I do my share of online shopping, but when it comes to clothing, it’s rare that I’ll take a chance and purchase something online. To me, it’s always been easier to go into a store and examine things up close. I like to touch the fabric, examine the detailing, and of course, try it on. Store websites just never seem to give me enough detail to feel comfortable with what I’m buying.
Nonetheless, before I go into a store, I do sometimes take a look at the website to see if a store has something I might want to check out. Which is why I found myself on the Kohl’s site this weekend, looking at summer dresses.
Now, you may have no interest in dress shopping, but bear with me as I walk through my experience.
I started out by following the links to Women’s > Dresses. Easy enough. From there, the first link gave me the option to View All.
Which took me here:
Well. Okay. Not exactly what I expected. This apparently is showing me all types of dresses, not all of the dresses on one page. But I up the number of items viewed on the page from 12 to 96 (the max) and keep going.
Scrolling down the page, the photos are small, but show enough to help me decide if I want more details.
So, I choose a dress.
I scan down the description and find the details I want–fabric, length, how to wash, etc. Easy to read, exactly what I need to know. (For some of the dresses, there is also a link to size charts, which give guidelines for selecting sizes in various brands. This brand, however, apparently isn’t covered by the size charts–definitely an opportunity for improvement.)
Next I turn my attention to the photo. To my surprise, when I mouse over the dress, the right panel changes; as I move over the parts of the dress on the left, the right shows the details.
Finally! I can actually see most of the details.
Based on past experience with other retail sites, what I expected was a long, sales-y description of the item; a photo with not quite enough detail; and possibly the option to open detail shots in a separate window that might or might not actually allow me to see more.
What I got, though, actually made me feel comfortable purchasing a dress online–that is, if it had more details on the sizing. While not the same as touching or trying on the dress, the site gives me a pretty good idea of the fabric, seaming, and details of the dress. It doesn’t require any extra clicks, and it’s kind of fun to use.
Turbo Tax is fairly widely known for making taxes easy. Obviously, ease-of-use is a huge element of delight on websites–especially for something like taxes, when it’s important to get it right.
But overall ease-of-use on Turbo Tax isn’t what I want to discuss here, because it wasn’t all that surprising (though the TT team certainly deserves kudos for it). What did surprise me about Turbo Tax were a few content choices that made doing our taxes—dare I say it?—kind of fun.
The Tax Return Ticker
As my husband and I dove into our taxes this past weekend, the first thing we noticed at the top was a ticker showing what we owed (or what was owed us). As we worked our way through the various sections, the ticker changed. But the numbers didn’t just change when the screen refreshed; they quickly counted all the way up or down to the destination number. The effect was similar to that of a slot machine.
Toward the end of the process, watching that ticker was almost as much fun as sitting at a winning slot machine. As we entered the last of our tax credit information, my husband exclaimed (tongue in cheek, but still), “Let’s see how much higher we can get it to go!”
That ticker wasn’t essential to making the site work. The final amount of the tax return (or tax owed) could have been saved to the end, leaving the user in the dark. Not as helpful as the feedback along the way, but it would have gotten the job done.
It also simply could have been presented along the way but refreshed as the screen changed. Just as useful as the scrolling ticker, but not as much fun.
Unexpected Commentary
I likely missed some of the comments Turbo Tax spit out, but the first one I caught came after we entered some information on education credits. After confirming all of our info, Turbo Tax declared, “School is cool.” Indeed.
The next instance I noticed was after we entered some tax deduction info. Then, Turbo Tax praised us: “Great job! That deduction will lower the amount of tax you’ll pay.” (I’m paraphrasing, as I do not have the exact page in front of me, but I do know we got a “Great job!”) A little silly, but thanks, Turbo Tax, for the validation.
Plain Language
Finally, while plain old, clear instructions aren’t as much fun as a ticker or pithy pats on the back, they are definitely reassuring. I actually spend quite a lot of time examining certain tax issues for my job, but I do not find it easy. It actually makes me kind of nervous.
So it calmed my nerves when Turbo Tax calmly told me, “Okay, now we’re going to find out if you’re eligible for X credit.” Or, “Now you have to make a decision. But we’ll help you decide. If you did not pay more than X this year, you probably don’t need to take this credit.” Again, paraphrasing, but the language was as clear and simple as that.
Confident I was done with that section, I could go back to looking for goofy little statements and cheering on the ticker. (So I’m easily amused.)
Really, it’s that confidence that made the whole experience delightful. I’m certainly not a tax expert, but the content and overall experience made me confident that my taxes were correct and complete.
Shouldn’t we all be striving to instill some measure of confidence in our users through our web content?
It may seem a bit cheap that I start my tour of delightful web content with a site about animals. Animals and babies, right? Guaranteed to sell you anything. So how hard can it be to build a good website about them?
But humane societies don’t necessarily have delight built into their content. They can be sad places. They conjure images of melancholy pets with no homes; facilities that are underfunded, understaffed, and sometimes unkempt; ramshackle buildings at the edges of towns, operated only out of necessity.
In short, they often seem a bit hopeless–and the animals, by extension, can also seem hopeless and a little bit worrisome. Who wants to bring home an animal that has been subjected to an environment like that described above? So out of the gate, the Longmont Humane Society (LHS) has a challenge when communicating with new visitors.
LHS has clearly determined that there are three main tasks that users have when they visit LHS: adopt, volunteer, and donate. They are trying to reach a very specific audience: people who love animals.
While there are many other tasks and a lot of other content on the site, LHS has rightly put its energy into the most important content on the site: information about the animals themselves. This one major content chunk supports all three of the major tasks on the site and provides the most opportunity for delight.
Content Choices
First, let’s look at the choices that LHS made when developing this content.
Whoever took those photos stuck around until they got the exact looks they wanted.
I checked out a few other humane society and pet websites, and none of them had photos that this deliberately showcased those features that draw in dog or cat lovers.
Names, Stories, and Personalities
Every animal has a name and a description. While they vary in content and in voice (sometimes it’s first person–er, animal–and other times it’s third), you might learn the animal’s favorite things to do, their temperament, and whether they have any quirky behaviors.
Are they the best written descriptions I’ve ever read? No. My guess is that multiple volunteers and staff members contribute. But it is clear that each one is written by a person who has spent time with and cares about the animal. That may be even more important than excellent writing.
And while this isn’t an unusual thing to do on pet adoption sites, the stories and personalities come alive when coupled with those wonderful photos.
Recommended Household Types
LHS doesn’t present these animals as perfect additions to any home. They realize that certain information is important up front, especially if the matches between pet and owner are to be permanent.
The potential owners need to understand if the animal is shy or afraid of something, or if the animal is highly energetic and needs a lot of exercise. They need to know if the animal won’t get along with other animals. They need to know if the animal can handle children, and what ages.
LHS is honest with this information, but also makes it clear that the animal could be a good choice for the right family.
Check out Emma’s description:
Effects of Content Choices
So how does this content affect task completion–and delight?
On the LHS website, task completion isn’t as straightforward as on some others. Most people are not trying to complete a transaction (though they could, if they decide to donate) or find a piece of data. They are trying to make a decision about whether to adopt, volunteer, or donate–possibly all three.
I think LHS realizes that people interested in adopting are not the only ones looking at the animal information. Here is what I imagine the reactions of people in each group might be:
Potential Adopter: “It’s nice to have a chance to see and read about the animals before I actually go visit and feel overwhelmed by my choices. A few in particular seem to be what I’m looking for. I feel confident that the staff knows the animals and can talk to me about any concerns, and that they will be honest about those concerns. I think my family will be safe and I will be bringing the right animal home to be a friend.”
Potential Volunteer: “These seem like wonderful, happy animals, and I would love to spend time with them and contribute to their growth and happiness during their stay at LHS. The facility seems to be well-run and I will have the support I need as a new volunteer.”
Potential Donor: “It is obvious that these animals are cared for and that my money will be used for programs that benefit them. I want to support LHS so they can continue this work and expand their programs.”
Okay, so those hypothetical reactions may be a bit trite. But as a visitor who has at different times been interested in all three of these tasks, I can say that they aren’t far off.
These details show that LHS has a deep understanding of its audience. A person who doesn’t love animals may not be all that affected by the detailed information on each animal; they may actually be a little impatient with some of the cutesy descriptions and details.
But LHS gets that the people who are seriously interested in adopting a pet do want this information. Further, most are not looking to make a decision out of pity–they can’t afford to. Not when the animal will be a member of their family, living into their home, costing them money. Not to mention the potential heartache if things don’t work out.
Similarly, donors and volunteers want to be assured that their investment of time or money is a wise decision.
LHS can’t afford for visitors to make rash decisions, either. They don’t want the animals to come back to them, and they want donors and volunteers to have a lasting interest in supporting their work.
Opportunities
These few elements contribute to delight and task completion in just one chunk of content on the Longmont Humane Society site, which is not to say that the site is without problems. If you visited the site, you may have picked some out. But pointing out problems is not my purpose here.
Instead, I’d like to highlight a few opportunities for further delight on the LHS site:
Use the success stories. Happy Tails is a collection of heartfelt letters and photos sent in by people who have adopted from LHS. Animal-loving saps (like me) love success stories like these, and people who are thinking about getting involved may take that final step after reading a few of these stories. Draw a parallel between the success stories in “Happy Tails” and the “future success stories” of the animals up for adoption.
More videos. LHS’s one video, of Alea, is delightful and really showcases her personality. People who are seriously thinking of adopting will love the opportunity to learn more about the animals through the videos. For potential volunteers, it shows how they might interact with the animals.
More filters. When viewing the animals, LHS allows for filtering by breed, but other characteristics—age, recommendations for children, or recommendations for other pets, for example—might also be helpful.
Stronger tie-in to “Volunteer” and “Donate.” The animals are the power content, and people looking to volunteer or donate are likely already browsing this content. They may feel compelled to volunteer or donate after learning more about the animals. Make it easy for them.
Results
While I couldn’t tell you how directly LHS’s success is tied to its website, I would expect there is some correlation. LHS has indeed gone from the ramshackle, depressing facility of our imaginations to a large, thriving presence in the community, as its history tells. As reported on the site, LHS places around 2,000 animals per year and now has more than 50 staff and 600 volunteers. A recent capital campaign has allowed LHS to build a new 58,000 square foot facility. Could they have done this without the delightful content on the website? It’s hard to say.
What do you think? Does LHS do a good job of delighting its users?
