Compare existing documents from three different banks: Abbey, Lloyds TSB, and HSBC.
Introduction 1
HSBC booklet and website analysis 2
Abbey booklet and website analysis 6
Lloyds TSB booklet and website analysis 10
Comparison of booklets and websites 12
Evaluation 14
Bibliography 16
Appendices 17
Introduction
Plan for project
In this project, I will compare existing documents from three different banks, these banks will be: Abbey, Lloyds TSB, and HSBC. The documents that I will analyse are credit card booklets/leaflets and websites. I will need to talk about the layout, content, purpose, suitability of purpose, strengths and weaknesses, and differences and similarities between each of the six documents. From each organisation will be a leaflet and one website. I will then compare and contrast the findings to see what is similar and what is changed in order to suit their purpose.
Target audience
The target audience for my report will be businessmen who are analysing existing leaflets and other mediums, which companies use to advertise their services. It will also be for graphic designers who would get ideas for their own designs, and will gain knowledge about what makes or breaks a design.
Software to be used
The software that is to be used is Microsoft Word, as it is a word processing program so it would be easy to create a report on it. Another program that I am using is Microsoft Internet Explorer as I can find a lot of information regarding what I am trying to find.
Type of project
This type of project will be a report styled analysis so that it will show the target audience what they want to know.
HSBC booklet and website analysis
HSBC is a multi-national bank operating in almost every country in the world. It can be used for coporate banking, or just personal banking, with various different banking plans to suit the individual need for the consumer. They also offer comprehensive banking advice and guidance for the clients. In addition to this, they are a PLC meaning that they trade on the stock market and anyone can buy a share of their company.
Credit card booklet2
Content
Throughout the booklet, there is various useful information that is supplied to the reader in learning about applying for a credit card. Behind the back cover of the front page, there are details in ways which you can obtain your credit card, along with discreet images that emphasise the ways in which you can order the card, for example it has a small image of a mouse next to the Internet banking text. Following the contents page, it describes the many similarities of the credit cards that HSBC have on offer. These are the standard advantages that all of their cards include. Next, they go on to explain the different cards that they do, and give the benefits of obtaining that particular card. The booklet then goes on to the technical side, and explains the rules set by the company. Subsequent to this are services that HSBC provide in conjunction with the credit card, for example CardGuard or travel insurance. They then give extra information that may be useful to the customer should they decide to get a credit card from them. Over on the back page, the booklet supplies some information about HSBC and some facilities they provide; they also supply an address that the customer can write to if they have any queries.
Layout
The layout of the booklet is simple, and not over crowded. Text and words are reasonably spaced, making it easy for the reader tounderstand. The booklet is laid out pocket sized, being the width of two-thirds the size of an A4 sheet of paper, and its length is the equivalent to the width on an A4 sized paper. It is also set in white, making the text highly visible for the reader and makes it seem clear cut. Information is mostly in bullet pointed form, with the sentences being shortened, and more easily read. Major headers are bolded and font size increased, with a thin red line underneath to make it clear and defined. Subheadings are coloured in red, which is again used to distinguish between the body of the text and the header, however, there is no red line separating it. The layout for the booklet is kept identical throughout the booklet; however, there is only one image in the body of the booklet, which makes it different from the rest of the booklet.
Purpose
The purpose of this booklet is to mainly informt the reader of the many different types of credit cards that HSBC have to offer. It is also to try to persuade you to use their service rather than their rival company's services.
Suitability of purpose
Using a booklet is quite suitable for presenting the information about the services that HSBC offer as it means that the client does not need to spend time waiting in a queue to ask the banker simple questions that are very easily answered. However, as there is so much information, it should not have all been placed into one booklet, as it seems to be quite overbearing at first glance, and may put the customer off.
Website3
Content
The website is a very comprehensive and contains all the information a customer could want about the bank. It has information from current accounts to direct payment through the web. You can also access information about all sorts of things on the site. The information is displayed throughout many different pages, with quick links enabling you to click it and get there instantly. On the homepage, there is a search function allowing you to quickly find what you are looking for; it then takes you to a page showing links that contain the keyword(s) that the customer has typed into the search bar. The search looks throught the whole of their site and displays results that correspond to the word that you searched for. The page contains a few images that accompany the text, and some serve as links as well.
Layout
The layout is quite bunched together, as there are lots of writing and text. However they are separated and differentiated by headers and columns. The layout of the site is much like the layout of a newspaper, in that the "headlines" are in bigger font and placed at the top of the page. The rest of the links are then placed below it, in 2 columns with the "advertisements" or the useful links on the edge of the page. On the left hand side of the site, there is a navigation bar with a red background to highlight this from the rest of the page. Much like a document, there is a header at the top of the page displaying the HSBC logo and slogan; along with this is the search bar. All the links within the page have a description that pops up if the customer hovers the mouse over the link for s few seconds.
Purpose
The website's purpose is to be a comprehensive resource for the convienience of customers, so that they can look up any information that they require very easily. The website contains all the information that can be acquired by going to the bank. It is basically the electronic form of the leaflets and booklets that are available to pick up at any HSBC branch.
Suitability of purpose
Using the Internet as the medium is very suitable for the purpose as almost everyone has access to the Internet and can therefore easily gather any information that they need or want, without physically going to the bank. They can get all the information from the comfort of their own home, which matches the target of the purpose, to let customers acquire the information they need at their own convenience.
Differences of the booklet and website
The first obvious difference is that one is electronic and widely avaible to many different customers ...
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Suitability of purpose
Using the Internet as the medium is very suitable for the purpose as almost everyone has access to the Internet and can therefore easily gather any information that they need or want, without physically going to the bank. They can get all the information from the comfort of their own home, which matches the target of the purpose, to let customers acquire the information they need at their own convenience.
Differences of the booklet and website
The first obvious difference is that one is electronic and widely avaible to many different customers at any one time, however, the booklet can only be seen by one person at a time and if the customer is not at the bank, they cannot see the information. Another difference is that witht the booklet, it is only concentrationg on one thing, and however, the website has a wide range of different services that it offers information on. On the website, you can directly contact HSBC, which you cannot do on the booklet.
Similarities of the booklet and website
Similarities about the two documents are that they are both present the same information, about the service that they provide. Another similarity is that the format and layout is similar to each other, for example, the white background and red subheadings etc. They also share the similarity that both inform and try to persuade the customer to use their service rather than their rivals'.
Strengths and weaknesses of the booklet
The booklet's strengths include that it is very clean cut and easy to read. There are no distracting pictures of other text that makes the reader look away from the main body of the text. It is also complete with all the facts and information that you will require, including additional information that the client may find useful. Another strength is that the booklet has got the right mix of being eye-catching while not being overbearing and professional but not too bland.
Weaknesses of the booklet are that it doesn't have a great variation in images or colour. Although it looks professional, it does look a bit boring after a while of looking at it, especially when getting near the end of the booklet. Another weakness of the booklet is that they do not supply the customer with an application form to apply for the credit card at all.
Strengths and weaknesses of the website
On the website there is a search function, which allows for fast indexing for the customer so they can quickly find what topic they want to get information on. Another strong point is how they break the different topics down into headers and then further down again into subheadings so that the customer does not need to hang about looking at irrelevant information.
The website seems to be a bit cluttered, as the text is too close together and the site is quite static. They do not employ any moving graphics or use Flash to move any of the links. Following on from the last point, another of the website's weakness is that the font is too small, and if the customer tries to make the text size larger, then the site goes out of proportional and looks weird. The site also only utilises about two thirds of the screen which makes a white viod on the right hand side of the screen.
Abbey booklet and website analysis
Abbey is a plc meaning that it trades on the stock market, selling shares to gain revenue. It operates only in the UK, but they have links to overseas banks, and if need be, can combine their resources for the customers convenience. They also offer a wide range of banking services for all age groups; however they are targeting mainly at the early end of the spectrum, they being the people of the 18-30 age group.
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Credit card booklet5
Content
The front page of the booklet serves as an introduction telling the customer what is contained within the booklet. In this case, it is the various different credit cards that Abbey have on offer to suit their needs. Another thing it has on the cover is the Abbey logo. Inside, the booklet opens up into three pages of A4 sized paper. It then gives the details of all four of the credit cards that they have to offer. These are the Transfer card, the Shopping card, the Cashback card, and the Flat Rate Card. The booklet gives a brief description of all of the cards under their corresponding headers and gives a few bullet points about their terms of usage like the APR (Annual Percentage Rate). After this there is a deatures and benefits section where it tells the shared advantage of all the cards available. At the end of the three page spread, there is a table comparing and summing up all of the cards, so the customer can easily identify which card is best for them. On the back of this page, there is a section about how to order the card that the they have chosen, and some auxiliary services that compliment the credit card.
Layout
The layout of the booklet is quite simplistic and minimalist. There are no images or extravagant designs, rather it comprises of only two colours, white and light-blue. It is also quite spread out and the texts are broken by the use of bullet points and oval boxes. On the outside pages, Abbey have stuck to the blue background design with white writing, but on the inside, the layout becomes inverted, in that there is white background with blue and black writing. Within the document, there are bolded and underlined words, designed to attract the attention of the reader. They also serve to emphasise the advantage of having the type of card from them, as opposed to one of their competitors'.
Purpose
The purpose of this booklet is to inform the customer of the available cards that Abbey have to offer them. They try to sell you their product at a way they think would be most appealing, and try to persuade them as to why their card would be better than their competitors.
Suitability of purpose
This is quite suitable for the purpose of trying to sell their service to the customer as it is quite simplistic and gets straight to the point, it doesn't have any unnecessary pictures or masses of writing to confuse the customer. By having just a few of the benefits for getting each card, it wets the customers appetite so they will go to the bank to find out more, and while they are there, they will enquire about other services that Abbey have to offer.
Website6
Content
The website has everything that a customer would want to know about Abbey; it has many different links and information leading the consumer to exactly what they want. For ease of purpose, there is a search facility that enables the client to search for what they are looking for without getting lost on the site. At the bottom of the site, there are explanations of banking terms that the customer may not know for example, AER (Annual Equivalent Rate). In addition to this is some information about how the bank is regulated and the rules that they comply to when trading. On the main page, there are quite vibrant colours and eye catching fonts. Also on there are advertisements for special offers that they are doing and an integrated navigation bar, meaning there is no definite navigation bar, but the options are merged into the site itself.
Layout
The layout is quite compact and a lot of information is placed into the site. The site is only about three quarters that of the full available space. Images and text overlap each other, with quite a few different colours being used in the site. On this site there are no clear division of columns and rows as it is all merged together, and at the bottom, in small writing, are some additional information. There are also some advertisements of their own that are promoted on television and newspapers that are duplicated on their site, for example the "Me and my money" savings advertising. On the top left hand corner of the site is the Abbey logo, which is clickable and redirects you bank to the "front door" of the site.
Purpose
The purpose of the website is give any information/answers about services or the company itself, should the customer query about them. It is meant to be convenient for the customer to access when they want. Its other purpose is to attract customers to Abbey because of the layout of the site, which is aimed at the younger generation
Suitability of purpose
This is not as useful as using a billboard or television as not everyone will know about the website, but almost all of Abbey's target audience drive and watch television. Therefore there is no need to recreate the advertisements onto their site; however the site is quite suitable for the other purpose, which is to provide convenience to the customer in querying about something.
Differences in the booklet and website
The first obvious difference is that the booklet contains one set of information about the cards that they have for the customer, however the website is that it has many different sets of information. Another difference is that the booklet does not have the vibrancy or images of the website, and in this sense is tamer. It also follows a set and constant layout throughout the whole booklet, however the website although at first glance the site looks to be of the same layout, it varies slightly from page to page.
Similarities of the booklet and the website
Both the website and the booklet have information about the service that Abbey provides. They also both try to persuade any potential customers that their service is superior to their rivals. Another similarity is that they use the same font type and secondary layout, in that the way they lay the text out and text style.
Strengths of the booklet
The booklet is very clear and easy to understand, with the simplistic approach so that it is easy on the eye and looks uncluttered. Another strength of the booklet is that it gives the customer just enough information so that they know what is going on but they want to know more because of the almost, to good to be true. It also has a very wide range of other useful information that goes along with the text already there to aid you with the buying of their service.
Weaknesses of the booklet
Weaknesses of the booklet are that there is a distinctive lack of any images or pictures, which do not make the booklet as interesting as it could be at first look. Other weaknesses are that it is quite frustrating for the customer as they want to know more about the service that Abbey are providing, however you need to go back to the bank to find out more or you need to apply for the card, before the full terms and conditions are given to you.
Strengths of the website
The website has many functions that make it easy for the user to navigate the site. One particularly helpful function is the search function available at the top of the screen, this makes searching for the information that the customer may want. Another strength of the website is that there is an abundance of information available at the click of a button. If you were to get this information in hardcopy, it would take quite a lot of leaflets and booklets. Also on the site they provide a helpful link where you can email Abbey for help and assistance.
Weaknesses of the website
A weakness of the site is that there is not 100% indexing of the site, so if you try to search for something a bit unusual you would find it difficult to obtain that information. The small print at the bottom of the page, although vital information becomes off-putting after you have read it and begin to search the site for the information that you require.
Lloyds TSB booklet and website analysis
Lloyds TSB is a bank that only operates in the UK. They are a public company, meaning they trade on the stock market. They are also part of Cheltenham and Gloucester, selling mortgages and investments.
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Credit card booklet8
Content
The booklet advertises only one of the different types of credit cards that Lloyds have to offer the customer. This is the classic credit card with the lowest amount of overdraft. The booklet has eight pages, containing complete information about the card and the usage. During the booklet it compares the Lloyds TSB classic credit card compared to the other cards available on the market like the Ikea Home card and American Express Blue. After this it has details for how to apply for it. It then has a summary box and an illustrative example to make it clear to the customer about what the card entails. After this, there is additional information about the services that are included in the card service. Then it contains the full terms and services of the card.
Layout
The layout of the booklet is quite formal and standard. It has bullet points to split up their points, and tables to display the comparison of the credit card. It is also set in white, making the text highly visible for the reader and makes it seem clear cut. Information is mostly in bullet pointed form, with the sentences being shortened, and more easily read. Major headers are bolded and font size increased, to make it defined. Subheadings are coloured in green, which is again used to distinguish between the body of the text and the header. The layout for the booklet is kept identical throughout the booklet.
Purpose
The purpose of this booklet is to inform the customer of the available cards that Lloyds TSB have to offer them. They try to sell you their product at a way they think would be most appealing, and try to persuade them as to why their card would be better than their competitors.
Suitability of purpose
This is quite suitable for the purpose of trying to sell their service to the customer as it is quite simplistic and gets straight to the point, it doesn't have any unnecessary pictures or masses of writing to confuse the customer. By having just a few of the benefits for getting each card, it wets the customers appetite so they will go to the bank to find out more, and while they are there, they will enquire about other services that Lloyds have to offer.
Website9
Content
The site is also quite clear cut and separated so that it is easy to read. There are many links on the navigation bar, which is located on the left hand side of the web page. The navigation bar contains lots of links where you can click to access the information that you want. In the middle of the site, there is a news section where they tell the customer the information that you have searched for. It also tells of any important news that involves Lloyds TSB. On the right hand side, there are adverts displaying what Lloyds TSB is selling, like the mortgages and loans.
Layout
The layout is again quite standard and easy to read. There are no overlapping texts or images, and the layout is similar to that of the booklet. On the top left hand corner of the page is the Lloyds TSB logo with a line underneath it, which separates it from the rest of the site.
Purpose
The purpose of the website is give any information/answers about services or the company itself, should the customer query about them. It is meant to be convenient for the customer to access when they want. Its other purpose is to attract customers to Lloyds TSB because of the layout of the site, which is aimed at the older generation.
Suitability of purpose
The use of placing the adverts is quite good because it emphasises what they are trying to sell. Also the older generation are less mobile than the young generation so they are more likely to use the Internet. It also provides a complete amount of service for the information that the customers require.
Differences between the booklet and website
The first obvious difference is that the booklet contains one set of information about the cards that they have for the customer, however the website is that it has many different sets of information. Another difference is that the booklet does not the vibrancy or images of the website, and in this sense is tamer. It also follows a set and constant layout throughout the whole booklet, however the website although at first glance the site looks to be of the same layout, it varies slightly form page to page.
Similarities of the booklet and the website
Both the website and the booklet have information about the service that Lloyds provides. They also both try to persuade any potential customers that their service is superior to their rivals. Another similarity is that they use the same font type layout. It is a universal layout used for all their documents
Strengths of the booklet
The booklet is very clear and easy to understand, with the simplistic approach so that it is easy on the eye and looks uncluttered. Another strength of the booklet is that it gives the customer just enough information so that they know what is going on but they want to know more because of the almost, to good to be true. It also has a very wide range of other useful information that goes along with the text already there to aid you with the buying of their service.
Weaknesses of the booklet
Weaknesses of the booklet are that there is a distinctive lack of any images or pictures, which do not make the booklet as interesting as it could be at first look. It also looks quite compact and full of information and looks quite plain.
Strengths of the website
The website has many functions that make it easy for the user to navigate the site. One particularly helpful function is the search function available at the top of the screen, this makes searching for the information that the customer may want. Another strength of the website is that there is an abundance of information available at the click of a button. If you were to get this information in hardcopy, it would take quite a lot of leaflets and booklets. Also on the site they provide a helpful link where you can email Lloyds for help and assistance.
Weaknesses of the website
A weakness of the site is that you need to search for quite some time before you can find the information that you need. Another weakness is that there are not enough hyperlinks for the customer to click on all of the information that they need to require.
Differences between the booklets
One difference between them all is that they all have their individual layout and design specific to the company that they are advertising for. For example, the Lloyds TSB booklet is formal as it is aimed at the older generation and the HSBC booklet is more informal as its target audience is the younger end of people, age wise. Another obvious difference between them is the content that they choose to put into their booklets, as Abbey choose to put all of their available cards onto one booklet, however Lloyds chooses to place only one type of card to each booklet, thus putting in more information about the card. Also another variation between them is the amount of detail that they choose to put in, as Abbey applies a minimalist approach, and puts in just enough information so the customer understands the general workings of the card but only tells them more when they apply for the card, and Lloyds tells the customer every little detail of the card straight out. The way they present their information is also different, in that HSBC uses red lines to separate information, however, Abbey uses boxes to distinguish between each of the cards that they provide.
Similarities between the booklets
All the booklets are reaching for the same aim; using the booklet as a medium to try to persuade the customer that their credit card service is superior to that of their competitors. They agree on the fact that there is a need for more than one credit card because on individual consumer needs and there are all personal. Another thing they have the same is that they all have the option to order the information in different formats, and this is all stated at the back of the booklet. They also have customer order information near towards the end o the booklet, so the consumer knows how to apply for the service.
Difference between the websites
Again a very obvious difference between the websites is that their layout is completely different. For example HSBC have a very colourful and eye catching website, however Lloyds TSB is quite basic and bland. Lloyds also have large advertisements on the main page of their site and it is very prominent, however the advertisements of Abbey are quite small and not as eye catching. Another difference is the content of the websites, as Abbey and HSBC both have a search function, however there is no evident one in Lloyds TSB bank. The actual layout of the website is also different in that Abbey and HSBC both only use up 3/4 of the screen, however Lloyds TSB utilises the whole width of the screen.
Similarities between the websites
The most noticeable similarity between the sites is that they all have their logos on the top left hand corner of their website. They also all have their navigation bar on the left hand side, even though in the Abbey bank website, it is not as obvious. Their purposes of the websites are the same, and that is to provide a comprehensive information service for the customers. On the right hand side of their website, they place advertisements displaying the services that they provide and have direct links to them.
Evaluation
Purpose of task
The purpose of this project was to create a report for businessmen who are thinking up new ways of using a medium to try to attract new customers and make their business look contemporary. It was also intended for graphic designers to show them what makes or breaks a design on leaflets or websites. The task involved analysing and collecting data from three different sources. The chosen materials were websites and booklets advertising the sales of credit cards; and these were collected from HSBC, Lloyds TSB, and Abbey.
Why I chose the material
I chose to analyse the credit card booklet because it was full of interesting points that could be picked up on and commented about. There were a lot of plus points and negative points that could be discussed in detail and it would also highlight the presentational aspect of the booklet. The websites were also chosen as they were the opposite of the booklets and so in turn they had a lot of analytical features. There are also a wide range of different layouts and each website had their own unique yet distinctive look that all made them appealing in one-way or another.
What I had to identify
Throughout the project, I had to continuously identify different features of the material. For example, I had to identify each individual content, layout and purpose for each, and then say how they each had their own strengths and weaknesses. The next course of action was to then compare the documents with each other. This was to show how they ranked on a level playing field and whether or not they were up to standard. The next step was to identify the similarities and differences of all three of the same documents like all of the booklets and all of the websites.
Personal opinions
I discussed a relatively wide range of different themes that were contained within the booklets. I think that they were done quite successfully as they covered all the points that were necessary and raised some extra analytical points about the material. All of the points from the specification were enclosed in the identification process and it was broken down into clear, defined sections so it was easy to comprehend by he user, and they could simply go to the relevant sections that they require.
Improvements
With eh benefit of hindsight, I think that I would not write about a credit card booklet, as it did not have as much to write about as an invoice. Although the invoice is simpler, there are more details and differences that can be picked up on more clearly. Another change would be to try and add more detailed analysis of the documents if there were more time, this would make it even simpler for the user to understand and gain in-depth knowledge about how to make their product stand out from the rest.
Target audience responses
The target audience were graphic designers and businessmen who want to create documents that are designed to inspire the customer to buy from them. The report was tested out by giving it to a graphic designer, who then read through it and gave his opinions as to what he thought was useful in the comparisons and the major criticisms that occur through the report. His opinions were that it was by far and large quite successful for the aim that it was intended for and provided quite a lot of detail for people who didn't need it specifically for the documents, as it gave good ideas on how to present other documents.
Macro
During this report I created various macros to use in my report. This was done so that every time I needed to insert an image, I could just press the relevant keys to obtain the image instead of having to copy and paste all the time. Macros save time for the user and are an easy way to get the images/text that are used repeatedly throughout the report. To create a macro you click on Tools then Macro and finally Record New Macro.
How successful the project was
From the point of view of what had to be done, I think that the project was quite successful as I had completed all of the required work to a high standard. The required information for the report was all covered, and there were some extra information so that it made the report more comprehensive.
Bibliography
Electronic resources - websites
Abbey. [online]. (2004). Abbey. Available from: http://www.Abbey.com/ [accessed 29th September 2004]
Lloyds TSB. [online]. (2004). Lloyds TSB. Available from: http://www.lloydstsb.com/ [accessed 29th September 2004]
HSBC. [online]. (2004). HSBC. Available from: http://www.hsbc.com/ [accessed 29th September 2004]
Image obtained from HSBC webpage - http://www.hsbc.co.uk/
2 See Appendix A for the booklet
3 See Appendix B for Website
4 Image from http://www.abbey.com/
5 See Appendix C for the booklet
6 See Appendix D for the website - http://www.lloydstsb.com/
7 Image obtained from the Lloyds TSB website - http://www.lloydstsb.com/
8 See Appendix E for booklet
9 See Appendix F for website
AVCE ICT Unit 1 - Presenting Information Comparing Documents
0 Hou-Fung Yuen