I was deciding between two places to eat today and had both websites side by side in browser tabs. I could have gone either way in terms of what I wanted to eat but the convenience factor of finding the location and/or being persuaded along the way of data finding made all the difference. As usability theories predict, I patronized the company that didn’t waste my time. So I thought applying that same exercise to major rivals in the business world would be interesting.

This is NOT a in-depth design review of the websites. Judging based on usability, creativity and overall impression based actual task performance on the websites — I choose a “victor”.

Adidas vs. Nike

Usability: Nike.
Both cutting edge — but Nike is more organized and is more consistent moving between their content.
Creativity: Nike.
Adidas’s website may be more “innovative” but Nike is actually doing more with sports community like with their “Ballers Network” social network. To me, that’s being more creative than fancy Flash graphics.
Overall: Nike.
Adidas’s website would actually annoy me if I had to visit it on a regular basis.

Fender vs. Gibson

Usability: Gibson.
Their website utilizes white space better. Scanning the content is easier when there are contrasting sections of positive and negative space.
Creativity: Gibson.
They both show their beautiful guitars well but Gibson is more web savvy in attempting to build a community behind their products by allowing a ranking system and comments for the products.
Overall: Gibson.
Fender’s website feels like it’s on the cusp of being out dated especially compared to their rival.

Apple vs. Microsoft

Usability: Apple.
Microsoft just completely overloads you with options and is overwhelming. Apple does a better job of moving you closer to where you want to be.
Creativity: Apple.
Apple is superior aesthetically in a functional way but also makes you feel excited about the products they sell.
Overall: Apple.
Microsoft is a bigger company and serves a bigger market and my impression is that they do a good job trying to figure out how to serve their viewers. However, no excuses — the Apple experience extends to the website.

Canon vs. Nikon

Usability: Nikon.
Nikon is much easier to use, find products and to surf in general. Canon is confusing, glitch-ey and unimpressive.
Creativity: Nikon.
Your first impression of Canon is that it’s not that dated but the more you use it, the more it feels like they are a website generation behind Nikon.
Overall: Nikon.
Canon is a international brand and although it must be difficult and expensive for them to operate, much less update — your competition is blowing you out of the water.

Google vs. Yahoo

Usability: Google.
My personal preference for a utility website that I frequently visit is for it to be as singularly focused on that specific function as possible without the fluff. When I’m doing a search at work it just doesn’t feel professional to perform that task on a homepage with cheesy Yahoo Travel images of beach goers holding hands.
Creativity: Google.
Neither could be accused of being “creative” in a aesthetic sense but Google did pioneer the sparse, minimalistic look we often see in other websites. Yahoo appears almost… dated.
Overall: Google.
You can argue whether who has better search results but I personally prefer Google.

What can we take away from this?

A website user’s impression of usability, creativity and overall impression is not mutually exclusive. They are factors that come together as a package deal in a good website. I’ve never heard of this in a usability test but if your company is hiring impartial volunteers in a blind test — set up a test for your competition’s website as well. Then you will know how you stack up in a direct website to website comparison.

Which websites did you prefer? Give me your picks in the comments!

This entry was posted on Tuesday, April 14th, 2009 at 10:38 pm and is filed under Branding, Comparison, General, Web Design. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.