Fashion: Which Website Wore it Better? [Acadmeic Assignment]

With technology booming in this era online shopping has become a new phenomenon. Shoppers can find all the latest designs from all over the world just one click away. But what makes a website more appealing than going to the actual store; is it the color scheme, or the visuals that the designer gives us? The two websites that will be compared are those of Forever 21 and H & M. Both of these websites promote affordable fashion for all shapes and sizes. Their key audiences are adolescences and young adults. Catering to their audience, these sites use celebrities and other well-known musical artists to help draw more attention. While both of these stores sites promote cheap prices and good quality clothing, their ultimate goal is to make money and promote their store in a positive way.

The attraction to these sites comes from the desire to dress and look a certain way, and the way the designer placed every individual item on the website makes it easier for the costumers to find what they are looking for. When you log onto the H & M website the first thing that pops up is a huge red box that reads “Midseason Sale” and a tab underneath saying, “Find your nearest store.” Most likely the costumers will click on the sale tab and see things they like which will make them curious and start browsing the rest of the website.  This is one of the strategies the designer uses to meet the goals of the website, which is to make money and promote their store.

On the other hand, when you log onto Forever 21’s website you are greeted with a slideshow full of soft pastels and the seasons hottest looks and must haves. Although this website doesn’t welcome you with a giant red ”SALE” sign, the bright colors of each ad tend to draw costumers in. Each color the designer chose evokes a different emotion in the buyers for different reasons. For example, the color blue is used a lot on the website. When web searching color meanings in psychology, blue is said to mean trust and peace. It also “can suggest loyalty and integrity as well as conservatism and frigidity” (Color Psychology). The color indigo is said to mean “the color of intuition” as well as idealism, structure, ritualistic, and addictive (Color Psychology). And turquoise means communication and clarity of mind and also on the negative side, “impractical and idealistic” (Color Psychology). Just like the red sale sign, these distinctive shades of blue on the website causes the purchasers to feel a certain way and want to continue browsing the site.

Another noteworthy item on the Forever 21 website are the tabs at the top of the page. The tabs say things like, “New Arrivals, Beauty, Women, Men, Plus Sizes, and Sale.” Once you click on these words they give you a drop down menu of more items within that category. Having these distinctive tabs at the top of the page makes it easier for the consumers to find exactly what they are looking for without having to search for long periods of time. Likewise, the H & M website also has tabs at the top that say, “H & M Life, Ladies, Men, and Kids.” These also have drop down list of options that continue to a more thorough search of each. Unlike the Forever 21 site, when you scroll down the page on the H & M site there are nine boxes with pictures of different fashion styles. By clicking on this picture you are automatically taken to a slideshow of pictures with prices of each item. This design choice gives H & M costumers more visual options over the Forever 21 costumers.

While the H & M costumers get better visual options, they are not given a “search bar.” When reading Ensha’s New York Times article, “10 Ways to Design a Good Web Site” he states that a good website should “make sure to include a smart search box” (Ensha). He also states that a website should not have a cluttered home page, “Make sure your home page is clean and not overrun with links. The goal is to provide the reader with enough information to enter your site, not to scare them away” (Ensha). As stated above, when logging onto the H & M website you immediately see a giant red “Midseason Sale” sign. When you continue scrolling there is picture after picture. The front page seems extremely cluttered and overrun with these colors and images. However, the Forever 21 website includes a search bar in the top left corner. They also have enough information on their front page to make it interesting but not too cluttered.

On both the Forever 21 website and H & M website, the designer chose to use pictures for each clothing item. Not only did the designer just use pictures for the individual items but they also put each piece of clothing in a whole outfit. This graphic choice gives every one a chance to see what the article of clothing would look like on an every day basis. Furthering this topic, once clicking on the picture itself you can zoom in and get a better look at the singular piece. This also might make the costumer want to search for the whole outfit pictured, helping the website and store reach their ultimate goal of making money. The way the designer chose to include pictures also appeals to the audience they are trying to reach. Most women like to have visuals and being able to see an outfit in its full potential. Both websites give images that are appealing to the audience, assuming the audience is young adult and adolescent women. 

The designer also uses language to help sell/promote each product that the site is trying to sell. For example, on the H & M website they are promoting “New Looks Spring Break” on their front page. Once you click on this hyper length it takes you to another picture that says, “attitude, personality and style for all spring break destinations. Fashion kudos guaranteed!” The way these words are used conjures up emotions in the buyer making them want to look more into the products they are selling. Forever 21 does this throughout their website as well.

Both the Forever 21 and H & M website do an excellent job of promoting their stores through their sites. They are colorful and full of the latest women’s fashion. H & M appears to do a better job of showing off their clothes in a way that women will want to buy them, with detailed imagery and zoom lenses. The H & M site also tends to look more cluttered and overwhelming from the front page. Forever 21’s site is easier to access and more organized with a search bar and straightforward tabs at the top of the page. Both websites serve their purpose by informing women about their stores latest fashions and sales. The websites and stores are alike in many ways, especially in the clothing styles they carry. One site is obviously cheaper than the other and when sticking to a budget while maintaining a cute and sophisticated look, Forever 21 is the better site.

Works Cited

Ensha, Azadeh. "10 Ways to Design a Good Web Site - NYTimes.com." Weblog post. Electronics and Gadgets - Gadgetwise Blog - NYTimes.com. New York Times, 1 May 2009. Web. 13 Oct. 2010. <http://gadgetwise.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/01/10-ways-to-design-a-good-web-site/>.

"Forever 21 - Shop Fashionable Clothing for Women, Plus, Girls, Men." Forever 21 - Shop Fashionable Clothing for Women, Plus, Girls, Men. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Mar. 2013.

"H&M | H&M US." H&M | H&M US. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Mar. 2013.

"Understanding the Meaning of Colors in Color Psychology." Meaning of Color in Color Psychology. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Mar. 2013.

Letter to the Editor

I think it’s great that women-owned businesses are getting a boost in the Chattanooga area. The 48-hour launch program chose two finalists out of nine; The Whiskey Women and Mama’s Got Mail. Both of these businesses got the chance of a lifetime by being entered in this competition. Both businesses were awarded with $10,000 in prizes money and services to develop their entrepreneurship. Overall, it seems that the Whiskey Women had a supportive team that help them to evolve into their business. This article matters to me because it’s encouraging to see women peruse their dreams of being an entrepreneur. It also shows that women can do anything they put their mind to. In this day and age, people get so overwhelmed and intimidated by big companies that are extremely successful, but you have to think that these companies started from the bottom to get to where they are now.

What a Learning Process... 15

Coming into this class I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I can honestly say that I have learned a lot over this past semester. Overall, the basis of this class was discussing how technology is changing the way we do our everyday routine lives. The thing that really stood out to me the most was our discussions over how hooked we have become to our cell phones. I knew that I was “addicted” to my cell phone but I didn’t realize just how much this was affecting my real, genuine, face-to-face conversations. It was a hard, but good, realization to see how connected I had become to twitter and Instagram. Through these topics we’ve discussing, I’v e already started to limit myself on how much time I spend using this type of media. I think it is great that we have made advances allowing me to talk to my friends in France. But I also think that our human interaction right here on campus is even more important. These relationships we have now are the ones we will have for a lifetime, and we won’t remember what that tweet said 5 years from now. I would definitely say that my eyes have been opened to noticing these types of disconnects in my own life, but others as well. I am a waitress and almost every time I take the tray of food to the table I see the whole table on their phones. I normally wouldn’t see anything wrong with this but after discussing how we are all being affected by technology, I notice the problem. It’s sad to think that we would rather be connected with our social media sites than each other, but it has become a reality. The thing that I learned the most throughout this semester is that I want to have a better relationship with my friends over a relationship with my phone.

Chattanooga, TN; Home of the Fastest Internet Connection-14

I had no idea that Chattanooga is home to America’s fastest Internet connection, probably because the Internet here on campus isn’t that great. But when you think about it, having America’s fastest Internet connection can be one of the coolest things for Chattanooga. Like the article mentioned, with this faster broadband we will be able to go into drug stores, pick up our prescriptions, and meet with a doctor through a video. Just like we’ve been discussing all year, technology is advancing and changing the world as we know it. Not only would we be able to transform the way we do things, such as a doctors visit or the traffic signals, but we will also be able to change the simple things like ordering a pizza online or shopping. With faster Internet, communication between emails or even publicizing events happening in Chattanooga could reach more people in a shorter amount of time. I didn’t realize how having America’s fastest Internet could be such a great thing for our city until I read this article. Although we are a small city, we are growing and I think this is one step into becoming an even better city than we already are. I am biased because I love Chattanooga, but I think we can do more to draw people and business in. This faster Internet could be a potential incentive to bring in more businesses into the area and help build up downtown. It also would help small business owners in the Art District area, as well as all around Chattanooga, to promote their products and show everyone why this is such a special city. I don’t know if I could say that this type of investment is warranted here but I think there are many perks to having the fastest Internet and I think we could use it to our advantage. 

Average is Definitely Over-13

I really enjoyed listening to Thomas Friedman explain his idea that “even good might not cut it anymore and average is definitely over.” As a student who also works part-time I see this idea more and more everyday. I am a server at Noodles and Company but we are also required to know how to do more than just serve people their food. My boss is always watching to see what we are doing and how efficient we can be at a job we’ve been doing for several months. It used to take the closing staff around forty-five minutes to close; now we are only given thirty minutes or less to do these things. We also have trainers who come in and tell us what we are doing well and what we can improve on. I know this isn’t corporate world jobs or the type of job market I want to be in when I graduate, but it is definitely a place where I see this idea that average is definitely over and how to improve myself before I enter to real-world job market. Relating back to previous posts, technology is always changing. As we graduate and enter the job market we can expect things to be different from the way they are now. Friedman’s idea that we are going to have to come up with our jobs is one that I find very interesting. Since technology is frequently changing, the way we do our daily jobs will start to change as well. It’s only a little over two years away, but I don’t even know what kind of jobs I will be looking for once I graduate. Creating my own job sounds exciting but also a little scary at the same time.

Working From Home-12

I didn’t realize that changing the way people work was such a big deal to everyone in our world. When I see nothing wrong in Mayer’s decision to have her employees come into the office to do their work. As a CEO of a major company you are going to have make hard decisions and not everyone is going to like them, but that’s part of your job. I’m sure this is inconvenient for the people who were working from home, but wouldn’t working at home all the time be boring. I am such a people person and from my viewpoint, I would rather be in an office all day with human interaction. Working from home seems like the boring yet easier choice to make. Relating it to some of our previous writing exercises, we can see how technology has become something powerful. It’s taken office jobs and made it possible to work in the comfort of your home. It is also a huge distraction. I wasn’t able to make it to class today so I am writing this post in my room. As I am sitting here there are distractions all around me. I’m not saying that there wouldn’t be distractions in your office but they would be more work related distractions and you’d be in the working mindset. Being at work and being at home are two totally different things and I prefer to keep them separated at times.

Help! I can't find my IPhone!-11

I own an IPhone. When I first got it I lost it all the time. Not even realizing it, I would leave my phone places. When I would finally realize that it was gone I always became frantic but I would eventually find it in an obvious place. When my mom got her IPhone she left it in my car with the doors unlocked. Of course someone stole it but luckily for us, we had the “Find My IPhone” app. It located her phone and we were able to get it back within a couple of days. I can see where this could raise some questions about privacy, but just like the man in the video said you are the only one with access to this app. If you lose your phone, you are the one with the ability to find it. I think it was cool that he used social media as a way of helping him find his phone as well. We can relate that to our previous conversations about social media. It is becoming something bigger even to the point of helping someone you just follow on twitter find his or her lost item. These can all raise questions of privacy but if you know the people you are following and can regulate these things it shouldn’t be that big of a problem. I feel like a lot of cyber stalking comes from within your friend group. I was cyber bullied when I was in middle school. It ended up being one of my best friends. I was so hurt but I didn’t realize how many people are bullied like this every day. It’s a scary thought but that’s why privacy is so important, especially on social media sites where you are posting so much about your life.

Robots in the Classroom-10

I have briefly heard of these robots coming being used to help teachers in the classroom. Whether or not they will become more common in schools and other academic settings is hard to say. We are a technologically advancing world and with these advances come big changes. I can see where the robots would become helpful to the teachers as an assistant but I don’t want to see robots completely replacing teachers. Having robots as teachers would take away the personal aspect of having a real person in the classroom teaching you and helping you learn new things. As we’ve discussed in previous posts, people are growing up not knowing how to have proper face-to-face conversations, and preferring technology companionship. I believe teachers play a huge role in helping these conversational skills be developed and placing robots in the classrooms could change the way students react to each other. Even in this technological advancing world, I don’t think robots will ever completely take over the job as being the teacher but it will be interesting to see where these advances take us.

Am I Choosing my Phone Over my Friends?-9

I really enjoyed this video. The speaker made some excellent points on face-to-face communication versus texting and social media. Like I mentioned in my post about the article, I am a huge people person. I like constantly being surrounded by people. The speakers point about feeling lonely is something I can relate to. When I lay down at night and can’t fall asleep I turn to my phone for companionship as I check all of my social media sites. It’s crazy to think that we are choosing our phones over real friendships. We all strive to have great friendships and a great relationship but if we are always connected on our phones how are we ever going to achieve that? I am speaking to myself when I say these things because I am guilty of choosing my phone over real authentic community and conversations with others.

 Technology is becoming more advance every day. It is changing the way we communicate to people and how we view friendships, maybe even the very nature of friendships. For me, I will always prefer face-to-face conversations. I am a huge people person and I love being surrounded by people all the time. I only text people when I feel like it’s not important enough to call them. For people who are shy, like mentioned in the article, Facebook could be something that is beneficial for helping them come out of their shell and meet new people. Facebook has created a way for us to be friends without ever really talking to each other in person. Facebook has also created a way for us to keep in touch with past friendships or long distance friendships. In that way, it is changing the very nature of friendships and how we can keep in touch.

Bye, Bye College?-8

This whole idea of higher education collapsing seems a bit much. Yes, they made the point that the Internet caused the newspaper industry to dwindle, but they are still in business. I don’t think that colleges will ever go out of business. For me, being here in Chattanooga for college has taught me so much about myself. My family lives in Michigan, which is nine hours away. Although being away is hard, I’ve grown so much and feel like I have a better grasp on who I am as an individual. I think college is a big reason for that. Just like Martin Van Der Wolf said, this gave me a feeling of dread. I don’t see why colleges would need to go out of business. I don’t always like college and going to class but I think that only taking online courses would be much worse. I would much rather be in a classroom for a short period of time every other day learning, rather than sitting at my computer screen learning. I also understand that college is expensive. We understand this more than anyone because we are facing these expenses right now. Paying for tuition is being increasingly more difficult and I can imagine why people would be drawn to the idea of free online courses. I would hate to see colleges go out of business because people can’t afford the yearly tuition increases and miss out of the great experience that college has to offer. If these videos speak any truth, it’s a scary thought but it will be interesting to see where our education really goes in the next seven years.

MOOCS-7

It is a reality that we are always learning and there are so many things we don’t know. To stop learning doesn’t really seem like a choice we have. The idea of a MOOC is interesting to me. I love having the chance to learn for free and at my own pace, but with the limited time I have now I would prefer if I got credit out of it. I know that sounds selfish but putting 22 hours a week into a class that doesn’t give me credit towards my education would be hard for me to do. On the other hand, these courses seem to be great for broadening your knowledge on a subject. I also think I would be more likely to take these courses if they were more like Khan Academy. I feel like Khan Academy wasn’t like an actual class. It was just a video explaining a topic so you could gain better understanding. I have never heard of these sites so I don’t know the implications MOOC’s would have specifically for my own writing and development and overall education, but with so many people registering they must be good. If I had more time to dedicate to an online course, I would love to take a few classes on topics I am interested in but have never had the chance to take. Overall, I think that the idea of free education is exciting for people who wouldn't have the ability to go to school otherwise and for people who just want to continue growing in their knowledge on a subject.

Khan Academy-6

I’ve never heard of Khan Academy before but I love the concept behind it. I think it is awesome that a guy with so much education of his own wanted to take the time to share it with students all around the world for free. As we have been discussing in previous weeks about online textbooks and doing away with hard back books, Khan Academy takes this idea to a whole new level. With this program you might not even have to purchase online textbooks. Also, the idea that you go at your own pace is very appealing. I’ve sat through numerous math classes totally confused on what the teacher was talking about. I always tried reading through the book to get a better understanding but I learn better when I am hearing and seeing the process. I think this program would be extremely helpful for students who learn like I do. I also like the fact that you can pause the lesson and rewind if you are having trouble with a step. By doing that the students can slow the lesson down and take it step by step without overwhelming themselves. The idea that in the classroom you are going at your own pace and if you need help you can have one-on-one help from the teacher is great. That type of interaction has always been a vital part for me in understanding a topic better, especially in math. Overall, Khan Academy seems like a good step forward in education and also in helping students who might not be able to afford it otherwise.

The Decline of Newspapers-5

With all of this new technology that continues to appear we see the decline of books and newspapers in their hard copy form. I think that many people love reading the newspaper and a book while holding the actual copy in their hand, myself included. But I agree with the author of Steve Jobs biography in saying that Apple has in fact revolutionized the publishing industry with IPhones and the IPad. The price of textbooks is outrageous and some teachers require us to have them only to barely use them throughout the semester. It’s frustrating to have to pay all of that money to carry round a heavy book that you don’t use. I’ ve always heard that online textbooks were cheaper but I’ve never really looked into them. Seeing the video of how the IPad works and all of the special extras they have made me want one for myself. It would be so helpful to not have to make notecards for book chapters and have 3-D pictures of the things I was learning. I know a local private school that requires every student to have an IPad. A fellow teacher, and friend, said that she records all of her lessons and puts them online for the students to watch. She is only in the room for the children to ask her questions. The kids do all of their schoolwork on their Apple devices. The advance that Apple is making through online textbooks and other special features is a pretty cool thing. Whether we like it or not, Apple is changing the way we do our work and online textbooks are changing the way we learn. I don’t know if we will ever take out hard copies completely but the way our society is moving, it wouldn’t surprise me.

Graph Search-4

This is the first time I have heard of Graph Search, but Facebook is constantly changing and trying to make their site better for users. I think each article made very interesting points on the positive and negative side of this new search engine. A part of me thinks “why do we need another search tool when we already have so many, like Google?” But another part of me thinks that this is kind of a cool way to find information. I think that this could be a positive step forward in the Facebook world. Although we do have many tools for finding information there really isn’t anything quite like Graph Search. I love to travel and I love trying new foods. I’m constantly using Urban Spoon to find nearby restaurants to eat at. With this new tool I would be able to quickly search through my Facebook friends to find restaurants near my location that they have been to. To me, that is an awesome search tool that could be extremely helpful. It is also helpful to know that this search tool will only be able to search through your friends. The privacy setting is important to a lot of people, including myself, and I think having this will help people respond better to this newest change. Like the second article said, a negative could be that you have “liked” subjects and other things that you didn’t want other people to see or as a joke. This tool would make those things easier to find and could cause some problems. All in all, this sounds like an exciting new thing for Facebook users and it will be interesting to see how people respond to the search engine.

Socailly Interesting or Technologically Boring?-3

Shirky’s statement, "What matters here isn't technical capital; it's social capital. These tools don't get socially interesting until they get technologically boring" could mean a lot of different things. I interpret this statement meaning that the social media we find so fascinating is something that is so boring to the tech world. For example, Twitter is a huge social media network. Almost everyone I know has a Twitter or at least knows what that is. We find that posting continuous updates about our lives is something so interesting, but in reality it’s technologically boring. There isn’t anything technologically interesting about this social media. What is interesting is that you can stay connected with people all over the world. I follow my family in Michigan and my friends in France. It is a cool way to stay connected without always having to talk to the person. I also think that Facebook, when used right, is a great way to keep in touch with people all around the world. Not only is Facebook used to keep in touch with friends and family, it is also a great way to share news. I have read numerous articles about subjects I would have never seen unless my friend posted about them. The Sandy Hook school shooting was all over the news but I was at a hair appointment at the time and saw the news on Facebook. These social media networks have become a way of sharing real news that is happening all around the world. They each have become a part of the reading revolution. We have found ways to share news with everyone without having to take the time to tell each person individually. It’s made the world seem a tad bit smaller and a whole lot closer than before.

Reading Revolution-2

We live in a world that is constantly changing, and the way we read is no exception. The excitement you have when you get a new book and the suspense that comes with every page turn is something magical. There is really nothing better than holding an actual book in your hand. But with the technology-based world we live in, that type of reading is becoming more and more rare. It has become more common to see people reading on a Kindle, Ipad, or even their phones. These new ways of reading have made it more convenient to read anywhere and anytime now that you don’t have to carry around a large book.  Although I think this reading revolution is exciting, especially to see how far we’ve come since the print revolution, I also think we are missing out on the joy that comes from holding an actual book in your hand. Personally, trying to read on a computer screen hurts my eyes. I can only read for so long until I get a headache and can’t read anymore. I don’t read the newspaper often but when I do I prefer it be an actual paper, not the online website. I’m not against this new reading revolution because I think to keep the public informed sometimes means changing the way you get information out, but I will always prefer the actual book and paper to be in my hands. I think it will be interesting to see how this reading revolution continues to develop throughout the years.

Am I Addicted to Technology?-1

          I find myself on social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram all the time. Then I proceed to check my personal email as well as my school email constantly throughout the day. Just like the article stated, I feel my IPhone pulling me in to check these things even when I know I have better, more important, things I could be doing. I even feel the pull to check my phone now as I sit in class writing this discussion. Technology has become a norm in our society and in my life. When I think about the family in this article and their struggle to unplug from technology I see my own struggle. I would not consider myself an addict but I would say that at times I have trouble unplugging from my tech world and focusing on the events happening in the real world.

 Even though I am on Facebook and Twitter a lot, I take a lot of time to think about what I am writing. I used to update my status all the time with pointless words that I knew no one cared about. I have even posted rude comments about previous teachers and classmates not even thinking about the consequences. I have also seen many people air their dirty laundry like their recent divorce or bad break up all over the internet. In the moment these status changes give us comfort to know that other people now know what we are going through but not thinking about what you post could ruin a relationship, or even a potential job.

I have missed out on some good face-to-face conversations because I was so wrapped up in the lasted trend on Twitter. There is nothing better than real genuine, face-to-face relationships and technology has taken that away while also giving us a more ways to stay connected with people around the world. There is nothing wrong with technology in moderation until it starts affecting the way you live and act, like Mr. Campbell, the man in the article.