Amateur Hour Credibility Testing for Small Business Web Sites

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Applied ResearchHeidi L. EverettFigure 4. Store Hours/Location PageFigure 5. Contact Us PageParticipants felt this page lent credibility to OAL because the storeis a destination shopping experience. Consumers have to plan to gothere. As a result, participants noted the hours of operations and visualidentification of the store exterior would help consumers plan theirexcursion. The one negative interpretation was the use of a seasonalstore exterior, which gave the impression of being dated and neglected.Overall, the prominent image and introduction ofbody copy yielded positive interpretations about the smallbusiness and its credibility as a retailer.The third line, “owned and operated by College ofSaint Benedict,” generated conversation about why Collegeof Saint Benedict owns the store and how profits are used,namely to support student scholarships. Of the 34 focusgroup participants, all believed further explanation about theOAL and CSB relationship was essential. More importantly,they felt the relationship—as well as the financial supportof student scholarships—should be celebrated; this, in turn,would lead to repeat business as well as positive feelingsabout purchases because the profit was put to good use.Participants offered the following comments:• “Knowing that profits support student scholarshipsmakes me feel better about my purchase. This alignswith my giving priorities.”• “That makes me want to shop more. I’d bring mysisters.”• “I’m so taking my mom there when she picks me upfor break.”All focus group participants recommended theprominent elements of this page be placed on the homepage where they would be well received and would setexpectations about the shopping experience in store andon the Web site.Participants believed this page to be a disservice to consumers by notoffering complete contact information, including a store address toprogram in a global positioning system. Further, participants interpretedthe photograph as a waste of space that did not motivate consumers towant to go to the store.Finding 4. Overall, focus group participants believedthe Store page lent credibility to OAL by providinghelpful information to the consumer (Figure 4).First, the information on this page was useful andprominent, particularly for consumers who have tomake OAL a destination site rather than an impulseshopping experience. Because the store is located in asmall college town, consumers who do not live or workin St. Joseph, MN must make a conscious, intentionaleffort to go there. Knowing the days and hours that thestore is in operation would allow consumers to plantheir shopping trips to OAL, participants noted. Manyparticipants commented that showing the exterior imageof the storefront helped consumers not familiar withSaint Joseph, MN easily recognize and locate the storewhen visiting the town.The one negative interpretation expressed by a fewfocus group members was the use of a seasonal exteriorstorefront that made the site appear dated and neglected.Focus groups took place in spring; however, the photowas believed to be from autumn, since it featuredpumpkins.Finding 5. More than half of all focus groupparticipants commented negatively about the ContactUs page (Figure 5). They noted the store manager’scontact information was easily located on the pagesAbout Lark and Store Hours/Location but incompleteand not at all prominent on the actual Contact Uspage. Nearly all focus participants believe the contactinformation should only be on the Contact Us page.Volume 60, Number 2, May 2013 l Technical Communication 125
Applied ResearchCredibility Testing for Small Business Web SitesFigure 6a and 6b OAL Home Page and About Lark PageParticipants were asked to rate their interest in OAL based onviewing these two pages of the OAL Web site. The figure at leftgenerated little to no interest; the figure at right generated a flurry ofexcitement and interest.Not one focus group participant liked the prominentphoto on this page. In one woman’s words, “That doesnothing.” All recommended another store interior shotthat would showcase the ambiance of the store.Focus group participants were asked to rate theirinterest in OAL based on their exposure to the OALhome page (Figure 6a). Their rating was based on a scaleof 1 to 10 with 1 being “I have no interest in OAL” to10 being “I must visit OAL.” They were also asked torate their interest in OAL based on their exposure to theAbout Lark page (Figures 6a and 6b) using the same scale.Of the 34 participants, 27 expressed little or nointerest in the OAL retail site based on the home page(figure 6a). Their responses are reflected in the left-handcolumns of the graph (figure 7). Nearly all of the 18- to22-year-old participants said they would not click toanother page to learn more, nor would they visit thestore. Simply put, the home page (with its prominentgraphic and white space) did not translate to a credibleorganization with which they would want to engage. Afew of the older participants noted they’d be willing tolook at one more page before abandoning the site andthe organization. After viewing the About Lark page(Figure 6b), however, all 34 participants expressed morethan moderate interest in OAL as indicated by the righthandcolumns in the graph below (Figure 7).The key difference that led to such opposingcredibility judgments was the one prominent graphic.The single, prominent logo on the home page (which wasused to establish the brand identity) was not interpretedfavorably because it did not provide consumers clarityabout OAL and what it offered. The single, prominentstore interior shot, on the other hand, captured attentionand inspired Web visitors to want to learn more.Step 6: Determine ImprovementsBased on results of the study, a number of improvementswere identified that could be made to OAL’s Website to improve the site’s prominent elements, yieldpositive interpretation of those elements, and, as aresult, improve the organization’s overall credibility.In determining the improvements, the limited staffand resources of OAL were considered—since thosefactors would influence whether the organization couldimplement and sustain the improvements.The screen captures that follow illustratethe improvements that were identified for (andsubsequently made to) www.gifstonalark.com based onthe credibility test.Improvement 1. Set ambiance and expectations.The home page of the site was revised to showcaseinterior images of the store as well as a few products(Figure 8).Figure 8. Intriguing New Home PageFigure 7Participants’ Interest in OAL Based on the OAL Home Page (Left,Blue) and the About Lark Page (Right, Red)The prominent elements of the new home page showcase product andambiance as well as the store’s support of student scholarships andever-changing product line.126 Technical Communication l Volume 60, Number 2, May 2013
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Amateur Hour Credibility Testing for Small Business Web Sites

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