Module 3 OLJ Task 6
What happened when I went on a Mobile Website Exploration
I’ve chosen these three sites purely because they are sites I use regularly. I wouldn’t call any my favourites, as I have a mobile web site aversion at best, and downright dislike at worst. This could be a problem considering mobile use design is getting better and more people are interacting through the medium (Leist, 2019).
Interact2
I”m going to start with a confession. Interact2 does my head in, especially on my mobile phone, however it does provide excellent access to the following
- Unit modules
- Library and databases
- Student services
- Noticeboards
- Discussion groups
- Customisable dashboard
- Other hidden gems I’m sure
Interact2 does provide easy information access, time saving, institution communication and social engagement (Obinyan, 2020). These features have also become extremely relevant with distance education needs and this integration of classroom learning and mobile use is a very positive feature (Acheampong & Agyemang, 2020). With this in mind, and from a student perspective I think Interact2 doesn’t go far enough with social integration and suffers from structural challenges. Some recommendations would be:
- Integrated social media sharing and platform access
- Increased accessibility options
- Further developed responsive layout
- Search field
Amazon
Form and function is a strong point with Amazon, and the user experience is very intuitive, which is of no surprise considering the platform is designed to sell items and make money. There is a strong social element within Amazon which enhances the collective communication between buyers and sellers, but also potential buyers and buyers, with tools such as item reviews and direct messaging (Acheampong & Agyemang, 2020) Amazon does the following quite well:
- Simple site navigation
- Small menu sizes
- Visible search bar
- Relevant search results
- Easy to find share functions
The recommendations I would make to Amazon are few, and mainly revolve around accessibility options, which I will discuss with the next websiteGreat example of an accessibility menu.
Amazon has created a mobile experience where users can connect and communicate which
Fanbyte
Fanbyte is an entertainment website, which has an example of the best accessibility options I’ve seen on a mobile website, with options for dyslexia and vision impaired readers. This however is the highlight, with the website, which would be funded primarily through advertising suffers from clutter and misleading article/advertisment posting. Fanbyte does have user comment options, however there is litttle social engagement between site and users.
My recommendations for Fanbyte would be to engage more with their community, integrate social media platforms and make clear distinctions between content and advertisments to increase use.
References
Acheampong, E. & Agyemang, F. G. (2020). Enhancing academinc library services provision in the distance learning environment with mobile technologies. The journal of Academic Librarianship. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acalib.2020.102279
Leist, R (2019). 21 of the best examples of mobile website design [Blog post]. Retrieved from https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/mobile-website-design-examples
Obinyan, O. O. (2020). Application of mobile technologies in library service delivery. In A. Tella (Ed.), Handbook of Research on Digital Devices for Inclusivity and Engagement in Libraries (371-381). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-9034-7.ch019