The Online Insider: Feeling Not-So-Smart at SmartHome.com
Written: Apr 13 '04
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There is a saying in the programming business. Just because you CAN do something, doesn't mean that you SHOULD. Roughly translated into English from geek, it means that a little knowledge can be a dangerous thing.
...And I think that just about sums up Smarthome.com's website.
Company Background
The website and company are located in Irvine, CA. The company has been in business for 10 years and started in the founders garage. Joe Dada, the owner of the company, started his catalog business to help consumers around the world build smart homes... homes with intelligence built into switches, doors, lighting systems, and security implementations. Although the way they do business has changed since the catalog days, Dada says that the reason why they're in business hasn't -- "to be the one-stop source for products that make life more convenient, safe and fun". Basically, the company sells and represents home automation based on the x-10 standard. NOTE: X-10 in this review does not mean the annoying website that assailed us all with pop-ups for so long... it's actually a wireless communication protocol for small devices.
Site Navigation and Design
Company sites can have multiple failure points. Some sites don't sell the right merchandise. Some have poor (or no) customer service. Some are designed by inexperienced hands. As in some other websites, the design here is where it all goes wrong. And I can tell you exactly WHY this one went bad. The folks at Smarthome are all techno-geeks. That's the reason they started the site -- because they love x-10 technology. But that doesn't mean that any of them should actually be designing a website. Let's look at it another way. You might hire a contractor to frame out your house. But if you wanted to get a stained glass window to put in your door, you probably wouldn't let him or her pick it out (much less try to fashion it for you), would you?
It's all a matter of skill and taste. Sometimes, even if you CAN technically do something, you SHOULDN'T.
So let's wander around the site a bit and see why it's broken.
First, a bit about the homepage. It's more than a little bit cluttered, and the colors are not really palatable. Particularly bad is the black text on the orange header bars. I'm excited to see that the team at Smarthome won an award recently, but the graphic that is stuck into the homepage only serves to make the page appear unbalanced from the start.
So...where should we start? Well the first problem is that the novice has NO idea where to start. This is more a site for people who already know where to look. This is like the Home Depot vs. Lowes problem. One store is for the craftspeople, and the other is for the rest of us idiots. At smarthome.com, the rest of us idiots should just slink on out or call the customer service line immediately, as the site is NOT going to help us find anything.
Even if you're an experienced home technologist, you might be struggling with your next step. For instance, should you click the banner that says "Smarthome Design Store" or should you use one of the categories: Getting Started, Smarthome Design Store, Lighting / X10, Security & Cameras, Home Entertainment, Wires, Cable & Jacks, Phones, Temp Control & Sensors, Computer Interfaces, Pet Care, Gadgets & Smart Products, Training & Education, Shop by Manufacturer?
Let's assume we know what we're looking for -- a security camera. We'd pick the Security & Cameras category and start our search. We land on a page with more than 40 textoptions to click on on the right gutter, and almost the same number of options in the page body. The page has small pictures, at least. The first option on the next page is for the SmartHome SecureLinc VR Wireless Security System. If we click on this link, it takes us to a daunting page that contains WAY TOO MUCH INFORMATION for any lay person to process. It also has links to ancillary products that only serve to confuse the customer more. At least the purchase option is easy to find -- it's a orange button at the top right of the page. It clicks you down to the bottom of the page to a section that lets you start to check out. Once you click the button you can then check out in 3 pages. The site lets you either create an account or complete the order without creating a profile, which is a nice option. At all times during the process, the site displays its 1800 number for customer service questions or comments, which is a nice touch.
One of the stranger problems I encountered is that you need to create separate logins and usernames for the site and the site's auction arm...something that I found more than a little strange.
Overall, it's a poorly designed site by a company that knows their business cold.. they just need to hire a better design firm.
BHWEB22
Recommended:
Yes
What product did you purchase or try to purchase? Garage Door Bumper Guard
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bhweb22
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Member: Brian H
Location: Northeast
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