Home and Gardening Products

GOLD: WEB CHANNEL

Cooking.com | www.cooking.com

Cooking.com's wonderfully technical product information, powerful onsite search engine, and easy checkout process almost intimidated the judges. They quickly got over it, though, agreeing that the site accomplished its marketing goal of offering a complete assortment of products from every top brand wrapped up in a simple shopping experience.

Why it won a Gold Award

Cooking.com packs a powerful punch in its home page, with product categories running alphabetically down the left side of the screen, a $5 shipping credit on orders of $25 or more in the center of the page, additional offers along the right side, and links to the most highly reviewed products, new items, and customer service along the bottom. The clean design makes it easy for customers to decide how they want to begin shopping.

Navigating through Cooking.com is easy as well, despite the breadth and depth of its product line, which ranges from bakeware to small appliances. Each page includes category or subcategory links and the ability to sort items by brand, price, relevancy, and customer reviews. The judges especially liked the onsite search functionality, which organizes results by category as well as provides the option of narrowing results by best-sellers and new items. “It's one of the best search engines I've used,” stated a judge.

Where Cooking.com really sizzles is with its merchandise assortment. Panelists felt that the featured products were well targeted to customers' needs and wants and that the site's cross-sells were positioned effectively. For example, on a page selling a two-piece Calphalon Nonstick Skillet Set, images, price, and copy for a shallow sauce pan, a stir-fry pan, and a griddle pan are included down the right side of the screen.

Product copy is written from the customer's point of view, addressing both obvious and more-subtle product benefits and shoppers' potential concerns. A case in point: “The Bodum Kenya French Press is the easiest and fastest way to the best cup of coffee: add your favorite ground coffee, hot water, press and enjoy the most aromatic delight in the shortest period of time.”

Cooking.com's customer service is as gourmet as its product selection. One judge who put the merchant to the test said response to an inquiry submitted through the Website's online form was quick, friendly, and helpful.

Idea to steal

With a merchandise selection as large and varied as Cooking.com's, finding the right product for the job can be difficult. But an Interactive Selection Guide helps customers winnow their options down from the more than 1,600 items offered; all the shopper has to do is answer six easy questions. The number of matching items is dynamically changed after each question is answered, and at the end, customers have the option to display results or start a new search. — HR

President: Tracy Randall
Chief operating officer: Bryan Handlen
Chief financial officer: Laura Shaff
Chief technology officer: Gerald Morgan
General manager: Larry Sales
Marketing director: David Gaeta

SILVER: WEB CHANNEL

Lenox | www.lenox.com

A manufacturer/marketer of tableware and collectibles, Lenox understands that many of its customers are gift givers. To that end, it has designed its Website so that, in the words of one judge, it's “personalized gift-giving made easy.”

Why it won a Silver Award

The site's Personalized Preview feature allows visitors to see what a personalized product — a piggy bank with a baby's name and birthdate printed on the side, for instance, or monogrammed shot glasses — will look like before purchasing. Other gifting features include gift reminders, in which shoppers can sign up to receive automated e-mails prior to special occasions, Wish Lists, and the Gift Finder, which sorts items by occasion, recipient, price, theme, and product type.

Guided navigation works well for Lenox.com, as shoppers are directed through its product selection in a logical way using intelligent inconsistency (featuring the most-popular category at the top of the navigation). And for customers who would rather perform an onsite search for a product, misspellings aren't a problem. And each product page includes a selection of items “you may also like,” encouraging larger order values.

Perhaps best of all, Lenox assures customers of an enjoyable buying experience by offering a complete refund or a replacement if they are ever less than completely satisfied. Topping that off is the Lifetime Breakage Replacement Policy, in which customers who break a piece can get a replacement, provided the item is in stock, at 50% of the current retail price.

Why it didn't win a Gold Award

Although customers aren't required to register, they do have to provide an e-mail address at a point fairly early in the checkout process. The presentation of this log-in screen is confusing, the judges believed, and could be a source of cart abandonment. The panelists also felt that the checkout process as a whole could be simplified. — HR

Internet marketing manager: Philip Marcella
Internet merchandising manager: Lori Leone
Assistant e-mail marketing manager: Timothy Foy
Web designer: Steven Pashley
Creative assistant: Mindy Sorasky
Copywriter: Darcy Silvers
IT project manager: Brian Innes
Web developer: John Hill