Look And Feel

Look and Feel

The office supply business is one of the most competitive arenas in business today. What started out as something so simple has blossomed into a very large portion of spending by not only businesses but also by everyday consumers. The typical office supply chain targets businesses, both large and small, and consumers which include the person buying an ink cartridge for his printer to the parent who is buying supplies for her home school. Teachers have also become a target with so many teachers now buying a portion of the supplies used in the classroom. Three leaders in the office supply arena are OfficeMax, Staples, and Office Depot. All three of these leaders have also launched their business on the ever expanding Internet. The question becomes whether or not these businesses are successful on the Internet. That question can be answered by looking into the look and feel of these websites and how the websites fit in with the business model of the brick and mortar store.

OfficeMax

The OfficeMax website is laid out very nicely and is very informative. Everything is categorized on the main page for easy navigation. There is a search tool at the top center of the page which is very easy to use. There are tabs across the top of the page for easy navigation to the different categories of the site. They offer a store locator which is very important for a business such as Office Max that has many locations. Another thing that is nice about this site is it lists the cart total at the top of the page so that regardless of where a consumer is within their site and how much they had added to their virtual shopping cart, the total is always displayed at the top of the page. The site has a link that offers special on-line deals as well as deals that are available in-store only. The site includes pictures to go along with very detailed descriptions of the products they offer. At the bottom of the page, they clearly list their customer support number, credit card security information, how to easily handle returns, and information regarding their privacy policy. Overall, the look and feel of this site is excellent. They provide a site that offers a lot of information and features in a manner that does not overwhelm.

Staples

Staples web site sells all types of commodities. To name a few of them, they sell office supplies, technology, various types of furniture and home furnishings. The website is very creative and full of information that customers would be searching for right at their fingertips. On the main page of Staples website there are approximately 54 links in which customers can choose to find the information that they are looking for, making it easy to locate specific information very quickly. The yellowish background color stands out so that all of the information provided on the main page of the website becomes very appealing. The images provide a visual advantage of selected products and the availability of the product cost is given as well.

While searching the website, the feel is as though the company tries hard to satisfy its customers and wants to keep the customers interested in the products offered. Users will find that the amount of information provided on the website must truly satisfy the friendliness of the company. All of the products offered on the store's website make it feel as though all shopping can be done in one place and not have to search various websites, which could save time and money. The information provided about the products that Staples sells makes the customer feel as though they are face-to-face with an employee and are getting the type of response they are looking for. The Verisign Secured icon on the website page allows users to feel safe and secure to purchase products over the Internet (Staples, 2007).

Immediately, upon clicking on a link the user is able to receive more information about particular items and images. The links provide an abundance of detailed information for many of the items listed on the webpage. Users are able to navigate through the website with ease. For a customer, this website is very inviting and would entice them to continue to order from the Staples online store website.

Office Depot

The Office Depot web site is user friendly and has many options for the user. One of the things that stand out the most is the four headers across the top of the web site. The headers represent the products that Office Depot sells at their stores and from the online catalog. The four headers make a user feel confident that they will find what they are looking for in short period of time. The site clearly defines