On Quiz’s website, they show images of their clothing. This presents a trendy and fashionable image. Therefore, Quiz is working well towards their business objective of ‘aiming to deliver trendy girls’ clothes and fashionable clothes’.
Quiz also states that they want to offer clothes that are ‘among the best value for money on the market’. I don’t believe that Quiz is working very well to deliver this business objective. This is because the prices are fairly expensive for a clothing store. You can get almost the same styles/trends of clothing from other leading competitors such as Primark, Tammy Fashion, New Look etc. However, the competitors may not be able to offer the same high standards of clothing that Quiz is able to offer. On the other hand, Quiz still offer online sales and discounts to their customers, allowing them to save quite a lot of money on their products.
Another part of Quiz’s main business aim is to offer ‘fashions they want, when they want’. They are working well to achieve this, as by having a webpage, it is accessible all of the time, and it has no opening and closing times like a store. Therefore, customers can buy products whenever they want and have no time restriction of when they can go shopping as their site is always open. They offer up-to-date fashion, mainly for younger women such as teenagers. So they are achieving this aim, but only to their target audience, and not older women.
Warehouse.co.uk – Aims and Objectives:
Our vision: Design for the high street creating a directional brand experience that is exciting, inspiring and personal to our customer. Our distinctive handwriting is…Styley, Confident, Sexy, Glamorous, Edgy, Clean, and Individual.
Our culture: Our culture is positive, ambitious and focused and our teams are creative and have pride in the brand. The people who work at Warehouse are passionate and knowledgeable about fashion and reflect the personality of the brand.
This is included on the Warehouse website. It states the company’s ‘vision’, what they aim to do to make their service better for people. Underneath that is the company’s ‘culture’, this tells people what the company is like and how they work.
The business aim states that they want to ‘design for the high street, creating a directional brand experience’. I believe that Warehouse is working well to achieve this as they are already well-known in the high-street as they are a very popular company. However, their prices are quite expensive, but they have to keep up with high-street prices. They can’t afford to lower their prices too much, as another company could be selling a similar product for more. Therefore, they will be receiving more income from customers. If it is of a similar quality though, they may choose the less expensive option.
They are working well towards ‘creating a directional brand experience’. This is because people choose to buy their products from their brand over other leading brands. As a lot of people are buying their brand, it will get more popular amongst people, allowing them to increase their sales and profits. To further achieve this aim, they could maybe reduce prices so that people will be increasingly satisfied with the service.
Quiz say that their ‘distinctive handwriting’ is ‘styley, confident, sexy, glamorous, edgy, clean and individual’. I believe that Quiz is working very well to achieve the aim of having a unique style. Their clothes are far different from others in the high-street market, making them unique or ‘Individual’ compared to anything else. The clothes also have a glamorous touch to them, but I believe that they fit more into the ‘casual’ category. Warehouse should try and introduce more sophisticated items of clothing to their lines. This would make their style seem more glamorous, and it would fit well in the eveningwear category. Therefore, it would add more variety to the clothing lines that the stores offer to customers. The clothing company is also working well towards meeting their other ‘distinctive handwriting’ criteria by adding up-to-date and fashionable lines of clothing regular.
Section Two:
In this section, I will be writing about the positive impacts and drawbacks of having an online presence. I will then evaluate the business website and make detailed recommendations on how the business could be possibly improved.
Warehouse.co.uk - Positive impacts on having an online presence:
The weaker of my two organisations websites is Warehouse. Although their site may not be as good as the Quiz one, it will still have the same or similar positive impacts on the company.
Better customer communication:
Because of the online presence that the company has, it is able to communicate better with its customer. As said before, on the website is a section called store locator. This is used as an advantage for the customer as well as the company. The customer is advantaged as they can get the information when they want. They no longer have to wait on the phone for someone at the store to answer.
The company is advantaged by this as they won’t need employees to answer the phone. This can cut down on staffing costs and save the company valuable time.
As this information is given to customers, this is better communication. The information will always be ready available for the customer and won’t need constant updating; it is static information.
Other information that is given to customers is opening times and contact numbers, email addresses etc. People are more likely to want to contact the company via email as it is quicker and easier for them to do.
Online, by offering contact information, the customers are able to leave feedback on how they think the company is performing and if they are satisfied with their service. This can be done direct, and the company will receive it as soon as it is sent. This information can they be used to improve the company and cater for any particular consumer needs.
With the business having a website, they are able to receive this feedback direct from their customers. This is good for the business as they are able to find out what their customers want from their business. Therefore, they will be satisfied with the service offered as it would be their suggestions that they have given for improvements.
If the company has an online presence like Warehouse, if information is frequently changing, they are able to change it easily and quickly. For example, if new products are being introduced to their clothing lines every week, then Warehouse can update this information weekly. The stores however, may not be able to update this quick. Stock may be arriving late, so they can’t stock up on new items until they are in the warehouse ready to distribute.
The company’s latest offers and prices may not be up-to-date in stores also. This is because the in-store staff is busy running the store, so they won’t have time to do this. Online, the prices can be amended with the click of a button.
Also, if the company has any news to communicate to the customer, this can easily be done. A section can be made on the website and information can be easily updated for the customer to read. This information listed may also be useful for the company’s staff to read and find out about events etc.
Customer Profiles:
Many customers will choose to buy online, this means that Warehouse will be able to build up an online database of all of their customers. This will be made-up of all the information that people put into the website when signing up for their online shopping service. The information entered is then all put together and an accurate customer profile is produced by the company. The profile then predicts what products the customer will want to buy and when. It does this by tracking what each customer buys and how often.
When the company’s system has enough information gathered it will give recommendations of products according to the data that they have collected on customers. This can also be used to target specific groups. They will give their customers information on certain offers that they may be interested in. These discounts will be on products that will they need or want at this time, so they will want to buy it, therefore, increasing sales and profits.
Larger Customer Base:
If a company is featured their online on a website, then this will widen the area that they able to sell their products in. This is because they can now offer delivery online, at a small price. Also the information is available for people to view worldwide, so Warehouse can now receive custom from other parts of the world. These together will help Warehouse to receive large sales and profit.
However, businesses that cannot provide their products through the postal service cannot do this because they are not able to deliver products to their customers. This type of website will only be used to allow people to view their products. They will have to buy them from their stores, if they see anything that they like on the company website. Warehouse is able to offer an online shopping service with delivery. So this is good for them as they can receive more custom from a wider geographical area.
Reduction in Costs:
As people will buy online, this means that the company doesn’t have to handle money as much. This is because most payment online is done through PayPal, which is direct payment through direct debit cards. Because of this payment method, this allows the money to be directly transferred from the buyer’s account into the business’s account automatically. This is good for the company, as the money will be secure through this type of payment and won’t be at risk of getting lost through the post etc. However, customers are still able to pay via postal cheques, so this could be at risk of getting lost, but most people prefer the direct payment method. Only some people don’t like using this method as they feel that they can’t trust it and don’t feel that their money is secure enough.
As the business is selling online, it is able to locate its warehouse and administrators in the cheaper areas. This is because the stores can order stock online, so they won’t need to visit the warehouse. It will be delivered to the stores. By doing this, it will save the company money as they won’t have to pay high rent / land costs to locate these. As the company is now selling online, the warehouses do not need to be located near to stores. This is because the products can now be delivered directly to the buyer’s house.
Stores are also able to handle less information enquiries from customers. This is because this information is displayed on the company website, allowing people to access and view it easily and quickly.
Warehouse - drawbacks of an online presence:
Although there are a lot of advantages of having an online presence, there are also some drawbacks. I will now explain the drawbacks of a company having an online presence:
Technical Requirements:
If you are setting up a company website, it will have a lot of technical requirements. The website needs to meet the standard of the store that it is representing. The costs of these technical requirements are very expensive to set-up and will need to be maintained, again this will be costly. The website especially needs to be maintained regularly if it involves selling products online. This will require technical expertise to get the website working correctly.
Internet Service Provider:
To run a website, it has to have an Internet Service Provider. The company that wants to set up a website will need to register with an ISP. An ISP is a company that provides an internet connection. Most of these companies will offer web space (where the site ‘lives’). The costs can vary hugely, but small businesses would probably be able to use the provider for less than £200 per year.
Domain Name:
When having an online website, it is necessary to purchase a domain name. This is the address to the site that visitors use to navigate to. The domain name is usually relatively cheap; you can sometimes purchase one for as low as £10 a year.
However, a problem with purchasing a domain name is that the domain name that the company wants to use may already be taken. In this case, the business has to decide whether to choose another name or contact the owner of the website name they want. They can then try to negotiate a price for them to sell it at. Warehouse shouldn’t have this problem, as their name is unique to them.
Design and construction costs:
The price of designing and constructing the site can be difficult to quantify. This is because the price will vary depending on a lot of factors.
- Size of the business:
- The product that is being marketed
- Business aspirations in terms of the images it wishes to convey
The business will have to shop around for the best deal. The cost of the facility will be determined by the business budget and their objectives. The costs will probably be of a high-price as professionals will need to be hired to do this. This is because the business that wants to design their website is unlikely to have the technical skills and expertise necessary among their existing personnel. Therefore, the business will have to take out contracts with agencies and support services in order to do this. Warehouse is a fairly large company, so it may cost more to construct their site.
Advertising:
A business that is ambitious will consider using an advertising agency. This will ensure that the wording, content and layout of the site are correctly constructed for its expected market profile. Warehouse will probably choose this option as they want their site to look as professional as possible.
Online Payment:
If the business wishes to sell products online to their customers, they will have to arrange a method of accepting payment via credit or debit card. A small business may choose to use Paypal or e-commerce software providers. The shopping cart facility that e-commerce offer can cost about £100 per year. Larger businesses might consider setting up an in-house system. This offers unlimited selling and card processing facilities. This will cost around £300 per year, so it is expensive. Warehouse will need an e-commerce or Paypal provider, as their clothes are sold online.
Security:
Another drawback of a company having a website is the security side of it. With people entering their personal details and back account details, they may be at risk if the website is not secure. This will cause website fraud, where people can steal this sensitive data on customers and get their money. They do this by downloading financial and personal details about the company and its suppliers and customers.
As the site is accessible to many, it is at risk of being hacked into by people. If people manage to hack into the website, they can damage it with viruses and change information that is displayed on it.
A virus is a program or piece of code that loads itself onto a computer. It then replicates itself. It can be dangerous as it can use the available memory quickly to bring the system to a halt.
Scams and Phishing:
This refers to activities of fraudsters. They send out emails claiming to be a reputable company, often being banks or payment agencies. These fraudsters then send links to fake websites designed to be the real thing. They ask people to enter profile details or carry out a transaction. However, if the user is scammed by this, then their personal or financial information is sent directly to the scammer.
Spam:
This is unwanted bulk or junk email. If this is repeatedly sent, then it can cause a system to clog up, which takes up staff time. Larger business will have spam detector software. This diverts suspected spam email. This is again another cost for the business.
Spyware:
This is software that is used to monitor computer activity. The computer user doesn’t know that their computer is being monitored as it is done secretly.
Virus:
This is a program or piece of code that loads itself into a computer. It replicates itself. Examples of viruses are the Trojan horse and A Worm. The Trojan horse is a code that hides behind a genuine program and waits for a certain time to release itself. The worm is a program that copies itself to other systems. It does this over a network.
As a lot of people are going to be accessing the site from their own personal computers, this makes them at risk of also getting viruses from the company’s website.
Credit card fraud is an indication of poor site security. Because people are entering their bank details to buy products daily, this means that the information could be at risk of getting stolen by fraudulent people. This means that the Warehouse site will have to be very secure to stop this from happening. If this does happen to someone however, people will find out about this and refuse to pay by credit card for Warehouse’s products, as they think that their credit card details will also be stolen.
To stop credit card fraud and website hackers, the business can use Firewall and Anti-Virus protection. The firewall is a security system. It intends to protect an organisation’s network against external threats such as Hackers. They can also stop pop-up advertisements. The company will have to buy this software and it is again another costly investment for the business.
Updating and monitoring:
The site will have to be regularly updated and monitored. This is very time-consuming and costly for the business. As the website has to be at the same standard levels as the store it is presenting, it is vital that the site is kept well updated and monitored. By monitoring the site, there is less chance that people will hack into the site. But if it is hacked it will also be costly to sort out.
If a site’s information is out of date, it will mislead customers. The customer may also place incorrect order through the company website, resulting in many returns of items. This will be harming the company’s reputation. This is because people won’t be satisfied and will think badly of the company because of the condition of its website. This will lose customers for the company and could possibly de-motivate staff as they have to sort out these problems.
If information may not be updated regularly on the website, this means that people will be given incorrect information, leaving the in-store staff to deal with unhappy customers. This may then leave employees frustrated as they will not only have to do their normal job, but they will have to sort out customers that have the wrong information. They may refuse to do this, or ask for a pay rise. If the company don’t give them what the want, they may threaten to leave.
With the lack of updates and monitoring on the website, this may also put other company’s off of their site, I.e. Warehouse’s suppliers or customers. Business customers could include fashion magazines such as ‘Littlewoods’ who stock Warehouse clothing for people to buy.
By not updating software and ordering processes, this can result in difficulties in technical difficulties and order being lost. Also, any out of date products that are displayed, could result in an increase in orders for these products. This leads to higher administration costs and time wasting, leaving the company with no sales revenue.
Warehouse - Business evaluation and suggested improvements:
From looking at both the Quiz and Warehouse websites, it is clear that both look professional. However, I believe that the Quiz site is a lot more interesting than the Warehouse one. This is because it is more colourful, compared with the dullness of the Warehouse site. It also has larger images displaying the clothing lines. You could alternatively say that the dull colours of black and grey make the site seem professional also. But I believe that the site should be more colourful as to engage the customers.
I do think that the Warehouse website is regularly updated. This is because I read the Warehouse Blog on the site, and it was updated today. Therefore, Warehouse is very good at updating their site. This won’t need to be improved as it is updated weekly or even sometimes daily.
The warehouse site does not have sales on new stock, only on the old stock. They are offering products at a lower price for the customer which is a good idea. However, I think that they should include some of the newer stock in their sales. This is because people may not want the older stock if it is unsuitable.
I have also noticed that Quiz, my other chosen business run competitions for their younger customers. This is a very good idea as more people will be interested and it may contribute to an increase in sales. Warehouse could consider doing this as well on their website.
Website Design/layout:
As the Warehouse website is fairly dull, I believe that is should be improved with much brighter colours used in the design. This will interest the customers more and it may encourage them to look at their clothing range, if before they wouldn’t have.
By improving the website design and colours, it will appeal more to people and they will think positively about the company. This will then persuade customers to use the service, whether it is buying online or from their stores.
The site could also improve their site by having larger images of their clothing for customers to view. If the images are larger, this means that customers can a have a better look at the clothing and decide whether they like it for certain. With smaller images, it is often hard to see the finer details of the clothing design.
People will sometimes buy an item and later decide that they don’t like it because it looked different from the image online. Therefore, small images mislead people, as it doesn’t properly show what the product looks like. By having larger images, it will also stop people from returning items when they have bought them. This is because they will know that they like the item that they have bought online.
Online Sales:
As Warehouse’s prices are fairly steep, I believe that they should start offering online sales. Products will then be less expensive for customers to buy. Therefore, customers will be encouraged more to buy their products. They may even receive new customers who may have not shopped there before.
Although the store currently has old stock in the sales, I believe that they should offer some of the new stock as well. This is because, if people buy old stock it will be ‘out of season’ and they will have to save it until the next year. By having only old stock, people will probably not want to buy it, as they will want clothes that they can wear now. If the customer buys items from the summer stock and summer is over, then the clothes will no longer be suitable for the autumn.
By having sales on all stock items, I believe that Warehouse will see an increase in customers as they will be able to come to their store each season/ month to get clothing as it will be at a more affordable price. However, this is if the company decide to run sales monthly. They may decide that they do not want to do this if they can’t afford it.
Competitions/ Prize Draws:
I believe that in order to appeal to younger generations: i.e., teenagers, young women, Warehouse should introduce some competitions. The other business that I have researched is Quiz; they have competitions running online on their website. They have a modelling competition in association with sugar magazine.
If Warehouse decides to run competitions with magazines, then they will probably be advertised inside them. Therefore, lots of people will read this magazine and Warehouse will receive more custom. The Warehouse popular will become more popular as a business because they will be reaching a larger target market. With the target market expanding, they will receive more sales and income, increasing the success of the company.
If Warehouse only want to target young, middle-aged women etc, then there is no need to run the competitions as it will be highly unlikely that this target market will want to the enter the competitions as they are aimed more at younger people.
The company could also consider automatically entering their customers into a free prize draw when they buy something from them. They can be entered for the chance to win money-off vouchers or special discounts. This will be like the customers are being rewarded for using their service. They will be buying their products and getting entered into a competition that could save them money for the next time they shop.
Warehouse will also be using this method to persuade people to buy more from them. As they buy more products, the better chance they would have of winning one of the draws.
Section Three:
In this section I will be choosing a local business that does not have an online presence. I will then describe the advantages to my chosen business of having a site and why they would benefit from these. Also, I will be explaining the factors that need to be considered when establishing an online presence.
My chosen local business is Naaz an Indian restaurant located off York Road on Baldwin Avenue in Doncaster. As well as being a restaurant, Naaz also offer takeaway and home delivery. The business is newly established, and has become known over the last year or so.
If Naaz want to establish a website for their company, there are some factors that they will have to consider when deciding to do this.
Legal Requirements:
If a company wants to set up a website, then they will have to be aware of the various laws which can affect them. A smaller business such as Naaz, will seek advice from either a solicitor or the company that creates the website. A solicitor will be very costly for the business, so they may decide against creating a website, as they may not be able to afford it.
If it is a company website, the company must show the registered office. The company registration number and place of registration must also be shown. If anyone running the business is a member of the professional body or trade organization, the details of these must be provided.
Prices on the website have to clearly state if the product price is inclusive of VAT and delivery costs. The VAT number must be shown, even if the website is not ecommerce enabled. The business name, geographic address and email address information must be shown on the company website. The company name must be the name that potential customers will contact the company with. The business may have a ‘trading name’, but you have to explain this clearly.
Sale and Supply of Goods Act:
On their website, a business cannot make false or misleading statements about their products or services.
Originally, the sale of goods act, the act was amended by the Sale and Supply of Goods to Consumers Regulations 2002. This said that if consumers discover that their products don’t meet these requirements, they are able to ask for their money back. However, this is providing that they do so quickly. They can alternatively request a repair, replacement or compensation.
Trade Descriptions Act:
Descriptions, photographs and prices on the company website must be accurate. Companies must not sell defective products through their site to customers.
This act makes it an offence if an online trader:
- Applies a trade description that is false to any of their goods
- Supplies or offers to supply any goods that have a false trade description
- Makes certain kinds of false statement about any services, accommodation or facilities.
Copyright:
Businesses that operate websites must take great care if they decide to use music or images. They must not infringe copyright. They must get permission from the owner of the copyrighted material.
‘’You can copyright:
-
literature, including novels, instruction manuals, computer programs, song lyrics, newspaper articles and some types of database
-
drama, including dance or mime
- music
-
art, including paintings, engravings, photographs, sculptures, collages, architecture, technical drawings, diagrams, maps and logos
-
layouts used to publish a work, for a book
-
recordings of a work, including sound and film
-
broadcasts of a work’’
: Taken from
Acts that are allowed
‘’Fair dealing is a term used to describe acts which are permitted to a certain degree without infringing the work, these acts are:
- Private and research study purposes.
- Performance, copies or lending for educational purposes.
- Criticism and news reporting.
- Incidental inclusion.
- Copies and lending by librarians.
- Acts for the purposes of royal commissions, statutory enquiries, judicial proceedings and parliamentary purposes.
- Recording of broadcasts for the purposes of listening to or viewing at a more convenient time, this is known as time shifting.
- Producing a back up copy for personal use of a computer program.
- Playing sound recording for a non profit making organisation, club or society.
(Profit making organisations and individuals should obtain a license from the Performing Rights Society.)’’
: Taken from the UK copyright service website
Data protection act:
If information is collected by a business on individuals such as names and addresses, it must be relevant. It also must be held securely so it cannot be used by other people. The information is not allowed to be released to other companies unless the company has had permission to do so. On websites, it is the law to include a tick box section. This is where people can select whether or not they want their information given to companies.
This is the main piece of legislation that governs the protection of personal data in the UK.
Distance selling regulations:
Clear and easily understood information on goods and services must be provided on the company’s website.
After a customer has made a purchase, they must be sent confirmation about the purchase of the product. They will have 7 days to change their mind about the product that they have purchased, this is known as the ‘cooling off period’.
Privacy and electronic communications regulations:
Businesses are not allowed to send information to a website visitor through emails unless the visitor has given them permission to do this.
Business Costs:
Also, a business will need to consider the costs of setting up a business. Costs that a business will need to pay for include:
- Registering a domain name: This will need to be done in order for a site to actually have a website name/ address. The cost of this will be from £10 per year.
- Designing and construction of the site: There will be a fee to pay for this service. It is costly, prices range from £1,000 to £10,000. This is a ‘one off’ payment.
- Broadband and dial up connection to the internet: This will cost from about £25 and this is paid for per month.
- Hosting Fee – This is the file storage that a website has. The more the company pays, the more storage they will have for their files and information.
There are many more website costs that will need to be paid in order to get a good working website. Other costs include website promotion, website updates, virus scanning and more.
However, if a company has someone who is skilled in any of these IT areas, then this is a significant strength for the business. This is because they may have the skills needed in order to get a company website up and running. Most businesses will choose to take the step of employing someone professional in this area.
Benefits that a website could bring to my business:
With a website, it is highly accessible. This means that information can easily be displayed and is available for everyone in the target market, who has an internet connection. Basic enquiry information such as opening times and products sold can be displayed. This will free staff from doing two jobs in one, as they will no longer be interrupted by people ringing the restaurant for this information. Therefore, their other duties will not be interrupted and they can get on with the job that they are paid for.
Another advantage that is not as significant for smaller businesses is advertising. This is because most people will probably look in the local newspaper at vacancies if they want to find a job. However, the newspaper may prove to be expensive if they require a large section of the page or want their advert in colour (especially if required weekly). So in this case, the internet is a less expensive form of advertising.
A website is also unlimited in the amount of information that can be displayed on it. This means that the company will not have to pay extra for extra space, like in newspapers. Advertisements on the internet may also pick up ‘passing trade’. This is when people are browsing the internet and come across something that they don’t really need, but it interests them, so they go on the site.
Also now, because of advanced technology i.e. computers, people now choose to carry out a ‘google search’ instead of looking in a telephone directory such as the yellow pages. This means that the company may get more people interested in their website rather than their advert in the phonebook or newspaper.
A website will also be able to promote the image that the company wishes to convey. To do this, images are often taken from the ‘best angles’, to make them look professional, so people will want to visit the place.
Colours and font also help to promote a company image. E.g. McDonalds have the yellow arches and a red background. This makes the company easily recognizable.
The use of bold font will stand out so people can see it easier. Bold colours will attract people’s attention, whereas, if the colours are dull, they won’t be interested.
Problems and threats of a business having a website:
As with larger companies, smaller companies may also experience people hacking into their websites. This means that important information could be at risk of being stolen. If viruses infect the company website, it may cause them to spread onto the website users’ computers.
If the company has a website, they must ensure that it is made correctly. It is very important for the site to be regularly updated. The image must be professional.
By having a website, it allows business competitors to get hold of any updates to the company. This may lead to them stealing ideas. They are able to access information such as prices, what is being stocked, etc. It is an easy way to compete with the company as they can easily get this information. This could lead to them stealing their custom if they like what the competitor is offering more.
Someone also has to be in-charge of the website. This can be costly, as someone will need to be hired if there is no one qualified in this area. The site will need to be managed correctly; if it isn’t then the company may in-turn suffer as well. It may harm their reputation if people see a bad site; they may think the same about the company. Therefore, Warehouse’s sales and profits may see a decrease.
Evaluation:
After looking at what is needed to set up a website I think that it is very hard work and quite costly. However, I do think that a website will be of benefit to the Naaz Indian restaurant in Doncaster as it will allow the business to grow.
This is because people will be able to get information that they need quickly, so won’t have to ring up the restaurant. Therefore, this will not be disturbing the staff whilst they are working and they won’t be complaining about doing jobs that they aren’t getting paid for.
Also, the business may be recognized by people (within or around the area) that may have not known it existed. Therefore, the company will be receiving more custom.
The website will also help to promote the company’s image to people. If the company have an impressive website, this will persuade people to go to the restaurant, as they will think that this is of a similar standard. I also believe that a site should be made for Naaz because the drawbacks of setting up a website are minimal. There are more advantages than disadvantages to the company if they set up a website.
Section Four:
Introduction:
For this section, I will be producing an outline plan that will show my initial thoughts on the construction of a basic website for my chosen business, Naaz.
I will also be creating a design brief for my proposed business website. The website will have to be made ensuring that it meets this design brief.
The design brief will contain information such as the target audience, the sites contents, the sites functionality (how it will work) and the objectives of the website. I will also be including an estimate of the costs and time needed to produce the site.
When this is done, I will actually be creating the business website for Naaz, including some of the example pages of the site. This will be made on a program called Dreamweaver.
Outline Plan:
Design Brief
Website Objectives:
In order to work successfully, the company must provide some objectives that they want the website to achieve. The website must meet the objectives that are set. The objectives need to be realistic and achievable.
The Naaz restaurant website will be made in order to attract new customers to their restaurants from Doncaster and its surrounding areas. With the help of a new website, Naaz should hopefully receive more customers. This will increase the profit for the business.
The site will provide advertising opportunities for the business. Jobs may be advertised, but people are more likely to search for a job in the newspaper. Menus can be displayed on the site as to advertise them to the potential customers. Customers will get an idea of the range of food that the restaurant sells. Therefore, they can decide whether or not they want to dine there.
The site will also provide location information. This will be on the website in order to show people where the restaurant is if they haven’t been before. The address of the restaurant will also be displayed. The directions should be clearly presented so people can easily find the restaurant. If people can’t find Naaz, then this will be losing custom as this will be passed on by ‘word of mouth’ and other people won’t want to go. When people go out for meals, they do it for ease and convenience.
Target Audience:
A target audience will need to be decided on. This is so that the website can be designed around them. Also the same types of people will be visiting the restaurant so it will make it more enjoyable for them.
The target audience for the website will be mostly families and couples. The age will be 18+ as people under this age will be too young to go on their own; they will probably go with their parents.
Older people will not be in great demand for a company website, as most will not have access to the internet. They may not know how to work it or could just simply not have enough money to buy an internet connection. Therefore, the website will mostly be aimed at younger people and adults that are browsing the web.
As people will want a local meal most of the time, they will not want to travel far for a meal out. They want convenience, this would probably be the main reason that they want to visit a restaurant. The restaurant will probably appeal to people in Doncaster and its surrounding areas.
Website Content (description of each page):
The sites content needs to be relevant and to the point.
Homepage
This is the main website homepage. It will be bright and bold, as to draw the customer’s attention and to get them interested in the service offered.
Page links (Navigation) will be on a menu bar underneath the main title. This will navigate people to other sections of the website. It will be clearly set out, making it simple for people to find their way around the website.
The homepage could possibly be a good advertising opportunity for other websites that are relating to the company, e.g. Other Indian restaurants. A fee could be paid in order for the companies to advertise on the website. This will increase company profits.
As well as other company advertisements, there could be discounts advertised for the Naaz Company, i.e. buy two main meal dishes get one free (3 for 2 on selected meals). This will be used to encourage people to reserve their place online. This in turn, will encourage people to visit the restaurant.
Location
This page is all about how to get to the restaurant. It will include a google map application where it clearly states of the street names, main roads etc. By clicking onto this map, the user will be re-located to the google map website, where they can find step-by-step directions to the restaurant. To do this, they will have to enter their starting location and the location that they want to find.
Our Meals
This will be the menus page. Several menu types will be displayed here and images of the meals will also be on this page.
There will also be average prices on several meals, as to give people an idea of how much they will be spending when they visit the Naaz Indian Restaurant.
Cost of the website:
Initially, the website costs will same fairly expensive. However, as Naaz is a small local restaurant company, it will cost less to set up a site because of the business size.
The ways in which the Naaz restaurant could set up a website could be to, set-up a website professionally or to get someone in the business to create the site if they are capable of doing this i.e. have the technical expertise needed.
In order to set up a professional website, the company will need to contact a website consultancy agency. This would involve the company making the website for them, but this could be costly. The consultancy will deal with the building, designing and maintenance of the website.
A design consultancy that was on the internet was . They provide professional and functional websites. On their website, there is a portfolio. This displays examples of websites that they have previously constructed. This company is based in Worcestershire. They work with clients from around the UK and overseas.
is another website design consultancy that Naaz could go through. They provide the best professional web design, web applications and customer service. The site also displays a portfolio of their previous websites that they have created.
The average price for the design and construction of a small business website could range from £1,000 to £10,000. This is a one-off payment. The site updates such as design, information and functionality would probably cost around £80 per month. However, this depends on how long the updates take. This cost is for two hours: it is around £40 per hour.
Website Functionality:
I am going to design the Naaz company restaurant on a web-design program called Macromedia Dreamweaver. This software will allow me to design a basic website. It will also enable me to add flash animations, i.e. Link buttons etc.
The layout can also be made and sections can be separated and filled with information relating to my site. There are various other tools that can be used to also get the website up to a professional standard. The Dreamweaver program is also an easy and effective way to get a website up and running on the internet. It is also a fairly fast way and is cost effective. This is because agencies are not needed to create the website as the program is fairly simple to use.
My website, designed by the Dreamweaver program, consisted of a main index (homepage) and five other sections leading off of this. These will be about us, meals, location and others.
As the link buttons will be flash animated and brightly coloured, this will be easy for people to be navigated around the website. They will also give a professional image to company. This will make people satisfied with the business. This will also be thought of the actual restaurant.
On the website, I will make navigable routes that are clear for the user. On each page linked from the homepage, will be a link back to the homepage. This is to the users from getting lost and confused when using the website.
The website will have a constant colour theme in order to get the company instantly recognized by people when they come across it. They will be able to relate to the business because of the colours used. The colours can also be kept in the actual business premise. This will give the company a corporate image that people can relate to.
I will also design a company logo. This will be displayed at the top of the homepage on the website. The colours will again be bright and vibrant, making it instantly recognizable. This theme may also be continued on the other pages of the website. By doing this, people will know that they are still on the same website and that they haven’t accidently gone onto another site.
Here is the initial plan of my website, print-screened from Dreamweaver:
