blink design library

Summarizing user reviews

When a product has a large number of reviews--both positive and negative--it can be time-consuming to read through them all to understand the range of opinions on a product.  Amazon helps its users by highlighting the most useful positive and negative reviews (click to see full-size image):

This approach, of course,  highlights only a small subset of the review content. But even when users read an entire set of reviews thoroughly, they are getting an unscientific sampling of opinion. Comparing a positive versus a negative review is likely an effective shortcut for those who don't have the time or inclination to read every review.

Compensating users for their inconvenience

When Banana Republic.com was down for scheduled maintenance, users who visited the site were offered 10% off their next online order. Providing the discount turned what could have been a disappointing experience into a positive one.

Clear, Uncluttered Product Page

This is a great, uncluttered layout. There is a clear primary action  and a set of secondary actions below it.  The left navigation doesn't carry all sorts of links from previous levels - just a few suggested on related items.

From: Target

QuickLook Feature

The product list pages of gap.com allow the option to view details in context by displaying the QuickLook button on rollover.  What I like is this approach is that provides the option to view the details rather than automatically displaying the entire pop-up on rollover. Automatic pop-ups can be distracting, particularly if they appear when the user is just moving their mouse across the page.

From: The Gap

Previously Purchased Items

I like the big, clearly labeled buttons here - and the fact that all the form controls are located all together on the right side of the page. The background shading of the rows - and blue shading of the column containing the checkboxes makes this form easy to scan and read.

From: Amazon.com

Product Availability Matrix

I like how this give visabilty to all the availability options across sizes and colors. Maybe I'm willing to wait a few weeks for the Apple Melange - or perhaps I want to go for Purple to get it right away. I would, however, like to see a tighter association of the instruction to "click a box on the grid" with the grid.

From: Boden USA

Cruise Finder

The approach for this cruise finder might also work in other search situations where they are only a few variables and relatively few possible values for each. One thing they could likely do to improve the usability of this interface is to gray out the options that cannot be selected; I find the blue shading to indicate "your options" potentially confusing.

From: Princess Cruises

Recently Viewed Items

This is a simple, graphic display of recently viewed items that allows the user remove individual items or clear the whole list. It would be even nicer if you could grap the little numbered tabs to move the order of items around. It kind of defeats the idea of history, but they just seem to have a "grab me" affordance.

From: Gifts.com