Reviewed October 25, 2:00 p.m., Explorer 4.5 (www.marthabymail.com)
There’s no doubt about it: Martha By Mail did its homework before going online. Like a mantra, the company’s brand and logo appear on every page of this Website. The site’s colors, fonts, and style are consistent with that of the print catalog, and the product placement is clean and uncluttered.
Martha By Mail’s Website sells what seems to be everything for gardening, including bulbs, seeds, shrubs, tools, and accessories. The Cybercritic is confident that this site provides everything needed to cultivate a green thumb. Still, the copy’s frequent third-person references to founder and lifestyle guru Martha Stewart, such as “Martha loves having alliums in the garden,” quickly become tiresome. And though the photography is beautiful, some of the images appear grainy when enlarged.
Site navigation is extremely easy, and customer service icons appear on the top left corner of each page, along with the catalog’s 800-number for buyers who prefer to call in their orders. The site’s search capabilities are also above par, with items searchable by keyword, name, or item number.
The site prominently displays its privacy policy on the customer service page. Furthermore, Martha By Mail collects data only from its checkouts and does not require users to register with the site in order to view product. Upon checking out, customers can opt out of any promotional offers they are eligible to receive based on personal data collected from the order form.
The biggest drawback to the Martha By Mail site is that it’s not particularly fun, but is rather stuffy in tone. We all know that Martha is serious about decorating, entertaining, and gardening, but aren’t they supposed to be fun too?