Evaluation Of Two B2C Websites In The Financial Services Sector

Task A

Introduction

With the rapid growth of technology and the world wide web, along with more people having access to the internet, many businesses have also shifted to, or at least have a robust online presence[1] . The web provides businesses and organizations a convenient platform to perform several functions that would otherwise be undertaken at a physical facility; firms can use the online portal for advertising, marketing and promotion, for the purposes of selling, to provide customer services and create customer intimacy, and to create an online presence that widens the operating base to a global audience[2],[3]. In achieving such objectives, businesses and organizations have resorted to developing various forms of e-commerce websites ether to provide products and services to fellow businesses or organizations, a business model known as B2B (Business to Business): or to provide products and services to consumers, in a direct marketing model known as B2C (Business to Consumer)[4]. The locus of this article is an evaluation of two B2C websites in the financial services sector.  In this article, two financial services companies with a website, and based in Australia, are chosen and evaluated. The evaluation starts by reporting the business name of the chosen website, its URL , and a screen-shot of the home page. This is followed by providing a justification why they are considered as B2C websites, and then the principal goals of each of the websites is discussed. The websites are then evaluated based on various attributes regarding the principles of a good B2C website design and functionality, and a comparison made between the two websites, which is likely to perform better, as a concluding remark for the article.

Task A

The chosen financial services provides are Etax Accountants found at https://www.etax.com.au/ and H& R Block Tax Accountants found at https://onlinetax.hrblock.com.au/. Both are online based financial services operating out of Australia.

 Task B

Etax offers personalized services to clients where a customer visits the website, evaluates the available features and services, and then signs up for any one of their choice and then go ahead and follow the provided short steps, with intelligence assistance and feedback. One of the features of e-commerce websites operating on the B2C model is personalization where a range of sophisticated features are provided to enable users personalize their individual experiences through recommendations and advice in real time[5]. When a user is at the Etax website, they can search for whatever information they are looking for so as to obtain customized information; this is also an important defining feature of B2C websites. The website provides new users an opportunity and portal to register; this implies that they are able to get account management services on the website; analytics and account management is another of the defining feature of B2C model websites[6]. The website provides configuration services for their products so the customer can select what best suits them; this is also an important feature of B2C websites. The decision making process is also short, as happens with B2C websites were a customer views products and is then able to decide whether to buy or not in a relatively short period of time.

Task B

H&R has on its home page a description of services it offers, their prices, and encourages visitors with a single focused message that they can lodge their tax returns online, at a small cost and complete the entire process in three simple steps. A client enters their information, and then the staff at H&R check their information and voila! They get their returns and their refund. The website also provides customizable packages that users can select from, depending on their personal preferences, with reasons given as to why the website offers the best service. Further, the website has social media links that users can click on and post comments of continue to interact with the brand. When a user visits the site, they can register if they are new or just log in and make a payment or undertake a variety of tasks while logged in. All these features confirm that H&R are a B2C company because the website establishes shorter relations with then customer; the entire process takes a very short tie ad there is no further interaction until the results are out[7]. Because of this, the buying and decision making process is also significantly shorter, eve compared to making a purchase from a traditional store or from a B2B website. Personalization is a major feature of B2C websites and H&R provides for personalization where customers can make a decision on exactly what it is that they want[8]. The website also provides search features for users to seek what they want and then make a decision; B2C websites are characterized by having search features so users can look for what they want without needing further help and assistance. B2C websites are also characterized by having account management and analytics features that sellers use for getting insights and making decisions. The website also has a social media link, a characteristics of B2C websites. B2C websites also allow for product configuration as well as payment and payment processing features[9]

Task C

            Etax  https://www.etax.com.au/

            The principal business goals of the Etax website are to;

• Sell their services to consumers by enabling consumers choose a product and pay for them; through the website, payment processing services are also provided
• Advertise and market, as well as undertake promotions from their website
• Provide customer services to the clients where customers can make inquiries at the website and get a reply sent to their e-mail addresses
• Get feedback information based on collected data such as number of unique visitors, visitors that became customers, regions they are getting more customers, and what services are a large majority of customers purchasing. The generated information can then be used for analytics and decision making

            H&R  https://onlinetax.hrblock.com.au/

• The website serves as a customer engagement and customer service portal for the company as clients can log in or register for services and make purchases as well as get clarifications
• The website serves the purpose of marketing and advertising to show they have an online presence as they can appear among web browser search engines when a client is seeking such services. With the linked social media sites, the company can market and promote its services as well
• The website is a sales point for the company; by providing its services online, customers pay for them and this generates revenue for the company
• The website also fulfills the role of widening the company’s footprint because it can be accessed globally by any interested clients

Task D

The two websites are evaluated and given scores based on the authors’ observations, and grounded in concepts of website design, functionality, and performance. 

	Attribute Assessment	Rating of the websites based on attributes
		Etax  Accountants	H& R Block Tax Accountants
1	How does the website URL relate to the business name?	4	4.2
2	How easily is the website found using general internet search engines (e.g. Google, Ask, AltaVista, Bing, Yahoo!)?	4	3.9
3	Does the website give me all the organizational information a user could reasonably require?	4.5	4.5
4	Are requirements to provide a user’s information appropriate?	4.3	4.4
5	How well does the website reassure users about the security and use of their information?	4	4
6	How well does the website foster user trust in the organisation?	4	4
7	How well does the website address legal issues associated with use of the website or engagement in transactions?	4.4	4.5
8	How well does the website provide for the accessibility needs of users?	4.6	4.5
9	How well does the website address the language or cultural needs of users?	3.8	3.5
10	Does the website contain all the product information that a user could reasonably require?	4.4	4.6
11	Does the website allow all the customization (user-managed features) that a user could reasonably expect?	4.3	4.2
12	How well does the website personalize the experience for users?	4.4	4.6
13	Does the website identify sufficient channels for user service/support?	3.6	3.9
14	How easy is it to find any information on the website about the organisation, their products or services?	4.4	4.5
15	How easy is the information on the website to read (i.e. is provided information in appropriate language and with sufficient detail for most users)?	4.5	4.4
16	Is the website easy to navigate (i.e. move through the website to find information, products, or services, and engage in transactions with the organisation)?	4	4
17	How appropriate are the website aesthetics (e.g. use of layout, colours, imagery, fonts, etc) for the target audience?	3.9	4.1
18	How well does the website foster community among users?	3.7	3.8
19	How quickly does the website load into your browser and do all website features, links and embedded objects (eg: media files or applets) work as intended?	4	4
20	How well does the website support different web-browsers or platforms (e.g. mobile devices)?	4.6	4.7
21	Does the website provide a sufficient range of payment options as could be reasonably expected?	4	3.9
22	Does the website provide a sufficient range of delivery options as could be reasonably expected?	3.2	3.1

Task F

Evaluating the two websites, their features, aesthetics, and how they would perform; the tax website just about beats H&R; this is because the Etax website has aid out most of the information that a customer can be concerned with, in regard to tax services better than H&R. Etax gets straight to the point when a user first lands on the web page that they can get their tax returns done in the fastest and easiest way, and the next thing is either for one to register or for existing users to log in. the next information are the products and services. In so doing, the Etax website provides information in a hierarchical way that is easy to use and navigate through; the content is well thought out and gives the user an idea of what is to be done.  The use of colour is liberal and unique, using contrast and bright colors to highlight information and draw the visitors attention to information that is likely to inspire action, such as registering, logging in, or at least taking time to evaluate and know about the services offered by the company. By contrast, H&R also offers useful information, but it just does not have the impact to keep a visitor fascinated, especially the use of colour which is a little dull and lacks creativit