shows everything I have done for this project and when I did it. This will include ideas, research, sketches, prototypes, and any other tasks I will do for this project.
Sunday, 10 October 2010
Friday, 8 October 2010
Online Shopping VS Offline Shopping
I have now researched online shopping and offline shopping and how customers research products and how they purchase products.
-42% of consumers researched online and then purchased the products online
-34% of consumers researched online and then went to the shops to purchase the products
-21% of consumers researched online, went to the store to check out the products and then went back online to purchase them
-12% visited a store and then purchased the products online
-7% purchased the product in store and then research them online afterwards
-Businesses should try and aim themselves to both online and offline customers
-People sometimes get annoyed when they find a product online, go to the store to purchase it and find out the item is out of stock in store.
-People can find online shopping annoying as they have to wait longer to receive their order and they have to pay for delivery which will make their order more expensive than purchasing the product in store
-A lot of customers prefer to shop in store because the can see the exact colour and size of a product
-People researching online spend more time looking at product descriptions rather than looking at product images.
-Most people would prefer to see items in person before purchasing
-Some people are willing to pay up to 50% more for products they can see and touch rather than products online
-Online shopping can be more convenient for people, can be cheaper prices than in store and customers have unlimited access to an online shop
-People are largely influenced by the presentation of products or services
-Some people will pay attention to the smallest detail if they are going to make a purchase which makes presentation even more important
-Online retailers should encourage product reviews
Websites used to help me with this research:
http://googleretail.blogspot.com/2010/03/trend-to-watch-research-purchase.html
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/320788/the_benefits_of_shopping_online_vs.html?cat=46
http://www.smallbusinessnewz.com/topnews/2010/09/16/offline-retail-vs-online-retail
-42% of consumers researched online and then purchased the products online
-34% of consumers researched online and then went to the shops to purchase the products
-21% of consumers researched online, went to the store to check out the products and then went back online to purchase them
-12% visited a store and then purchased the products online
-7% purchased the product in store and then research them online afterwards
-Businesses should try and aim themselves to both online and offline customers
-People sometimes get annoyed when they find a product online, go to the store to purchase it and find out the item is out of stock in store.
-People can find online shopping annoying as they have to wait longer to receive their order and they have to pay for delivery which will make their order more expensive than purchasing the product in store
-A lot of customers prefer to shop in store because the can see the exact colour and size of a product
-People researching online spend more time looking at product descriptions rather than looking at product images.
-Most people would prefer to see items in person before purchasing
-Some people are willing to pay up to 50% more for products they can see and touch rather than products online
-Online shopping can be more convenient for people, can be cheaper prices than in store and customers have unlimited access to an online shop
-People are largely influenced by the presentation of products or services
-Some people will pay attention to the smallest detail if they are going to make a purchase which makes presentation even more important
-Online retailers should encourage product reviews
Websites used to help me with this research:
http://googleretail.blogspot.com/2010/03/trend-to-watch-research-purchase.html
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/320788/the_benefits_of_shopping_online_vs.html?cat=46
http://www.smallbusinessnewz.com/topnews/2010/09/16/offline-retail-vs-online-retail
Saturday, 2 October 2010
Pros & Cons of Using High Street Companies
Pros:
- The gift finder website would be able to target both genders as there a lots of high street shops for men and women.
-A lot more choice of gifts
-Lots of different types of gifts
Cons:
-Not all high street stores offer affiliating because they do not depend on online purchases
-Most companies who do allow people to affiliate and link to their website have certain restrictions
-Using gifts from high street stores could be quite common as people might have already seen them in the shops and if they saw something in the shop but wanted to purchase it online, they would know where to find it and go straight to the store's website as there would not be any need for a gift finder website to help them.
- The gift finder website would be able to target both genders as there a lots of high street shops for men and women.
-A lot more choice of gifts
-Lots of different types of gifts
Cons:
-Not all high street stores offer affiliating because they do not depend on online purchases
-Most companies who do allow people to affiliate and link to their website have certain restrictions
-Using gifts from high street stores could be quite common as people might have already seen them in the shops and if they saw something in the shop but wanted to purchase it online, they would know where to find it and go straight to the store's website as there would not be any need for a gift finder website to help them.
Pros & Cons of Using Small Gift Businesses
Pros:
-Unique gifts that people may not normally find in high street shops
-People may return to use my site if they like being able to find different gifts to what they would normally find
-My website could potentially help small businesses as people would be getting directed from my site to their site so they have got more chance of getting sales
-My design could be more interesting because instead of aiming the website at both genders, I would just aim it at the female audience as most of the gifts in these little gift shops are targetted at females
Cons:
-Quite a lot of the small businesses I visited only sell their products in their shop and not online so this would be a problem as I wouldn't be able to direct users anywhere to purchase the gifts they sell
-Could be quite difficult to find businesses that sell online as well as in their shops
-Unique gifts that people may not normally find in high street shops
-People may return to use my site if they like being able to find different gifts to what they would normally find
-My website could potentially help small businesses as people would be getting directed from my site to their site so they have got more chance of getting sales
-My design could be more interesting because instead of aiming the website at both genders, I would just aim it at the female audience as most of the gifts in these little gift shops are targetted at females
Cons:
-Quite a lot of the small businesses I visited only sell their products in their shop and not online so this would be a problem as I wouldn't be able to direct users anywhere to purchase the gifts they sell
-Could be quite difficult to find businesses that sell online as well as in their shops
Pine-apple
The final shop I visited was Pine-apple on Beverley Road, Hull and above shows the type of gifts that they sell.http://www.pine-apple.co.uk/
Unlike the previous shops, this shop also has a website where people can purchase products online so this would be suitable for my project as I can link from my website to product pages on their website.
Bogoh Boutique
The third shop I visited was Bogoh Boutique on Princes Avenue, Hull and above are the types of gifts they sell.http://www.bogoh.co.uk/
Again, this small gift business has a website but they don't offer people to purchase their products online but instead just give people information about them, contact information and a bit of information about what sort of products they sell in their shop.
Polly Anna
Another shop I visited was Polly Anna on Princes Avenue, Hull. Below are some images that show the types of gifts that they sell.
Again, these gifts are aimed at female recipients and would be suitable to put these gifts on my website but they don't have a website where they sell their products so I would be unable to use this small business as I wouldn't have any information about each gift or a product page to link to.http://www.pollyanna.biz/
This is their website and it only contains basic information about them such as information about them and how to find them etc.
This is their website and it only contains basic information about them such as information about them and how to find them etc.Stellar Interiors
One of the shops I visited was Stellar Interiors on Princes Avenue, Hull. Below are some images that show the types of gifts that they sell.
These gifts are clearly aimed at female recipients and would be suitable for my gift finder website but the only problem is, they do not have a website where people can purchase their products online.
This website only tells people about the types of products they sell in their shop on Princes Avenue and does not give the user an option to purchase online. Small Gift Businesses
As I am creating a website that allows users to search for gifts, I went and visited a number of gift shops in Hull. I went to see what sort of things they sold and to see if they were different to what people could find in normal high street stores. Whilst visiting these shops I noted the name of the shop and also took note of their products.
The shops I visited were:
-Stellar Interiors (Princes Avenue)
-Polly Anna (Princes Avenue)
-Bogoh Boutique (Princes Avenue)
-Pine-apple (Beverley Road)
From my visit to these small gift shops I found out that they sold a lot of unique gifts that were different to shops on the highstreet and using these gifts on my website would make it more interesing as people would be finding gifts they have difficulty finding elsewhere.
The next step now is to see if these gift shops have websites where they sell their products online.
The shops I visited were:
-Stellar Interiors (Princes Avenue)
-Polly Anna (Princes Avenue)
-Bogoh Boutique (Princes Avenue)
-Pine-apple (Beverley Road)
From my visit to these small gift shops I found out that they sold a lot of unique gifts that were different to shops on the highstreet and using these gifts on my website would make it more interesing as people would be finding gifts they have difficulty finding elsewhere.
The next step now is to see if these gift shops have websites where they sell their products online.
Designing for Different Genders
I have been thinking about the design for the gift finder website and have been finding it difficult to come up with a design that would be suitable for both genders so I have decided to research gender differences in design.
Many websites have a male gender bias because women have the ability to think like a man far more easily and more often than a man can think like a women
Women's Preferences in Design:
-They prefer pages with more colour in the background and typeface
-They prefer more rounded shapes and rounded edges
-When looking at images on websites they prefer more informal images than posed images
-Women generally prefer sites that have been designed by women
-They prefer soft, neutral tones and gradients
-Women don't like cluttered sites that use a lot of links, loud music or flashy videos
Men's Preferences in Design:
-They prefer pages with dark colours
-They prefer straighter lines and fewer colours
-When looking at images they prefered the three-dimensional look and images of self-propelling rather than stationary objects.
-Men generally prefer sites that have been designed by men
-They prefer the language used on websites to be more formal or expert language than informal
Some organisations try to design websites for both men and women equally but research shows that more websites are biased towards men.
Businesses can be losing money because they are not meeting the visual needs of their target audience.
Websites used for this research:
www.imediaconnection.com/content/18685.imc
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/4740173.stm
http://www.ehow.com/how_5838142_design-websites-women.html
http://blog.auinteractive.com/what-women-want-designing-websites-for-women
Many websites have a male gender bias because women have the ability to think like a man far more easily and more often than a man can think like a women
Women's Preferences in Design:
-They prefer pages with more colour in the background and typeface
-They prefer more rounded shapes and rounded edges
-When looking at images on websites they prefer more informal images than posed images
-Women generally prefer sites that have been designed by women
-They prefer soft, neutral tones and gradients
-Women don't like cluttered sites that use a lot of links, loud music or flashy videos
Men's Preferences in Design:
-They prefer pages with dark colours
-They prefer straighter lines and fewer colours
-When looking at images they prefered the three-dimensional look and images of self-propelling rather than stationary objects.
-Men generally prefer sites that have been designed by men
-They prefer the language used on websites to be more formal or expert language than informal
Some organisations try to design websites for both men and women equally but research shows that more websites are biased towards men.
Businesses can be losing money because they are not meeting the visual needs of their target audience.
Websites used for this research:
www.imediaconnection.com/content/18685.imc
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/4740173.stm
http://www.ehow.com/how_5838142_design-websites-women.html
http://blog.auinteractive.com/what-women-want-designing-websites-for-women
Saturday, 18 September 2010
Gift Ideas for Men
Clothing:
-Shirts & T-shirts
-Hoodies & Jumpers
-Coats & Jackets
-Jeans & Trousers
-Shorts & Crops
-Swimwear
-Nightwear
-Dressing Up Outfits
Accessories:
-Watches
-Jewellery
-Belts
-Wallets
-Aftershave
Other:
-Experience Days Outs
-Guitars
-Gaming Consoles (PS3, XBOX, WII, PSP etc.)
-Games for the Consoles
-iPods
-Alcoholic Gifts
-Chocolate/ Sweet Gifts
Gift Ideas for Women
Clothing:-Tops & T-shirts
-Hoodies & Jumpers
-Coats & Jackets
-Jeans & Trousers
-Shorts & Crops
-Skirts & Dresses
-Swimwear
-Nightwear
-Dressing Up Outfits
-Footwear
Accessories:
-Jewellery
-Makeup
-Watches
-Perfume
-Handbags
-Purses
-Umbrellas
Other:
-Chocolate/ Sweet gifts
-Alcoholic Gifts
-Spa Breaks
-Photoshoot Gift
-Bath Sets
-Flowers
Friday, 17 September 2010
Gift Ideas for Children
Toys
-Gaming Consoles & Accessories
-Action Figures
-Animal Toys
-Cars & Trains
-Construction
-Dolls & Accessories
-Games
-Radio Controlled Toys
-Role Playing Toys
-Soft Toys
-Creative & Discovery Toys
-Bikes
-Inflatable Toys
-Playhouses
-Sandpits
-Slides & Swings
-Trampolines
Clothing
-Tops & T-shirts
-Hoodies & Jumpers
-Coats & Jackets
-Jeans & Trousers
-Shorts & Crops
-Skirts & Dresses
-Swimwear
-Nightwear
-Dressing Up Outfits
-Accessories
Other
Watches
Jewellery
Gift Vouchers
Websites used for this research:
http://www.next.co.uk/
http://www.toysrus.co.uk/
http://www.argos.co.uk/
http://www.debenhams.com/
Gift Ideas Brainstorm
I have started to think of the different types of gifts that could be on my website for men, women and children. This is because I am going to look on different websites to find gifts that would be suitable on my website and put information about them into my database so when the user searches the database they will get relevant results back. I have started off with a brainstorm of the different gifts that could be within each category but I will also collect images of example gifts for each men, women and children. To find the perfect gifts for each category I will look on the internet for most popular gifts and also look in magazines and catalogues to see what are the most popular gifts are.
Saturday, 11 September 2010
Critical Analysis
For my dissertation I am going to write about mobile internet and whether it is used more than internet on a computer. This topic is not really connected to my final major project but it is something that I would like to know more about because there is more and more websites being made so they can be viewed from a mobile phone so the usage of mobile internet must be increasing and I would like to find out how and why. Also if I find out why people are choosing to use mobile internet more, in the future I could work on my gift finder website to make it suitable to view on mobile phones so that more users will have access to the site.
Competitive Analysis - www.giftgen.co.uk
The main feature on this website’s home page is the search engine so it is very clear to the user what the purpose of this site is. The homepage does not contain any information apart from quotes about the site from the Telegraph and the good web guide. The rest of the text on this page is the text for the options the user can choose within the search facility such as a preferred price, age range, gender etc. The layout of this page is good because the search facility takes up most of the page so it is very clear to the user that they have to select an option under each category within the search facility to find gifts.
This website’s search facility is really easy to use as all the options are already displayed and all the user has to do is click on the relevant option and it highlights their chosen option blue. Although this search engine does not have a basic and advanced search option, the options do change depending on the user’s choices, for example there is a character option and it shows different characters such as lively, adventurous, house proud etc. But if you change the age range to 0-1 years or 1-2 years, the character options disappear because the people in those age groups are too young to have a character like the ones listed. This makes the search facility more accurate by searching for gifts that are more appropriate for the recipient. The results returned are relevant to what the user searched for and also remind the user what they searched for at the top of the page and although the search results page has a lot of useful information such as websites where a certain product can be purchased, shops a product can be purchased and websites to compare prices of a product, the layout of the results isn’t very good as there is too much text too close together which makes the web page look very busy and unattractive. Also, this website doesn’t give the user a chance to enter keywords to search for gifts which is inconvenient for users who know what they are searching for but don’t know where to purchase it from.
The only way to navigate around this website is to use the search facility on the home page to get to the results page. Once the user is on the results page they can navigate away from it one of two ways. One of the ways is to click on the logo at the top of the page and they will be taken back to the home page and then a second way is to click on the links at the bottom of the page such as ‘gifts for him’, ‘gifts for her’, ‘gift finder’ etc. Although there aren’t many ways to navigate around this site, the navigation used works well.
The colour scheme for this website is red, white and black. The text used is always contrasting with the background which makes it easy for the user to read and also the font used is consistent throughout the site and is an appropriate size and font type. Having an appropriate font type and font size along with the font colour also improves readability.
This site is easy to use and functions well but is not very interesting or fun. The way the user navigates around the site and the way the search facility returns appropriate results to the user work well, but the lack of images and whitespace used on the site makes the site unattractive and boring. Also there isn’t any information about the products on this site such as a price or description so the user has to click the link which then directs them from the giftgen website to the website where the certain product is sold. Overall this site functions well but isn’t visually appealing.
Again, the gifts on this site are gifts from well known shops or websites where as the gifts that will be on my site will be from Hull’s small businesses so my website will give the user gift ideas that are different to these existing websites. I am going to provide more ways to search for gifts on my site and also create a visually appealing design.
This website’s search facility is really easy to use as all the options are already displayed and all the user has to do is click on the relevant option and it highlights their chosen option blue. Although this search engine does not have a basic and advanced search option, the options do change depending on the user’s choices, for example there is a character option and it shows different characters such as lively, adventurous, house proud etc. But if you change the age range to 0-1 years or 1-2 years, the character options disappear because the people in those age groups are too young to have a character like the ones listed. This makes the search facility more accurate by searching for gifts that are more appropriate for the recipient. The results returned are relevant to what the user searched for and also remind the user what they searched for at the top of the page and although the search results page has a lot of useful information such as websites where a certain product can be purchased, shops a product can be purchased and websites to compare prices of a product, the layout of the results isn’t very good as there is too much text too close together which makes the web page look very busy and unattractive. Also, this website doesn’t give the user a chance to enter keywords to search for gifts which is inconvenient for users who know what they are searching for but don’t know where to purchase it from.
The only way to navigate around this website is to use the search facility on the home page to get to the results page. Once the user is on the results page they can navigate away from it one of two ways. One of the ways is to click on the logo at the top of the page and they will be taken back to the home page and then a second way is to click on the links at the bottom of the page such as ‘gifts for him’, ‘gifts for her’, ‘gift finder’ etc. Although there aren’t many ways to navigate around this site, the navigation used works well.
The colour scheme for this website is red, white and black. The text used is always contrasting with the background which makes it easy for the user to read and also the font used is consistent throughout the site and is an appropriate size and font type. Having an appropriate font type and font size along with the font colour also improves readability.
This site is easy to use and functions well but is not very interesting or fun. The way the user navigates around the site and the way the search facility returns appropriate results to the user work well, but the lack of images and whitespace used on the site makes the site unattractive and boring. Also there isn’t any information about the products on this site such as a price or description so the user has to click the link which then directs them from the giftgen website to the website where the certain product is sold. Overall this site functions well but isn’t visually appealing.
Again, the gifts on this site are gifts from well known shops or websites where as the gifts that will be on my site will be from Hull’s small businesses so my website will give the user gift ideas that are different to these existing websites. I am going to provide more ways to search for gifts on my site and also create a visually appealing design.
Thursday, 22 July 2010
Competitive Analysis - www.seekgifts.co.uk
When the user enters the home page it is clear to see that the purpose of this website is to search for gifts based on the information that is put into the search engine. The reason they instantly know this is because the gift search facility is the main feature and takes up most of the page. Although this page doesn’t have a lot of information, the text at the bottom of the page is quite close together making the bottom half of this web page cluttered and busy which may put some users off. The layout for the home page is suitable because the only way to search gifts is by inputting information into the search facility so this has been made to take up most of the home page because there isn’t a need to fill the page with other information.
The search facility on this website is very easy to use although it only has a very basic search and doesn’t give the user an option for a more advanced search. There are only three sections the user can enter information and this information is whether the recipient is male or female, the recipients age range and three keywords to describe what the recipient likes. The search results are relevant to what the user searched for and at the top of the results page it has the search facility across the top of the page showing the information they entered but also allows them to change the information to search for something different. The layout of the results page is good and when the user clicks on a product, it redirects them to the site where they can find out more information and purchase it from.
The global navigation used on this website is consistent from page to page although there are only two main web pages on this website and these are the home page and the results page. There is a privacy policy page but this has no navigation except the site logo at the top of the page which navigates the user back to the home page. The only way the user can navigate to the results page is by putting information into the search engine and click search. From the results page the user can navigate back to the home page by clicking the site logo or they can refine or start a search using the search facility across the top of the page. Although the site does not have much to navigate around, the navigation is easy to use and it does function well.
The colour scheme for this site is blue, white and pink. Parts of it work really well and some parts don’t work so well. It works really well where there is bright pink text on a white background and where there is dark blue text on a white background. This is because the background colour and the text colour are contrasting so it makes it easier for the user to read. There are places on this website where there is dark blue text on a blue background. Most users will be able to read this but some users may find it difficult to read as it is all the same colour but just different shades. The font used on this website is consistent through-out the pages and the font type and size used is appropriate and it is very easy for the user to read. The only main problem with this colour scheme is that it makes the website quite feminine looking so male users may be put off using the site.
Overall this website is easy to use and functions well as it was designed and made for searching for gift ideas and that is what it does. The user can’t get lost within this website as there are only two main pages. When the user clicks on a product to view it, it takes them to the website which is selling the product so they can find out more about it and also purchase the product if they wanted to. The website provides a very easy and convenient way of searching for gifts.
The website I have proposed to create will be similar to the seek gift website in some ways but in other ways it will differ. The gifts used on my site will be from small businesses in Hull so when the user clicks on a product, they won’t be directed to another websites because these businesses don’t have websites so the user will be taken to a page with information about the gift. Also, I am going to give the user a better choice of how they search the website.
Screenshots of Seek Gifts:
The search facility on this website is very easy to use although it only has a very basic search and doesn’t give the user an option for a more advanced search. There are only three sections the user can enter information and this information is whether the recipient is male or female, the recipients age range and three keywords to describe what the recipient likes. The search results are relevant to what the user searched for and at the top of the results page it has the search facility across the top of the page showing the information they entered but also allows them to change the information to search for something different. The layout of the results page is good and when the user clicks on a product, it redirects them to the site where they can find out more information and purchase it from.
The global navigation used on this website is consistent from page to page although there are only two main web pages on this website and these are the home page and the results page. There is a privacy policy page but this has no navigation except the site logo at the top of the page which navigates the user back to the home page. The only way the user can navigate to the results page is by putting information into the search engine and click search. From the results page the user can navigate back to the home page by clicking the site logo or they can refine or start a search using the search facility across the top of the page. Although the site does not have much to navigate around, the navigation is easy to use and it does function well.
The colour scheme for this site is blue, white and pink. Parts of it work really well and some parts don’t work so well. It works really well where there is bright pink text on a white background and where there is dark blue text on a white background. This is because the background colour and the text colour are contrasting so it makes it easier for the user to read. There are places on this website where there is dark blue text on a blue background. Most users will be able to read this but some users may find it difficult to read as it is all the same colour but just different shades. The font used on this website is consistent through-out the pages and the font type and size used is appropriate and it is very easy for the user to read. The only main problem with this colour scheme is that it makes the website quite feminine looking so male users may be put off using the site.
Overall this website is easy to use and functions well as it was designed and made for searching for gift ideas and that is what it does. The user can’t get lost within this website as there are only two main pages. When the user clicks on a product to view it, it takes them to the website which is selling the product so they can find out more about it and also purchase the product if they wanted to. The website provides a very easy and convenient way of searching for gifts.
The website I have proposed to create will be similar to the seek gift website in some ways but in other ways it will differ. The gifts used on my site will be from small businesses in Hull so when the user clicks on a product, they won’t be directed to another websites because these businesses don’t have websites so the user will be taken to a page with information about the gift. Also, I am going to give the user a better choice of how they search the website.
Screenshots of Seek Gifts:
Above is the home page. First the user chooses whether they are shopping for a male or female. They next choose their recipients age range and then finally enter up to three keywords about what the recipient likes. Then all they have to do is click 'Start Seeking'.
Above is an example of a user using the search engine.
Above shows the results page and how the results are positioned on the web page.
Above shows that once the user has clicked on a product, it takes the user to the website selling that particular product.
Competitive Analysis
My idea to make a gift finder website is not a new idea I made the decision to carry out some competitive analysis of websites that are similar to the one I would like to create. The websites that will be analysed are:
• http://www.seekgifts.co.uk/
• http://www.giftgen.co.uk/
Before starting my analysis, the areas to focus on and analyse were thought about carefully and I decided on the following:
• Home page
-What is the purpose of this website? Is this clear to the user?
- Does it contain a lot of information?
- Is the layout suitable for this website?
• Search and search results
- Is the search facility easy to use?
- Does it have basic and advanced search functions?
- Does it function well? Does it return results relevant to what the user searched for?
- Does the search results page remind the user what they searched for?
• Navigation
- What sort of navigation is used?
- Is it easy for the user to navigate around the site?
• Colour Scheme and Readability
- What is the colour scheme used on the site?
- Is the colour scheme suitable for all intended audiences?
- Is the text on the site easy to read?
• Overall
- Is the site easy to use?
- Does the site function well?
- Summary of this website
- How would my site be different to this site?
• http://www.seekgifts.co.uk/
• http://www.giftgen.co.uk/
Before starting my analysis, the areas to focus on and analyse were thought about carefully and I decided on the following:
• Home page
-What is the purpose of this website? Is this clear to the user?
- Does it contain a lot of information?
- Is the layout suitable for this website?
• Search and search results
- Is the search facility easy to use?
- Does it have basic and advanced search functions?
- Does it function well? Does it return results relevant to what the user searched for?
- Does the search results page remind the user what they searched for?
• Navigation
- What sort of navigation is used?
- Is it easy for the user to navigate around the site?
• Colour Scheme and Readability
- What is the colour scheme used on the site?
- Is the colour scheme suitable for all intended audiences?
- Is the text on the site easy to read?
• Overall
- Is the site easy to use?
- Does the site function well?
- Summary of this website
- How would my site be different to this site?
Audience
The intended audience for my website are people who need help thinking of a gift idea for someone who want to buy them a product that is cute and unusual. The people like these types of gifts tend to be young women (16yrs-25yrs) so I want to aim my website at these people. These users would go on the site to search for gifts for friends and family and maybe even search for cute, girly, handmade products for themselves. As well as young women using the site, I think some men would like to use this site to find a gift for their girlfriends. The only problem I would have with designing for different genders would be the design. From research, I have found out that men and women differ in preference when it comes to website design. Women tend to prefer websites with a lot of colour and more rounded shapes where as men prefer websites with darker colours and straight edges. To solve this problem I am going to have to find out to design a website that would be suitable for both genders or choose one of the two genders to design it for.
Project Goals
The main goal for my project is to design and create a fully working website. I want to be able to research the needs of my intended audience and use this research to help me design and create a website aimed at them. After the site has been created, I would like to carry out some user testing so that I can get some feedback from the users and make appropriate changes to improve the site. When the users leave my website, I would like them to have a good gift idea and the information about where they can find this product. Another goal of mine is to design and build my website so it will be accessible to all users.
As well as goals I have set myself for my project, I also have some personal goals. One of these goals is to improve my design skills. I would also like to work on my PHP skills by refreshing myself with PHP I have already learnt but also to learn new PHP.
Overall:
• To research the needs of my intended audience
• To design and build a fully working website
• To be able to provide users with good gift ideas
• Carry out user testing and make appropriate changes
• To make my website accessible to all users
• To improve my design skills
• To refresh myself with the PHP I have already learnt (e.g. Adding, editing and removing information to and from a database and also logins)
• Learn new PHP (e.g. how to create a search)
As well as goals I have set myself for my project, I also have some personal goals. One of these goals is to improve my design skills. I would also like to work on my PHP skills by refreshing myself with PHP I have already learnt but also to learn new PHP.
Overall:
• To research the needs of my intended audience
• To design and build a fully working website
• To be able to provide users with good gift ideas
• Carry out user testing and make appropriate changes
• To make my website accessible to all users
• To improve my design skills
• To refresh myself with the PHP I have already learnt (e.g. Adding, editing and removing information to and from a database and also logins)
• Learn new PHP (e.g. how to create a search)
Abstract
For my final major project, I propose to create a website that allows its users to search for gifts.
The gifts that will be displayed on my website will be from small businesses that are located on Princes Avenue and Newland Avenue in Hull, as these businesses do not have websites they can advertise or sell their products on.
The website will give the users a number of different ways in which they can search the website for gifts. One way would be for the user to type in a keyword using a search box, and then the website will return any results relevant to the keyword entered. This would be helpful to those users who already know what type of gift they are looking for. A second way to search the site would be for the user to view gifts by product category, price, or colour etc. Thirdly there would be an option to view the gifts that are sold by each business.
The results page will show the relevant results and will be displayed along with a product name, image and price. When the user clicks on a certain product, they will be taken to a new page where it will have more information about it such as images, price, description, the name of the business that sells it. In addition to this there will be a small location map and their shop address so users will know how to find and purchase this product.
There will also be a login section for the businesses to access the website in an administrative role. This will allow them to add new products, edit any existing products and delete unavailable products to and from the site. By providing each business with their individual login details, this will give them the opportunity to do this and will then ensure my website would always be up to date. If they choose to update their products by adding to them, it would also help increase their number of sales in store.
The aim of this website is for the user to be able to leave the website with a good gift idea for the person they are buying for. Along with the idea, they will have information of where they can buy it from and how much it costs. Another aim of this website is to help the small businesses in the selected area advertise their products and increase their sales.
The reason I chose to do this is because gift finder websites are helpful to people who find it difficult to find gifts for the person they are buying for. I have decided to use gifts that small businesses in Hull sell because most of them do not have their own websites where they can advertise and sell their products online so are struggling to reach some people that would be interested in their products. These gifts would also be good on my website because they are products that are different to what people would normally find and buy as gifts. One of the main reasons I have chosen not to display gifts large retailers sell is because there isn’t a need for a website advertising their products because they usually have a number of stores on the high street and also have websites where people can buy their products online and most of them have a search facility within their own site, so it is already easy for people to find out what they sell.
The gifts that will be displayed on my website will be from small businesses that are located on Princes Avenue and Newland Avenue in Hull, as these businesses do not have websites they can advertise or sell their products on.
The website will give the users a number of different ways in which they can search the website for gifts. One way would be for the user to type in a keyword using a search box, and then the website will return any results relevant to the keyword entered. This would be helpful to those users who already know what type of gift they are looking for. A second way to search the site would be for the user to view gifts by product category, price, or colour etc. Thirdly there would be an option to view the gifts that are sold by each business.
The results page will show the relevant results and will be displayed along with a product name, image and price. When the user clicks on a certain product, they will be taken to a new page where it will have more information about it such as images, price, description, the name of the business that sells it. In addition to this there will be a small location map and their shop address so users will know how to find and purchase this product.
There will also be a login section for the businesses to access the website in an administrative role. This will allow them to add new products, edit any existing products and delete unavailable products to and from the site. By providing each business with their individual login details, this will give them the opportunity to do this and will then ensure my website would always be up to date. If they choose to update their products by adding to them, it would also help increase their number of sales in store.
The aim of this website is for the user to be able to leave the website with a good gift idea for the person they are buying for. Along with the idea, they will have information of where they can buy it from and how much it costs. Another aim of this website is to help the small businesses in the selected area advertise their products and increase their sales.
The reason I chose to do this is because gift finder websites are helpful to people who find it difficult to find gifts for the person they are buying for. I have decided to use gifts that small businesses in Hull sell because most of them do not have their own websites where they can advertise and sell their products online so are struggling to reach some people that would be interested in their products. These gifts would also be good on my website because they are products that are different to what people would normally find and buy as gifts. One of the main reasons I have chosen not to display gifts large retailers sell is because there isn’t a need for a website advertising their products because they usually have a number of stores on the high street and also have websites where people can buy their products online and most of them have a search facility within their own site, so it is already easy for people to find out what they sell.
Tuesday, 20 July 2010
Ideas Brainstorm
To start with I did a brainstorm for my two ideas. My first idea was to create a website or an application to help users search for gifts by asking them different questions within a search engine. It would also be made interactive so the user found it interesting and fun and could even include some animation.
My second idea was to create a recipe website or application so users could search the website to find the perfect recipe. This too would be made interactive and fun for the user and there could also be some animation in there too.
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