The document discusses the importance of customer-centric website design while also acknowledging its challenges. A customer-centric site is important as it should be easy to use, facilitate problem resolution, generate sales by clearly stating value, and provide company information to overcome customer apprehension. However, designing a site that suits all customers is difficult because everyone has different needs and technology experience. The term "presence" in an online context relates to a company's accessibility on the web. Firms doing business online need to ensure their sites are easily accessible to customers and have a strong online presence to be competitive.

1. Topic 4

2. Digital Design
In two paragraphs explain why a customer centric Web site design is so
important, yet so difficult to accomplish.?
• A customer centric website is so important for a variety of reasons:
- Easy to use: The site should be clearly organized, easy to navigate and not bog down the
user with needless information that confuses or distracts him.
- Resolving Problems: facilitates the process of problem or complaint resolution, which
enhances the reputation of the company. Installing features such as a comprehensive
FAQ(Frequently Asked Questions) page allows the customers to find answers to many
common questions in one location.
- Generating Sales: A website designed with the needs and wants of your customers in mind
serves as a type of silent salesperson for your products or services. By clearly stating the
features and benefits of what you‟re selling, your customers gain an understanding of the
value of doing business with you.
- Company Information: Some people may be reluctant to purchase products over the
Internet, especially if they are not familiar with the company. A customer-centric site allows
you to overcome customer apprehension by providing detailed information about the
company.
• Yet, a customer centric website is so difficult to accomplish because it is hard to create a
website that best suits all of your customers as everyone is different and has different needs.
As stated above, a customer centric website is important as it should be easy to use, but again
it is hard to cater for every single person, due to everyone having a different knowledge and
experience in technology.

3. Digital Design

4. Digital Design
Define the term ‘presence’. Write an additional paragraph that describes
why firms that do business on the Web should be more concerned
about presence than firms that operate in the physical world.
• The term „presence‟ is defined as “the state or fact of being present, as with others
or in a place”, “attendance or company” or “immediate vicinity”
Online presence I assume probably relates more to the accessibility on the web.
Companies who do their business entirely online, need to ensure that their websites
are easily accessible by customers. Nowadays I can imagine business
competitiveness is as an all time high due to the amount of companies working
online. In order to be a successful online business, the companies website needs to
have a “presence” unlike that of its competitors. If the website does not take off, the
company may not have anything to fall back on.

5. Digital Design
• *Usable Doesn’t Have To Mean Ugly ‘for a web design to be truly beautiful, it
has to be functional, have purpose and contribute in some way to the website’s
intuitiveness, usefulness and branding. All of these things contribute to the
overall effect of a design’. This is a quote from one of the articles on web
design linked on Web pages that suck. Find a web page that ‘does not suck’
and discuss the features that make it work.
• The website I have chosen which “doesn‟t suck” in my opinion is
http://www.forever21.com

6. Digital Design
Forever21 is a clothing website which offers a great range of different men's and women's clothes
as well as accessories. Not only are their products cheap but also trendy , they provide free
shipping to Australia. From experience Forever21 delivers within a week, which is great for
the customer and is top-of-the-line for international postage. Forever21 also gives 10%
discount to University Students. This is a great way to attract the young audience and
demonstrates that they are looking out for their younger customers who may be struggling for
money.

7. Bibliography
• hthttp://bernetblog.ch/wp-content/uploads/2008/11/online_shopping.jpg
• tp://www.jamzdesignz.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/WebDesign.jpg
• http://www.forever21.com/Product/Category.aspx?br=21men&category=m_whatsnew
• http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/presence?s=t
• http://www.popdesign.com/glossary?letter=c