Bookworms around the world have something to rejoice about today. The Borders bookstore, a competitor of Barnes and Nobles, has launched an online version of their storefront. You may recall Borders partnering with Amazon.com for online sales. Now it seems Borders is ready to step out on its own. Here's a look at what you'll find in Borders online.
The site design may remind users of Shelfari, a social book sharing service to connect readers with similar interests. On the homepage of Borders, the latest books are displayed on a virtual shelf called "The Magic Shelf". When you first head to the site, users can interact with the shelf to see the latest book releases and more. For registered users, the magic shelf is customizable with the option to view books, DVDs, and music from select genres. The shelf design also extends over to the recommendations page for easy browsing. All in all, the interface is clean and doesn't appear to be cluttered. Borders design UI beats Amazon's by a mile and provides customers with a clean and unique experience instead of clouding the front page with recommendations and news.
Borders also dives into media with Borders Media. Borders Media provides a section for customers to watch live store performances on Borders Live at 01, famous chefs at work in the Borders Kitchen, and living room book discussions with authors on the Borders Book Club. The user interface is consistent with the homepage design, making the site easy to navigate.
Borders supplies a host of deals and discounts for those that shop at the retailer's site. We think this will be one of the key strategies against giant competitors such as Amazon and Barnes and Nobles along with their competitive pricings. With their competitors already well established online, it will be interesting to see what else Borders cooks up. Another thing we appreciate is the direction Borders took with their site design. Borders made a very smart move by not competing with Amazon and Barnes and Nobles when it comes to site design, and opted for something users may find refreshing. So far, Borders has made a lot of the right moves in order to compete.
Comments
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One of Borders' biggest advantages is that it has real-world stores. I buy a few thousand dollars of books each year, mostly through Amazon (thanks to Amazon Prime's free delivery), but I tend to spend far bigger amounts in one go and find more interesting stuff when I actually go to the store and spend an hour browsing. Borders need to find a way to engage their online audience enough to encourage them into the stores more often.
Posted by: Peter Cooper | May 27, 2008 3:47 PM
I myself read but never have purchased anything online...it's just that i actually want to personally go to the store and browse through the store, it just seems more interesting otherwise online does not match me.. Border's needs to somehow show a different way of catching the online audience amazon couldn't catch mine online.
Posted by: Sesli Sohbet | May 27, 2008 11:44 PM
As a usability professional at Barnes & Noble I welcome the competition that Border's site brings online. They seem to be confronting many of the same issues BN has in the past, product sizing sampling, order path complexities, wise use of rich media, community, etc.
I look forward to their evolution and, as bookstores looking toward the future, to building a better experience for all readers.
Posted by: Baron Lane | May 28, 2008 6:51 AM
I've been buying through Borders for years, and liked the link with Amazon.com. The pricing is far superior through Amazon. Imagine my surprise today to find the link completely gone.
So far I do not like the new Borders. Being I use satellite internet, heavily graphic websites take too long to load. Plus I compared pricing on two books I had on my wishlist. BOTH books were $10+ cheaper on Amazon than Borders. Why would I purchase through bordersonline with the savings so much better on Amazon? I am 45 minutes from the nearest bookstore....so online is my best option most of the time.
I will not be sticking with bordersonline!!
Posted by: Lynnea B. | May 29, 2008 11:35 AM
Great--so now instead of getting as much as 67% off on DVD box sets through amazon.com the highly competitive Borders.com is offering me usually NO discount or a VERY enticing 10% off.
wow.
Posted by: Jerry Springer | May 31, 2008 12:27 AM
Oh, and did I mention that Borders.com also appears to have less than HALF the selection of titles as Amazon and LONGER ship times.
Let's see: higher prices, less selection, longer ship times--NOW THERE'S A SURE FIRE RECIPE FOR SUCCESS!!!!
Posted by: Jerry Springer | May 31, 2008 10:13 AM