Riverisland.com Review

Recently I’ve become to feel a bit frustrated with this particular fashion retailers website http://www.riverisland.com

I won’t go straight into the negatives because I have to say I am a great appreciator and avid fan (as much as an online marketer could be) of River Island’s e-mail marketing. Their e-mail creative is exactly what I look for in an e-mail, inspiring styling, aspirational themes and exciting bold colours with large imagery that show the products perfectly – just what a girl needs to drive her to start shopping! (to see an example of their e-mails, click here)

So imagine my bitter disappointment when I decide to take the plunge and click one of these gorgeous e-mails, which is not a decision I take lightly, you have to earn my click! But by deciding to click, I set my expectation of seeing more beautiful imagery, colour and styling, only to be faced with a bland, white website that fits the smallest of screen resolutions and presents small images that do not evoke any sort of excitement and do little for encouraging me to explore, let alone purchase (I would love to know what their transaction rates are from their e-mail marketing!)… And worst of all, its FLASH and I am downright shocked they don’t offer a HTML alternative.

Here’s what you get if you don’t have flash (or a lower version than flash player 8)

And here is what you get if you do…

I don’t think the homepage is too bad, although the header navigation requires a click to view the dropdown which is a bit of a no no for me. The frustrating element of this website is the product listing page and product detail pages, both are ridiculously small.

Product listing page

Horizontal scroll? No thanks. Animated banners constantly distracting me from browsing? I’ve had enough already…

Product detail page

…So I quickly click an item, if at least to be away from the annoyance of the listing page. I’m quickly annoyed further by the fact that the product detail page opens as a pop-up, much how you’d expect a “quick buy” tool to work. The listing page animated banners are still moving, which is making me anxious. The product zoom is OK, it shows a clear view of a close up, but there aren’t any additional views – what’s the back like? Hello?

So I should end my rant on a positive in that I’m loving how River Islands clothing is developing into some gorgeous on-trend styles and shapes. Although my online experience has been disappointing I am still going to head into one of their many retail outlets this weekend for a real swim in the River Island. Hats off to the product people, but wake up web team…!