Compusa.com - A site review

Overview:

CompUSA has quickly become many computer connoisseurs favorite place to shop for the latest in gear and gadgetry. They have carefully carved out a niche for themselves in this cut throat market and have become the envy of many computer retailers. Their website features a great deal of computer related devices, accessories and much more.

Type of Store:

CompUSA’s website has about everything a tech oriented shopper could hope for. Its downfall is the lack of an easy navigation system, and a good graphical interface. The site has a cheesy look that reminds me of websites popular five years ago. The website’s good side lies in its content. CompUSA has a nearly unmatchable array of inventory that at first has a dizzying effect.

Strengths and Weaknesses:

CompUSA has a large site with a great deal of products to choose from. Unfortunately, navigation through the site to find a specific good can be a chore unless you are certain of its product category or can find it successfully through the sites search system. This coupled with a somewhat generic appearance in the sites layout is a turnoff for many buyers. The upside lies in the sites features and customer relations. You can search for items by keyword, sign up for product discount and feature notifications and much more. There true strength is found in their product depth. CompUSA’s large inventory scope can swallow many of its competitors. Expanding to areas like online auctions and partnering with goodguys.com will also bolster sales.

Potential for Success:

Having such a large selection and a (more often than not) knowledgeable sales force has proven to be a winning combination for CompUSA. One factor that may a future issue is product pricing. Many companies have online stores with deep discounts given to the online consumer. CompUSA for the most part exhibits the same pricing scheme they use in store as they do online. If they can overcome this hurdle and deal with a slow economy, then they surely will stay at the top of their industry.

Possible Improvements:

Investing in some better graphics and navigational structure would be a positive improvement. Better delegation of information would help consumers not to feel overwhelmed when visiting the site.

Effective Merchandising:

What makes CompUSA an effective online merchant is the vast number of features available to the consumer. Easy to manage accounts, a relatively seamless ordering system, effective customer service and order tracking all spell success for this online merchant. Detailed policies (if you read them all) make CompUSA a straight shooter in an industry that seems to have its share of less than honorable merchants.