Travel, they say, broadens the horizons. Or, at least, confirms what we already suspect. Whichever view you subscribe to, seeing how other people do things is instructive and can throw a fresh insight or idea our way. Like in so many spheres of business life, lessons can be learnt for your web presence from observing others in the same field.
For sometimes taking a step or two back from our own site is necessary to gain a better perspective. Being up close and personal is a good thing, but not always the best viewpoint from which to see the big picture. Taking time out to seek out examples of best practice can pay dividends as this will make the process of identifying strengths and weaknesses in site structure and navigation easier when we have a basis from which to compare and contrast.
For example, say you wished to open a theme park in the Highlands and Islands. Where would you go on a fact-finding mission? Landmark in Carrbridge? Alton Towers?
Probably yes to both of these. But if the budget stretched to it, the pinnacle of theme park best practice and organisation has to be Disney World in Florida. With fifty years of experience and millions of visitors each year, the Disney corporation has a slick, well-oiled operation that maximises visitor throughput.
Not much, if anything, is left to chance. Getting there, once you arrive in Florida that is, requires very little effort. Fleets of buses ship in tourists by the hundred. And sat nav is largely redundant if you travel to one of Walt D’s parks by car. The vaguest of navigational skills and sense of direction will obtain sign posts to guide you in.
At the car park, strategically placed staff guide cars to a parking space. A fleet of ‘trams’ then whisks visitors to the main entrance. Once inside, it is clear to see intensive fine-tuning has been at work to make everything you do as easy and efficient as possible. Little thinking or initiative is required, Disney ‘cast members’ are always on hand to keep you right. In fact, many of the staff appear to have no role other than to meet and greet guests and answer questions.
The whole Disney process of getting you there, through the doors and then being organised to handle large volume of visitors is impressive. It is this military operation level of thinking, tweaking and efficiency that is needed in our web sites. For when you think of it, what Mickey and Co. are doing offline is precisely the same journey our web traffic needs to make to reach, enter and use our sites.
Web sites, like a Disney theme park, need:
· good signposting (search engines)
· clear, logical navigation
· to be easy and intuitive to use
· to offer plenty of opportunities to interact and seek assistance
· and communicate - and deliver - a sense of efficiency and forethought in all customer services.
Most importantly, they must fulfil – or exceed – customer expectations.
You may, however, wish to dispense with scanning index fingers and rummaging through visitors’ bags before letting them enter your property.
