The differences between the Zappos and Manolo Blahnik websites couldn’t be greater. While one, Zappos, has the primary purpose of selling online, Manolo Blahnik encourages visitors to their site to primarily engage with the company via social networking and inform potential customers where to buy their shoes in person.
Zappos has a website that is very busy, with lots of content, links, and navigation areas. The “above the fold” content (to use an newspaper term) displays the primary categories to shop by as the most prominent navigation, as well as secondary categorical navigation on the left to shop by the categories women’s, men’s, kid’s, or gifts. Also prominent at the top are the logo (complete with alteration for the holiday) a search bar, clearance link, and navigation to log-in or get live help.
Where Zappos seems to go awry of the fundamentals laid out in “Don’t Make Me Think” is in consistency of navigation throughout, and the search. The search bar becomes more confusing with text inside “Shoes, Clothing, Bags, etc.” and the links listed underneath. “Search By: Size, Narrow Shoes, Wide Shoes, Popular Searches.” It makes you wonder how you must search. Can I type in a size, or do I click the size link underneath? If I’m looking for Converse Shoes, do I type in “Converse” or “Shoes”? Further down the site, the secondary navigation on the left side does not stay consistent, with all of the heading items being links, “Shop Women’s” “Shop Men’s” “Shop Kids” “Shop Clearance.” Right below “Shop Clearance” is the heading “Specialty Shops.” However this heading does not link anywhere, but “Specialty Sizes” right below it does again. Where Zappos does well is the logo, search bar, primary navigation staying consistent throughout, as well as the page name being clearly laid out for each page.
Manolo Blahnik seems to have a completely different purpose to their website. My guess would be that they are trying to sell to a more select group of consumers, and are trying to keep the value of the brand high by only offering in store purchases as opposed to online purchases. In this way, the website is laid out to more prominently connect with them through social media, perhaps in order to feel that you’ve “joined the club” or are part of the group in the know. To that end, the website has very few links, and is a minimal and elegant design. Aside from the three social media links, only 3 other links are presented on the home page, “Home” “Contact” and “Where to Buy”
Manolo Blahnik has no indication on any page about what page you are on. This may not be much of an issue because there aren’t many main pages to explore, but as mentioned in “Don’t Make Me Think” if you arrive at a page other than the home page from a search, you would have no idea where in the site you are. Further issues arise on the “Where to Buy” page. A block of text addressing counterfeit labels, and lists the official locations to buy Manolo Blahnik shoes online, but there is no way to tell that the text has links in it. The website does attempt in a small way to breadcrumb on the submenu on the “Where to Buy” page, by having the text of your selection (where you are looking to buy) in a slightly darker gray color. However, it’s so faint that it barely registers. Completely missing is any sign of a search, with the only way apparent to get additional information being to send an email through their contact page.
Zappos and Manolo Blahnik seem to be targeting customers in completely different ways. While Zappos want to make as much information available as possible so the widest amount of people will be able to find what they’re looking for, Manolo Blahnik seems to be an exclusionary brand, that only a select group of people have access to, and that is conveyed through their site.