http://www.manoloblahnik.com/

http://www.thefryecompany.com/

How do they use these principles and implement Krug’s five important “things” to make sure users see and understand the site?

The Frye Company

The balance of the Frye Company is more structured.  There is a better balance to the site.  It has more symmetry allowing the site a better visual appeal. The site feels whole and the different sections complement each other.    The emphasis of this page is on the slightly opaque box over the picture.  The layout of this site has a very structured hierarchy.  It allows the user to easily find what they want.  The site follows Krug’s 5 Things very well.  It has a distinct hierarchy on every page.  The pages have a clearly defined area that allows the consumer to find what they want. When something is clickable the mouse turns into a pointer.  There is a lot of noise but I think it still works overall.

MANOLO BLAHNIK

The balance of the Manalo Blahnik website is off.  There is too much empty space.  The colors are all different and the shapes of the images don’t flow. There is no unity in this site the empty spaces are confusing.  There are only three buttons that don’t allow you to very much navigation and do not provide much information.  There is emphasis on the shoe in the center of the home page.  My eye was immediately drawn to that.  The layout of this page is dreadful.  There are only three buttons at the bottom of the page.  When you click on these buttons you won’t be able to ever order shoes from this site.  There are links to other pages that allow you to order.  This site does not follow Krug’s 5 Things very well.  There is no set hierarchy to the site just the three buttons.  All of the links change the mouse into a pointer which shows that it is a link.  There isn’t a real distinction in the areas of a page either.  Overall this site was designed poorly.  Especially for being such an expensive shoe.

Is one site more effective than the other at drawing your attention, and why?

The Frye Company is definitely more effective as an overall effective website.  It allows the user to actually order the shoes online.  It also has more design features that would make me want to go to it instead of the Manalo Blahnik site.