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SI S31: SLk Ana|ys|s

Soo oung k|eh
Cctober 2
nd
, 2014

A. SLk Anatomy
1. Auto-comp|ete Search 8ar: users lnpuL Lhe Lype of buslness Lhey are searchlng for (e.g.
resLauranL, sLores, hoLels, eLc.). AuLo-compleLed drop down menu appears afLer
enLerlng one or Lwo leLLers. Speclflc Lerms ln Lhe search are hlghllghLed ln Lhe revlews of
Lhe every resulL.
Va|ue: Lnables users Lo easlly lnpuL whaL Lhey are searchlng for, no maLLer how speclflc
Lhelr lnqulry ls - wheLher lL be a resLauranL, buslness, hoLel, sLore, eLc. AuLo-compleLe
capablllLy also allows users Lo see whaL Lerms are popular and have been menLloned ln
Lhe pasL Lo help users formulaLe Lhelr own Lerms.
2. I||ters: ?elp provldes a varleLy of fllLers so LhaL users can cusLomlze Lhelr search based
on Lhelr speclflc needs. lllLers are caLegorlzed by: SorL, ClLy, ulsLance, rlce, leaLures,
and (lood) CaLegory.
Va|ue: lllLers are essenLlal when users have speclflc search needs. lor example, when
searchlng for a resLauranL LhaL has lLallan food, ls lnexpenslve, and ls less Lhan 2 mlles
away - fllLers can cerLalnly help Lo rule ouL cholces LhaL aren'L Lhe rlghL flL.
a. Sort: Allows users Lo sorL Lhe order of Lhe dlsplayed resulLs by besL search
maLch (lncludlng fllLers), by raLlng, or by popularlLy (mosL revlewed resLauranLs).
uefaulL sorL order ls besL maLch." useful for users who are wanL Lhelr resulLs
dlsplayed ln a speclflc way. Allows for users Lo prlorlLlze whaL Lhey wanL Lo see
flrsL ln Lhelr resulLs.
b. C|t|es: An addlLlonal way Lo speclfy Lhe general geographlcal area of Lhe
resLauranL/buslness. useful when looklng for resLauranLs ln more Lhan one area.
c. D|stance: lllLers search by mlles of dlsLance. useful for users where
LransporLaLlon ls lmporLanL. Allows users Lo speclfy dlsLance ln Lerms of walklng,
drlvlng, or blklng.
d. r|ce: lllLers resulLs by prlce range. useful for users who are dlnlng on a budgeL,
or have speclflc moneLary needs.
e. Ieatures: Can fllLer by Ceneral leaLures (Cnllne Crder, Cfferlng A ueal, Cpen
now," 1akes 8eservaLlons, eLc.), Alcohol, Meals Served, Muslc, arklng, Wl-fl,
and Smoklng. very useful when users have speclflc needs LhaL need Lo be meL -
can fllLer ouL resLauranLs LhaL won'L fulflll Lhelr dlnlng needs. May be useful for
famllles (good for klds fllLer), handl-capable lndlvlduals (wheelchalr accesslble),
or users who are drlvlng (parklng).
f. Category: Allows for users Lo fllLer Lhelr resulLs based on culslne lnLeresL. useful
for users Lo fllLer based on Lhelr cravlngs and Lhose wlLh speclflc dleLary
resLrlcLlons.
3. Locat|on Search 8ar: An essenLlal elemenL of search based on Lhe nelghborhood users
are lnLeresLed searchlng Lhrough.
Va|ue: useful for users looklng for nearby resLauranLs, or for searchlng for places ln a
general area of lnLeresL.
4. S|gn Up]Log-In - Allows users Lo personallze Lhelr experlence by seLLlng up an onllne
proflle.
Va|ue: useful for frequenL users lnLeresLed ln sLaylng up Lo daLe wlLh happenlngs on
?elp, for users who wlsh Lo wrlLe revlews, raLe resLauranLs, dlscuss on forums, eLc.
S. Nav|gat|on: luncLlons Lo easlly navlgaLe users Lo oLher feaLured areas of Lhe slLe.
Va|ue: useful for users Lo navlgaLe Lo ?elp's homepage, wrlLe a revlew, flnd frlends on
soclal medla, message oLher users, wrlLe ln forums, and explore evenLs. Pelpful for
qulck access Lo Lhese feaLures.
6. Number of kesu|ts: ulsplays Lhe amounL of resulLs LhaL maLched Lhe users' query.
Va|ue: useful for geLLlng an ldea of how many resulLs Lhe user can poLenLlally vlew. lf
Lhere are Loo many resulLs, allows Lhe user Lo declde lf Lhey wanL Lo furLher fllLer Lhelr
resulLs Lo narrow Lhe amounL.
7. Map w|th Locat|on of Lach kesu|t: ulsplays locaLlon of each resulL on a map. numbers
each resLauranL correspondlng wlLh Lhe number dlsplayed on Lhe llsL, lndlcaLed by Lhe
red doLs. When a user hovers over one of Lhe doLs, a small feaLure appears wlLh Lhe
name of Lhe resLauranL and some general lnformaLlon. Poverlng over Lhe resLauranL
LlLle ln Lhe llsL corresponds wlLh Lhe map by hlghllghLlng lLs correspondlng doL and
number.
Va|ue: useful Lo help vlsuallze where each resLauranL ls locaLed on a map. Also useful
for vlsuallzlng all Lhe resLauranLs' locaLlons ln relaLlon Lo each oLher.
8. Ieatured Image: ulsplays an lmage chosen by Lhe resLauranL. 1yplcally of Lhe
resLauranL's food, Lhe resLauranL's lnLerlor, or an exLerlor phoLo of Lhe resLauranL.
Va|ue: Clves users an ldea of Lhe resLauranL's amblance, food selecLlon, and Lype of
culslne.
9. 1|t|e: 1he name of Lhe resLauranL.
Va|ue: LssenLlal Lo Lhe user's search. Pelps ldenLlfy places of lnLeresL and compare
resLauranLs easlly by name.
10. Ieatured Wr|tten kev|ew: ulsplays a snlppeL of a relaLed feaLured revlew wrlLLen by
anoLher user. keywords from Lhe search are hlghllghLed ln Lhls revlew snlppeL, ln Lhe
conLexL of a senLence.
Va|ue: Allows users Lo geL a personallzed ldea abouL oLher people's experlence aL Lhe
resLauranL. A greaL way Lo see lf people feel negaLlvely or poslLlvely abouL Lhe
resLauranL and/or had a good or bad experlence Lhere. Also allows users Lo gauge how
relevanL Lhe resLauranL ls Lo Lhelr search query based on Lhe hlghllghLed Lerms.
11. kat|ng: ulsplays Lhe resLauranL's average raLlng, whlch facLors ln raLlngs glven by oLher
users based on pasL experlences. 8aLlng dlsplayed ln a sLar-sysLem from 1 sLar Lo 3 sLars
(3 sLars belng Lhe besL raLlng). Also dlsplays Lhe amounL of revlews Lhe resLauranL was
glven by users. 8esLauranLs wlLh hlgher raLlngs are hlghllghLed wlLh a brlghLer color Lhan
resLauranLs wlLh lower raLlngs.
Va|ue: Cne of Lhe besL lndlcaLors for how good or bad a resLauranL ls. Pelps users make
a declslon by dlsplaylng how oLher people raLed Lhe place. 1he amounL of revlews a
resLauranL has glves users a comprehenslve ldea of how accuraLe Lhelr raLlngs are.
12. Number|ng System by Sort 1ype: ulsplays Lhe numerlc order for how Lhe resulLs are
llsLed, based on Lhe sorLlng fllLer used.
Va|ue: Allows users Lo see whlch resLauranLs besL flL Lhelr crlLerla by maLchlng Lhem
wlLh a number (1 belng Lhe besL resulL), wheLher lL be by besL maLch," hlghesL raLed,"
or mosL revlewed."
13. r|ce Ind|cator: ulsplays Lhe general prlce-range of Lhe resLauranL on a $ (lnexpenslve)
Lo $$$$ (very expenslve) scale.
Va|ue: ldeal for users where prlce ls an area of concern. Also glves users an ldea of how
upscale or downscale a resLauranL may be.
14. Category: 1he Lype of food-caLegory/culslne LhaL Lhe resLauranL ldenLlfles wlLh.
Va|ue: useful for users Lo geL an ldea of Lhe Lype of food served aL Lhe resLauranL. A very
cruclal elemenL of searchlng for resLauranLs.
13. ag|nat|on: ulsplays Lhe page Lhe user ls on, and Lhe LoLal amounL of pages avallable for
Lhelr search. Also allows for users Lo navlgaLe Lo oLher resulLs pages.
Va|ue: Allows users Lo Lrack how many resulLs Lhey've vlewed and how much more Lhey
have Lo vlew. Lasy for users Lo move beLween pages.
16. ke|ated Iorum 1op|cs: ulsplays Loplcs of forums LhaL are relaLed Lo Lhe user's search
query and search locaLlon. ulsplays snlppeL of a user's posL ln Lhe 1alk lorum.
Va|ue: useful for users who wlsh Lo read furLher abouL a relaLed Loplc.
17. ke|ated L|sts: ?elp feaLures llsLs" of resLauranLs and buslnesses creaLed by Lhelr users.
Va|ue: 1hls elemenL of Lhe SL8 dlsplays 3 llsLs LhaL may be relevanL Lo Lhe user's search
based on Lhelr keywords and locaLlon.
18. User Ieedback Cpportun|ty: Lnables Lhe user Lo Lake acLlon lf Lhey need help or are noL
saLlsfled wlLh Lhelr search resulLs.
19. Goog|e Advert|sements: ulsplays adverLlsemenLs from Coogle LhaL are relevanL Lo Lhe
user's keywords and locaLlon.
20. Ne|ghborhood, 8us|ness Address, hone Number: Speclfles Lhe general nelghborhood
of Lhe resLauranL and provldes Lhelr sLreeL address and phone number.
Va|ue: Clves Lhe user locaLlon conLexL for Lhe resLauranL by provldlng Lhe nelghborhood
and address, ln addlLlon Lo Lhe resLauranL's clLy. ConLacL lnformaLlon enables Lhe user Lo
conLacL Lhe resLauranL. useful for users who wlsh Lo go Lo Lhe resLauranL llsLed.

8. Surrogates

Surrogate Va|ue to
User
now |t Makes Sense of Informat|on Stored |n the System
8esLauranL 1lLle Medlum 1he resLauranL LlLle ls surely an lmporLanL aspecL of Lhe
search, buL on lLs own, lL doesn'L provlde much
lnformaLlon Lo Lhe user regardlng Lhe Lype of resLauranL,
Lype of culslne, eLc. unless Lhe Lype of place ls lndlcaLed
ln Lhe resLauranL's name (aka 8ar, Crlll, 8lsLro, 88C), Lhe
LlLle lLself glves very llLLle descrlpLlon of Lhe resLauranL
lLself, maklng lL dlfflculL Lo make sense of whaL else ls
provlded.
8aLlng Plgh ?elp's raLlng feaLure ls cerLalnly a hlghly valuable
surrogaLe. 1he resLauranL's raLlng, comblned wlLh Lhe
amounL of revlews lL has, provldes Lhe user wlLh Lhe mosL
accuraLe sysLem for dlsLlngulshlng a good resLauranL from
a bad resLauranL. lL dlsLlngulshes among each resLauranLs'
quallLy of servlce, quallLy of food, and general quallLy of
experlence for cusLomers.
8evlew SnlppeL Medlum-
Plgh
1he feaLured revlew snlppeL ls Lhe closesL form of a
resLauranL descrlpLlon as ?elp geLs (wlLhouL provldlng an
acLual resLauranL descrlpLlon), whlch makes lL an
lmporLanL surrogaLe of lnformaLlon. Powever, revlews
are ofLen blased and Lherefore can be easlly lgnored by
users. 1he hlghllghLed keywords can be useful, buL only
when used ln Lhe rlghL conLexL. 8evlews for resLauranLs
can also be exLremely slmllar, maklng lL dlfflculL Lo
dlsLlngulsh resLauranL resulLs from anoLher based solely
on Lhe revlew snlppeL.
rlce lndlcaLor Plgh 1he prlclng lndlcaLlon on ?elp for resLauranL resulLs
provldes an essenLlal amounL of lnformaLlon Lo Lhe user.
lndlcaLlng Lhe resLauranL's prlce range allows Lhe user Lo
make sense of Lhe resLauranL's quallLy, Lhe amblance, Lhe
aLLlre, Lhe Lype of food, wheLher lL's a Lake-ouL counLer or
a versus slL-down place, eLc. lL cerLalnly helps dlsLlngulsh
beLween cheaper" places and expenslve places.
leaLured hoLo Low-Medlum 1he feaLured phoLo on each resLauranL resulL can
someLlmes be useful and someLlmes noL. lor lnsLance, lL
ls dlfflculL Lo exLrapolaLe daLa from a slngle phoLo of one
food dlsh. More phoLos would need Lo be dlsplayed ln
order Lo provlde more value Lo Lhe user.
lood CaLegory Plgh lood caLegorles on ?elp may be one of Lhe mosL useful
surrogaLes ln Lhe sysLem. ln [usL a few words, lL provldes a
whole loL of lnformaLlon Lo Lhe user. 1he Lype of food
served and Lhe caLegory of culslne/meal are cruclal
elemenLs of lnformaLlon when searchlng for a resLauranL
Lo dlne aL.
Map Plgh 1he map feaLure consolldaLes lnformaLlon on Lhe llsLed
resulLs' locaLlons qulLe well. lL lndlcaLes where
resLauranLs are locaLed on a sLreeL, and enables users Lo
vlew locaLlons of resLauranLs ln comparlson Lo one
anoLher.
LocaLlon (Address) Low-Medlum 1he resLauranL's address ls lncluded ln every resulL ln Lhe
llsL. 1he locaLlon of a resLauranL cerLalnly has an effecL on
how people choose where Lo go, buL Lhe address
speclflcally ls noL as cruclal. 1he address ls more
appllcable ln decldlng !"# Lo geL Lo a resLauranL, raLher
Lhan decldlng #!%&! resLauranL Lo choose - Lhe map ls
more useful for LhaL.
number of
8evlews
Plgh 1he amounL of revlews a resLauranL has plays a large role
ln helplng people selecL a parLlcular resLauranL. noL only
does Lhe number of revlews lndlcaLe how popular a
resLauranL ls, buL lL also helps Lo conflrm a resLauranL's
raLlng, a flve sLar revlew ls lrrelevanL lf lL ls Lhe only
revlew, buL excellence ls lndlcaLed lf Lhere are a loL of flve
sLar revlews. 1hls surrogaLe cerLalnly helps users ln
selecLlng resLauranLs.

C. 8est & Worst Des|gn Dec|s|ons
8est Des|gn Dec|s|ons:
1. !"#$%&' )#* +',,-."/#*'* 012)#%3)4%"# "5 .'&/,4&
1he way Lhe resulLs are organlzed, and Lhe surrogaLes of lnformaLlon LhaL are provlded
for every resulL ls dlsplayed ln a very efflclenL way. 1he ?elp SL8 does a good [ob of
dlsplaylng as much lnformaLlon as posslble ln a conclse manner - showlng Lhe LlLle,
raLlng, revlew amounL, phoLo, food caLegory, prlce range, conLacL lnformaLlon and
revlew snlppeL - all ln one small allocaLed area. 1hls organlzaLlon of resulLs makes lL very
slmple for users Lo easlly browse Lhrough Lhe resulLs wlLhouL necessarlly havlng Lo
navlgaLe Lo any new pages - Lhe lmporLanL lnformaLlon ls already lald ouL qulLe well on
Lhe SL8 lLself.
2. 6)7 8')4/1' 97*)4%#2 )#* !"11'&7"#*%#2 :%4; .'&/,4& <%&4
1he way Lhe map ls deslgned on ?elp makes lL very easy for users Lo vlsuallze exacLly
where a resLauranL ls locaLed, and lLs poslLlonlng ln relaLlon Lo oLher resLauranLs. 1hls ls
lmporLanL when comparlng and dlsLlngulshlng resulLs beLween each oLher. Cne of Lhe
map's besL feaLures ls LhaL when you hover over a resLauranL ln Lhe resulLs llsL, Lhe map
corresponds wlLh your selecLlon and becomes hlghllghLed on Lhe map. 1hls ls a greaL
deslgn feaLure LhaL ls useful when almlessly browslng, or even when browslng for a
speclflc resLauranL ln mulLlple locaLlons Lo see whaL ls closesL Lo you. lncludlng Lhe map,
buL noL maklng lL an overwhelmlng componenL LhaL Lakes up Lhe enLlre page ls also a
sufflclenL deslgn declslon. lL lncorporaLes vlsuallzaLlon of locaLlon wlLhouL belng Loo
overbearlng.
3. =/4"-$">7,'4' ?')1$; @)1
?elp's comprehenslve auLo-compleLe search bar ls an lmporLanL deslgn feaLure LhaL
helps ?elp sLand ouL amongsL lLs compeLlLors. lL ls useful because Lhe auLo-compleLe
feaLure allows users Lo speclfy whaL Lhey wanL wlLhouL havlng Lo read Lhrough and deal
wlLh checklng off a Lon of fllLers. AuLo-compleLe also makes lL easy for users Lo
formulaLe Lhelr search querles properly wlLhouL havlng Lo run Lhrough mulLlple Lrlal and
error processes - lf a user ls Lyplng a query and Lhe auLo compleLe drop-down runs ouL,
lL sends a clear message Lo Lhe user LhaL resulLs mosL llkely won'L be found for Lhelr
query.

Worst Des|gn Dec|s|ons
1. =*A'14%&'* <%&4%#2& =77')1%#2 8%1&4 "# .'&/,4& <%&4%#2
As shown on Lhe SL8 AnaLomy page, Lhe flrsL Lwo resulLs dlsplayed are adverLlsed
resLauranLs LhaL were pald Lo be placed Lhere by Lhe resLauranLs' buslness owners. l
found Lhe deslgn declslon of placlng Lhese lLems flrsL on Lhe llsL Lo be qulLe dlsLracLlng.
When a user searches besL resLauranLs" ln a cerLaln locaLlon, lL ls mlsleadlng for
companles Lo have Lhe ablllLy Lo affecL search resulLs by paylng exLra money.
AddlLlonally, on my monlLor, only Lhe flrsL Lhree resulLs are shown rlghL away, and Lhe
flrsL Lwo of Lhe Lhree are pald ads LhaL don'L belong Lhere. 1hls ls a dlsLracLlng deslgn
declslon LhaL may very well draw away users.
2. B"" 6)#C 5%,4'1&
Surely, parL of whaL makes ?elp unlque ls lLs comprehenslve fllLerlng capablllLles.
Powever, havlng Loo many opLlons Lo fllLer ls lndlcaLlve of a poor deslgn declslon. 1oo
many opLlons can very ofLen be Loo overwhelmlng for users. AlLhough fllLerlng cerLalnly
helps wlLh search, llmlLlng Lhe amounL of opLlons Lo fllLer by may be a more approprlaLe
deslgn declslon for ?elp. lL ls lmporLanL Lo malnLaln some level of slmpllclLy.
3. D"4 E#"/2; F%&/), .'71'&'#4)4%"# 5"1 E)$; .'&/,4 G<)$H%#2 I;"4"&J
hoLos are a greaL way Lo dlsplay Lhe look and feel of a resLauranL, as well as Lhe Lypes
of dlshes served Lhere. ?elp's deslgn declslon Lo llmlL Lhe amounL of phoLos feaLured per
resulL Lo one phoLo ls a sure mlsLake. arL of whaL makes ?elp so greaL ls LhaL lL requlres
very llLLle navlgaLlon away from Lhe resulLs page because mosL of Lhe lmporLanL
lnformaLlon ls already lncluded ln Lhe SL8. Powever, Lo geL a Lrue feel of Lhe
resLauranL, phoLos are cruclal. lL would be a beLLer ldea Lo have a slldlng feaLure of
phoLos Lo scroll Lhrough for every resLauranL resulL.