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Memo

To: Dawson Taylor Coffee Roasters

From:

Date:

Subject: Evaluation and recommendation of dawsontaylor.com

The following is a report detailing my review of the website DawsonTaylor.com. The purpose of which

aims to highlight any areas that need adjustments in areas such as layout, design, content, and flow.

To perform this evaluation, primary and secondary research was conducted. I examined every page of

DawsonTaylor.com comparing what I saw to two general factors: Website Design and Perception. With

these I examined the mood, flow, layout, and ease of navigation of your website. The Competitor

Comparison analysis compares DawsonTaylor.com to Sterling.Coffee, a Portland, OR local roastery. By

comparing these two websites, we ensure your site is the best it can be. Last of all, I collected data from

local Boise/Meridian/Nampa residents through a questionnaire and analyzed the results. A detailed

description of the process is listed further in the report. All of my research is compiled in this report.

I found two main issues that need correcting and a few other issues that don’t need as immediate of

attention but still should be looked at. The wording on the “Wholesale” page is repetitive and needs

variety to keep the reader interesting. Also ordering coffee or swag online is impossible due to an issue

with the zip code finder on your “Shopping Cart” page. Of lesser importance is the uneven or missing

images used in the “Our Coffees” page, a punctuation error on the homepage, off center map on the

“Locations” page, a sparse description on the “Office Coffee” page, and the existence of a category

under “Our Coffees” that appears only on the menu but leads nowhere. All these issues and their

remedies are detailed below.

I appreciate your invitation to examine your website and the trust you place in my review. If you have

any questions or comments regarding the report, please don’t hesitate to contact me at 208-555-1234

or @mycwi.cc.

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Website Evaluation – Dawson Taylor Coffee Roasters:

A Recommendation Report

Prepared for: Dawson Taylor Coffee Roasters

Prepared by:

College of Western Idaho

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Introduction The purpose of this report is to provide Dawson Taylor Coffee Roasters with a website review. This

review details any areas that need or may need improvement. Any implementation of recommendations

provided in this report is at the discretion of Dawson Taylor Coffee Roasters.

Research methods used for this evaluation entail reviewing every page on DawsonTaylor.com. Two of

these methods, “Website Design” and “Perception,” deal directly with how the website looks from the

perspective of a viewer and possible client. “Competitor Comparison” holds DawsonTaylor.com and a

similar local coffee roastery, the particular one used being from Portland, Oregon, up together for

inspection. Any areas where the competitor website is better than DawsonTaylor.com is noted. Lastly, a

survey was performed on social media to gather input from Treasure Valley locals about the website.

This information is used to ascertain any other areas of the website needing review as from the

perspective of a potential client.

This report follows a logical flow of information. Some information may be repeated multiple times in

different areas as this helps to expound upon said information. The report is set up as follows

1. Introduction

• A brief overview of the purpose of the report, the research methods used, and

layout of the report.

2. Research Methods

• A more detailed description of the research methods used to conduct this website

review. The methods used are broken down to four categories: Website Design,

Perception, Competitor Comparison, and Customer Satisfaction Survey.

3. Results

• A thorough description of the results of applying the research methods. This section

is also broken down into the four research methods categories.

4. Conclusions

• An overview wrapping up the research process. It provides a general analysis of

what the results mean and the methods used.

5. Recommendations

• A detailed section going over the recommendations provided to correct any issues

found in the “Results” section.

6. References

• A list of all websites used for this report.

7. Appendix

• A more in-depth section regarding the survey conducted on social media for the

purpose of this report.

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Research Methods In order to do a thorough review of DawsonTaylor.com, there were several factors I used to aid in the

analysis. These factors are:

1. Website Design

2. Perception

3. Competitor Comparison

4. Client/Customer Satisfaction Survey

The purpose of using these research tools is to provide a solid basis from which to evaluate the website.

All the information has been compiled into this report for Dawson Taylor Coffee Roasters.

Item 1: Website Design I looked over every page on Dawson Taylor and noted the areas that could use improvement. “Website

Design” encompasses the several factors as follows:

• color and design aesthetic

• ease of navigation

• mood of the website

• layout

The website should be pleasing to the eye, have information that is both easy to understand and easy to

find, have a similar feel to the business, and be laid out in an understandable manner.

Item 2: Perception The Perception factor of analysis compiles the points noted in Website Design and expounds upon how

they affect a customer’s perception of Dawson Taylor Coffee Roasters. This explains why these changes

needs to be made.

Item 3: Competitor Comparison Comparing DawsonTaylor.com to a similar website helps to see how DawsonTaylor.com stacks up. The

website I use is for a coffee roastery called Sterling Coffee Roasters. It is located in Portland, Oregon but

similar to Dawson Taylor Coffee Roasters they pride themselves in being a local roastery. Their website

is Sterling.Coffee.

Item 4: Customer Satisfaction Survey I created and performed a Customer Satisfaction Survey using the medium of Facebook. The survey is a

convenience sample and is a voluntary response. Thirteen locals to the Treasure Valley took the survey

and entered their responses to a series of questions. These questions range from their perspective on

the design and flow of DawsonTaylor.com to if the site encouraged them to actually visit in person.

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Results This section goes over all four Items listed above and the detailed information that came from using

these factors for the website evaluation.

Item 1: Website Design The design of the website is very nice. The background and colors used are visually pleasing. Having the

menu buttons on the side of the screen is different than many other websites who have their menu

buttons along the top in a header. The buttons along the side works well in this instance since it does a

good job of offsetting the main image. In addition, it provides a line along the left side on which to align

the top logo. The Cart button is lined up on the upper right with the main image so the design lines of

the entire website are visually pleasing.

Your contact information is on every page on the lower left side making it easy for a viewer to find the

information they need. There isn’t a FAQ page, per se, but there is the “About Us” page. However,

including a FAQ might be beneficial.

There is one error in the introductory paragraph on the main image. The comma in this phrase “…quality

coffees, supported by…” should not be there because it creates a comma splice.

Figure 1 – Homepage Introduction

The map on the “Locations” page does not center on your sites, downtown Boise, or some other well-

known landmark leaving a lot of empty space on the left side. I recommend centering the map. By doing

so the viewer’s eyes are instantly drawn to your locations without getting lost in the empty space. Below

is the current map default position compared to an example of centering the map.

Figure 2 – Current Map Default Figure 3 – Example of Centered Map

The wording on the Wholesale page needs revision. Of the nine sentences on this page, six begin with

“We.” This is not encouraged since it wearies the reader by not being varied. While completely removing

“we” from the start of half the sentences is not completely possible due to the purpose of this page,

adding variety to the sentences will help engage the reader. My recommendation for this content is as

follows:

Left – current map

Right – example of

centering the map

The current map has

wasted space on the

left side.

This comma should

not be here.

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Whether you’re considering upgrading your current coffee program or thinking of offering

Dawson Taylor Coffee at your café or restaurant, we are here to help. As proud distributors of

LaMarzocco and Rio espresso machines as well as Fetco and Bunn brewers, we can assist you

with café layout design, equipment sales, and service. We specialize in custom coffee programs

including coffee and food pairing, custom proprietary blends, and extensive training for you and

your employees. We encourage visits to our roastery where we enjoy sharing our extensive

coffee culture with your staff. Co-op advertising dollars is another benefit we offer, and we

welcome discussion on other opportunities that may be available.

We also offer custom office coffee programs. Let us bring coffee-house quality to your office.

For whole sale inquiries, call 208-376-2787 or 1-888-824-5282.

The menu on the left expands when the “Our Coffees” item is clicked which is helpful for the viewer, but

there is an additional item under the expanded menu that doesn’t have an icon in the center of “Our

Coffees” page: “Espresso Blends.” There are no espresso coffees actually being sold so the menu item

needs to be fully removed. Also, since you sell so many coffees, creating a guide to help the viewer

select a coffee would be beneficial. It is not necessary but is encouraged.

Figure 4 – Our Coffees page

Some of the categories have a picture with each coffee in that category, but some are missing. If images

are being used on a particular category page, a picture is needed for every item. The items missing an

image are as follows in the format of “Category Name – Item Name”:

• Certified Organic – Certified Organic Ethiopia Sidamo

• Certified Organic – Certified Organic Dream Ride Blend

• Certified Organic – Swiss Water Decaf Original French Roast

• Certified Organic – Organic Ethiopia Harrar

• Swiss Water Decaf Coffees – Swiss Water Decaf Organic French Roast

• DT Swag – HydroFlask

The image of the “Burlap Bags” item in “DT Swag” is much smaller than the image for the coffee mug. I

recommend replacing the original image with a larger image. This new image could be of a variety of

bags to show a range of designs that you might have at the time of purchase.

Remove “Espresso

Blends” menu item.

Add any missing

images.

Increase the size of

the “Burlap Bags”

image.

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The “Office Coffee” page is severely lacking. The short description that is there is bolded as if it is the

start of a list rather than a description. I recommend including a sentence or two telling what you can do

for the potential client, some suggestions for office coffee, or the benefits of using your coffee. Also, it

should not be bolded. Lastly, the “Call today for an office coffee tasting” is too small and should be

increased in size one or two font sizes to match the format in the rest of the webpage.

On the Shopping Cart page after an item has been added, I found the shipping estimator, a required part

of checking out, is not working rendering your online shopping option unusable. This issue needs to be

fixed immediately.

Figure 5 – Shopping Cart Error

Item 2: Perception The website is laid out well and easy to navigate with plenty of information. The design of the website is

pleasant. I would say that the design and content would encourage a viewer to become a customer. The

wording for the most part is also inviting. The introductory call-to-action paragraph on the first page is

very welcoming.

Not having your locations centered on the Google maps in the “Locations” page leaves a lot of empty

space on the map that has no importance to many customers. The empty space is over Garden City.

Unless the majority of your customers come from that direction, the perception of not having the more

recognizable downtown Boise where you are located centered in the map is that your locations are not

as centric or important as Dawson Taylor Coffee Roasters is. Centering your locations as noted in Figure

3 raises the priority of your coffee shops.

The repetitive wording in the “Wholesale” page mentioned in “Item 1: Website Design” above would

not deter everyone but might slightly put off someone who is keen in their English and grammar usage.

Following the recommendation also mentioned above will fix this issue.

Leaving “Espresso Blends” in the side menu buttons when it is no longer in the “Our Coffees” page and

no longer has any coffees in it sends the message that the Dawson Taylor website is not well

maintained. This reflects badly on you as it gives the impression that you lack the knowledge to

effectively portray your company digitally. Removing “Espresso Blends” from the side menu is an easy

fix.

Entering a zip code

does not work

which prevents the

customer from

purchasing anything

online.

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Similarly, when the majority of items in certain categories have images but some on the same page do

not, this looks like you as the managers of DawsonTaylor.com do not know what you are doing. There

are six images on three category pages that lack an image. Fixing these six errors will increase the visual

perception of DawsonTaylor.com.

If a potential office manager or company perused your website looking for information on what you

offer for office coffee, this person would not be impressed with what you have to offer based solely off

information on DawsonTaylor.com. Including more information would be ideal. If, however, you do not

wish to provide more information due to various business-related factors, the least that should be done

is including a paragraph explaining why Dawson Taylor Coffee Roasters is the best option for the office.

Even if there is not detailed information on what you offer for offices, there is a persuasive and

welcoming section of text to encourage the business to stay on the “Office Coffee” page and potentially

call you for more information.

The failure of the “Your Shopping Cart” page looks bad. You would lose the business of a customer

inclined to purchase coffee online versus going into the store. The extra hassle in this situation is very

negative. This issue needs to be fixed immediately.

Despite these two main issues, the overall perception of the website is positive and inviting.

Item 3: Competitive Comparison

Overview I compared Dawson Taylor to Sterling Coffee Roasters in Portland, OR found at Sterling.coffee. The

design of their website is very clean and minimalist. Their menu items are in a header at the top of the

page under the centered logo. At the very top there is a search bar, buttons to login and sign up, and the

cart. The footer has the copyright, social media quick links, and space to sign up for their mailing list.

Beneath the footer is all the methods of payment they accept such as Visa, MasterCard, and PayPal.

Figure 6 – Competitor Homepage

The Location page has some aesthetic images from their building, their address, and their times.

However, there is no map. Their Contact page only lets the viewer contact them via an email from their

page. They do not have a phone or fax number. The Store page has all of their items that they sell. They

only have ten coffees, two swag items, the option for a gift card, and the option for an hour of their time

to learn various aspects about coffee. The FAQ page has three questions and answers that provide a

Search bar at top

Footer at bottom

Lack of connection

to customers by

only showing their

products on the

homepage rather

than meaningful

images.

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small amount of information. The Cart page has an area for special instructions and no requirement for

a zip code in order to proceed to the Payment and Shipping Information page.

Evaluation The homepage of Dawson Taylor is nicer than Sterling Coffee Roasters because the design of the

webpage and inclusion of the images are more inviting and warm. I instantly feel a stronger emotional

connection to Dawson Taylor than Sterling Coffee Roasters purely from the design of the website. The

location of the header and menu items for each website works well for the overall layout for each

website.

The search bar at the top of the page is a nice addition on the Sterling website. However, it is

unnecessary since the volume of information is too small for it to be a requirement. The footer has more

information on Sterling Coffee Roasters’ website than Dawson Taylor. However, Dawson Taylor only has

one social media outlet while Sterling has three. If Dawson Taylor had a mailing list, including a spot to

sign up for that would be needed. However, not having a mailing list like Sterling does, Dawson Taylor

doesn’t need to make space for that on your website. The footer is necessary for Sterling but not for

Dawson Taylor.

Dawson Taylor’s “Location” page is much better than Sterling Coffee Roasters’. Including the Google

Maps for each of Dawson Taylor’s three locations is a huge benefit for the viewer. The variety and ease

of access to Dawson Taylor’s contact information is also superior to Sterling’s.

The layout of the Store pages is set up well for both websites according to what products each offer. The

ability to purchase gift cards on Sterling Coffee Roasters’ website, though, is a nice feature that Dawson

Taylor does not have.

Figure 7 – Competitor Store

In conclusion, Dawson Taylor Coffee Roasters’ website is designed and laid out nicer than Sterling Coffee

Roasters’ website. There are no improvement suggestions based off of Sterling Coffee Roasters’ website

that I noted.

The option to

purchase a gift card

online is a great idea

for Dawson Taylor

Coffee Roasters to

implement.

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Item 4: Customer Satisfaction Survey The Customer Satisfaction Survey was conducted on my personal Facebook page in the months of

and of 2018. Thirteen Treasure Valley locals responded to the survey. The first question has

two response options: yes and no. The other four questions have five response options: strongly agree,

agree, neutral, disagree, strongly disagree.

A quick overview of the survey results shows a trend for a positive view of DawsonTaylor.com. The

following Figure 8 provides pie charts of the responses to the five questions.

Figure 8 – Customer Satisfaction Survey Results

Just a little under half of those

surveyed have heard of Dawson

Taylor Coffee Roasters before.

Only two people (2/13 = 15.4%) were

neutral about the website layout and

ease of navigation. The rest either

agreed or strongly agreed. This is a

very positive response for

DawsonTaylor.com

All of the respondents thought that

information on DawsonTaylor.com

was either easy or very easy to find.

Just over 75% of respondents thought

the designs and colors of the site to

visually pleasing. Only three people

(3/13 = 23.1%) were neutral on this

question.

Visiting the website was such a

positive experience for the majority

of respondents that six (6/13 =

46.2%) are likely to visit your physical

locations and five (5/13 = 38.5%) are

potentially likely to visit. Only two

(2/13 = 15.4%) are not likely to visit.

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Conclusions This section I condense the conclusions made under the “Results” section from the research I did of

DawsonTaylor.com. I also explain what it means how it can be advantageous for Dawson Taylor Coffee

Roasters.

A website is another avenue for a company to broadcast who they are and why they are the best fit for

the viewer. DawsonTaylor.com is no exception. It is in your best interest to provide a website that

properly portrays who you are and what you can do. The end goal is to either create a new customer or

provide a service and maintain a current customer. DawsonTaylor.com is already doing a great job in all

of this, but there are a few areas that need your attention. Most of these issues are not too hard to

remedy. I compiled all the issues and their remedies in the next section, Recommendations,” for your

benefit.

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Recommendations Located on this page are all the errors noted throughout the website review report as well as the

recommendations to fix these errors. In addition, there is a list of ideas to consider that might increase

the value of DawsonTaylor.com to the customer.

All Errors and Recommendations for DawsonTaylor.com • Error in entering the zip code for shipping information in “Cart” which prevents online purchases

o Remedy the error in the code causing the issue. This is a priority.

• Unnecessary comma on the “Home” page

o Remove the comma to fix the comma splice.

• Off-center map on the “Locations” page

o Redo and re-imbed the Google Map to have a map that centers over your locations or

over downtown Boise.

• Repetitive wording on the “Wholesale” page

o Rewrite the text to reduce repetition. Here is an example:

Whether you’re considering upgrading your current coffee program or thinking of

offering Dawson Taylor Coffee at your café or restaurant, we are here to help. As proud

distributors of LaMarzocco and Rio espresso machines as well as Fetco and Bunn

brewers, we can assist you with café layout design, equipment sales, and service. We

specialize in custom coffee programs including coffee and food pairing, custom

proprietary blends, and extensive training for you and your employees. We encourage

visits to our roastery where we enjoy sharing our extensive coffee culture with your

staff. Co-op advertising dollars is another benefit we offer, and we welcome discussion

on other opportunities that may be available.

We also offer custom office coffee programs. Let us bring coffee-house quality to your

office.

For whole sale inquiries, call 208-376-2787 or 1-888-824-5282.

• Dead end pathway of “Espresso Blends” in the side menu under “Our Coffees”

o Remove this button from the menu in the website editor.

• Lost images for six items in “Our Coffees” categories

o Include the images for the six items. The four under the “Certified Organic” category all

have the same image as the others on the same page, and the one under the “Swiss

Water Decaf Coffees” category has the same image as the others on that page. The

image for the HydroFlask is the only picture you need to take for this recommendation.

The six items missing images are:

▪ Certified Organic – Ethiopia Sidamo

▪ Certified Organic – Certified Organic Dream Ride Blend

▪ Certified Organic – Swiss Water Decaf Original French Roast

▪ Certified Organic – Organic Ethiopia Harrar

▪ Swiss Water Decaf Coffees – Swiss Water Decaf Organic French Roast

▪ DT Swag – HydroFlask

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• Incomplete information on the “Office Coffee” page

o Add more information about your services for providing office coffee OR include a

paragraph about why or how you, Dawson Taylor Coffee Roasters, are the best choice

for supplying office coffee.

o Increase the font size of the sentence “Call today for an office coffee tasting.” It is at

least one font size too small compared to the font sizes on the rest of the website.

Additional Ideas to Consider • Create a FAQ page

o Providing a page for frequently asked questions can help to answer basic questions your

customers or potential customers have.

• Create a guide to aid customers in choosing coffee

o Having a way to help customers find the coffee they need without browsing through all

the categories can keep the customer from feeling overwhelmed.

• Increase the size of the image for “Burlap Bags” in “DT Swag” under the “Our Coffees” category

o Changing the size of the image so it matches the size of the image below it will add to

the visual continuity of the page. This horizontal image should be as wide as the vertical

image of the mug is tall.

• Take new image for “Burlap Bags” showing the potential diversity of coffee bags for sale

o Showing an image of multiple bags with various designs might increase purchases of the

Burlap Bag if the one design shown is not one that is visually pleasing to the customer.

• Provide the option for purchasing gift cards online

o Allowing the ability for people to purchase gift cards online allows for customers to

easily purchase gift certificates for reasons such as gifts in the event they have run out

of time to go to your physical location to pick one up there.

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References A list of the websites used for research during this website review of DawsonTaylor.com.

• Dawson Taylor Coffee Roasters – http://www.dawsontaylor.com/

• Sterling Coffee Roasters – https://www.sterling.coffee/

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Appendix: Customer Satisfaction Survey The survey was conducted on my personal Facebook page. It is a voluntary response convenience

sample so it may not represent the views of the Treasure Valley population. However, it still provides

good information that can be used to gauge the effectiveness of DawsonTaylor.com.

Thirteen people responded to the survey. The first question can be answered “yes” or “no” while the

other four have five possible responses: strongly agree, agree, neutral, disagree, or strongly disagree.

The questions asked are:

1. Have you ever heard of Dawson Taylor Coffee Roasters before?

2. Please visit their website, DawsonTaylor.com. Is the website easy to navigate and well laid out?

3. Is information easy to find?

4. Are the graphics/designs/colors visually pleasing?

5. After visiting their website, are you more inclined to visit any of Dawson Taylor Coffee Roasters’

physical locations in Boise?

On the next page is a series of graphs depicting the survey results in both percentages and pie chart

formats. Immediately following is a table showing how each of the thirteen respondents answered the

five questions.

Timestamp

1. Have you ever heard of Dawson Taylor Coffee Roasters before?

2. Please visit their website, DawsonTaylor.com. Is the website easy to navigate and well laid out?

3. Is information easy to find?

4. Are the graphics/designs/colors visually pleasing?

5. After visiting their website, are you more inclined to visit any of Dawson Taylor Coffee Roasters’ physical locations in Boise?

No Agree Agree Agree Yes

No Strongly agree Strongly agree Strongly agree Maybe

Yes Agree Agree Agree Yes

Yes Agree Agree Agree Maybe

Yes Strongly agree Strongly agree Agree Maybe

No Agree Agree Agree Yes

No Strongly agree Strongly agree Agree Yes

Yes Agree Agree Neutral Maybe

No Neutral Agree Neutral No

No Agree Strongly agree Strongly agree No

Yes Agree Agree Neutral Yes

No Agree Agree Agree Maybe

Yes Neutral Agree Strongly agree Yes

Figure 9 – Customer Satisfaction Survey Individual Results

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Figure 10 – Customer Satisfaction Survey Graphic Results