We got new laptops at work.  Dells, corporate thing.  So I decided to look up a few things about my dell laptop, and check out thier online store, see what the everything-old-is-new again CEO Micheal has done.
Micheal, visit your own on-line store.  Yourself, with no one in the room, you will be shocked to find out....


First, I have to say whether I am small-business,  medium business, large business, or government entity. Those are the only choices.  I had no idea that large business buy laptops that are wildly different than small businesses, but what the heck.  And what of the moms, Dads, college bound senoirs, grand mas, grand dads, video gamers, web surfers, unemployed but looking for work?  What about people that might want to buy a laptop? Umm, no door for you to go thru.

I want a laptop.  You only sell like 8 different builds.  Many of your customers are not any of these, they are dads, moms, college bound kids, and plain folks buying thier own stuff - or do you not sell to the common folks anymore? 

Second, supposing you guess that right, you then have to pick from coined names like "inspiron" and "lattitude" to further "guess" where to head.  I figured i wanted lattitude, but I don't know the difference - which is high end, cheaper, student model etc.  Thanks for putting me further off, making me feel more lost.

But the kicker is this page I finally get to, after my third choice, where I pick a model number of a lattitude, still not knowing what the heck a 620 varies from a 440 lattitde....but nonetheless I finally! get to see a laptop and some (some) specs.

Here is the page

Study it carefully, cause at this point, moms, dads, college bound kids, you know how much money you would like the spend.  3 guesses of navigation in, and still - NO PRICE.  thats right.

Now, even worse - you can get the price - just click on the BUY IT button.  Every web catalog has a buy-it button don't they.

Not this one.  Not even close.

If you are a purchasing manager at a large government entity, maybe the
"Quote to order"
button makes sense to you.   Is that even english?  I don't want to quote anything.  The verb is what I do (print, copy , paste) - I don't want to quote.  I want to "read a quote" "read a price" , "View a quote".  I may or may not want to order, and perhaps that next screen makes me order it.  Or worse. (actually, worse).

You finally figure out thats where you want to go.

only you can't get a price here either!!!   You have to "register".  And if you try to "guest checkout", which works without registration at every other place I have bought stuff on the web - No price, no dice, no sale, it asks you for your previous quote number!!!! (Which means, you are already registered? - did the designers really test this?)


You are in an endless series of mazes which all look alike. 
Go North.
You are in an endless series of mazes which all look alike.

I was pretty familiar with the Dell web site of old, and you could get products, many, side by side, with prices, very easily.  I know the "Web 2.0" consultants tell you to put "role based navigation" on your web site - but you forgot a serious role.  I want pricing info.  I can't get it.  I have X dollars to spend.  I don't want to "quote to order".

Price.  Buy.  Features.  These are navigation buttons I want.

Turns out they exist.

They are hidden under the green "customize it"  button in the flash movie.  Only I typically don't navigate or pay attention to flash movies, when I have them enabled at all.

So, If I have "been trained" on the dell navigation, work at a large company, and know what "quote to order" means, don't want to price shop, don't want to comparison feature shop, and have flash enabled and like watching flash movies, and know that "customize it" also means "prices and features hidden under here" (even without customizing....)

You have one very nice web site.

Only I am not that above person.  I am used to your old site, and about 50 other web sites, and your competitors web sites - They have buttons like "Price", "Buy", "features" , "compare similar products".

Different is not always good.  Sometimes we like the gauges just where they were the last time we went flying.

As it turns out - the old, line-up-the  six laptops we sell, with features and prices screen exists!!!

You just can't get there from the main dell screen.

You have to navigate "guessing" as described above, to some product, then once on that product, the tabs at the top (which make much more sense BTW) have a tap called PRODUCTS -> LAPTOPS.  and bam there you are.

Right where you wanted to be, all along.  And I would argue, this is where every Dell customer wants to be, no matter if they are a small business, medium business, large business, or government entity.  And even if they are a student, mom, dad, grandma etc. 

Nothing makes a person feel less wanted than having 4 categories as the only way of navigation that they don't fit into.    When you started your company Micheal, people bought your computers.  Start selling to people again.

 Many of us also work at businesses.

update 2/15/07
 Turns out, if you say you are "home and home business" you only see the two low end laptops from Dell.  Too bad anyone that is, or thinks they might be, this. 

And even worse, if you say small,medium,or large business, to actually see the higher end laptops (Who would want that?  PRogrammers?  Your future tech purchasers?) - - YOU DON"T SEE PRICES.

THats right, large business people, or anyone who says they are (for purposes of browsing your store, to see those computers) don't get to see any prices.  Not list, not retail, no comparison possible at all.

So on that "See all 8 laptops on 1 screen" screen, you may or may not see prices.  Depends on if "you should".

Wow.  Cause new people to dell, be they large or small businesses, never want to check prices.

This web site might work for people used to ordering with Dell (well, not the ones I just talked to) - but it sure is a bad way to aqquire new customers.  In fact, its a multiple-slaps-in-the-face way.