ECT 455 E-Commerce Web Site Engineering Lecture 4B Transaction Processes

Process Funnel (H1) Helping users to complete multi-step tasks successfully Limit the number of steps to 2-6 discrete steps required to complete a task. Provide a progress bar to let customers know where they are in the process funnel. Remove unnecessary links and provides an obvious exit that cancels the process funnel. Use floating windows to provide extra information, without leading visitors out of the process funnel. Make sure the Back button always work. Always make it clear how to proceed to the next step. Allow customers to skip unnecessary steps. Prevent errors and provide error messages whenever errors do occur.

Shopping Cart (F3) Provide easy access to the shopping cart. Let customers continue to shop. Help customers check out. Give details in the cart. Set expectation about availability. Store carts for later. Cross-sell and up-sell. Show cart contents on every page. Observe local customers.

Quick-Flow Checkout (F1) Eliminate distraction by using process funnel. Address potential deal breakers to avoid shopping cart abandonment. Build trust throughout the process. Recap the order.

Sign-in or New Account (H2) A single process to support both returning and new customers Use a variation of the process funnel concept. Collect the minimum amount of information for creating new accounts. Make clear which fields are required and which are optional. Prevent errors. Provide your web site’s privacy information. Have a process for handling forgotten passwords. Don’t force first-time customers to sign in too early.

Account Management (H4) Customers need to see and manage the information that a Web site keeps about them. Provide a single page to hold all account information in one place. Provide a task-based organization scheme to let customers modify their information. Make the account management page easy to access.

Clear Forms (H10) Goal: Create an easy-to-read layout, and make separate subsection, each with their own purpose Provide a payoff for the form Select appropriate field labels. Select appropriate label locations (side, top or bottom, or combined side and bottom labeling). Use automatic input formatting. Keep forms short. Make forms appear shorter. Split long forms into multiple pages. Put form elements in a box. Prefill fields that require a special format. Reduce the amount of typing required. Use intelligent error handling.