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What The Best B-To-B Websites Did Right And Wrong

Morrison, Mary E. The 2002 NetMarketing 100: Best B-To-B Web Sites. Identified the best b-to-b Web sites across 14 industries. Evolved beyond the static online brochures to powerful, immediate and interactive marketing assets.

For the sixth year, BtoB Online considered 800 sites in the business-to-business web space. Winning sites must present relevant information in an easy-to-find fashion. Here is a summary of what the best sites featured, and what many sites did wrong.

Best sites featured:

• Fewer unnecessary splash pages,
• Better use of audio and video (particularly in investor related sections, with streaming earnings and executive speeches),
• Information beyond product and services letting visitors experience the brand and interact with helpful tools or even conduct business,
• Better web design and a serious commitment to online presence,

Bad news for many sites:

• Navigation is often more difficult than it should be (moving from one section to another required returning to the home page),
• Made finding a phone number or other contact information difficult,
• Were still too cluttered,

List includes scoring for top sites, industry, and specific comments by judges.

See also: "Shoppers Demand Decent Design (Abstract)", "What are you assuming your website visitors already know", "Top Sites' User Experience Teams and Their Challenge (Abstract)"

/ b2b-websites | clearly-communicate /

By Justin Hitt at July 27, 2003 1:34 AM  Subscribe in a reader