Peapod usability issues Oct12 '05

I’ve been trying out the online grocery store, Peapod, just to see how useful it really is. I love the idea of having groceries delivered to my home - instead of making a trip to the store.

So far, I like Peapod, but the web site needs a lot of work.

For example, the account management sucks. When you first visit the site, you are required to input your zip code, so Peapod can immediately decide if they are able to deliver to your area. However, once you set your address, it is damn near impossible to change!

Why would I want to change my address, you wonder? Well... there’s a couple reasons.

  1. Peapod "unattended delivery times" are less frequent than "attended delivery times," meaning Peapod has more options of delivering your groceries when someone is there to accept them. When I am at work, during the day, there is probably no one at home to accept my groceries. For that reason, I’d rather have my groceries delivered to my work, where I could immediately refridgerate them, if need be.
  2. Peapod doesn’t deliver alcoholic beverages to my home location (city law, or something), so I’d like to have them delivered to my work. (Before you start smirking - I’m just talking about the occasional 6-pack - I’m not a fluttering alcoholic.)

For these two reasons, I need to change my address at Peapod (or add a second address to my account) - but it’s putting me through loops.

This should be a simple thing. I should be able to add as many addresses as I need, and then be able to select which one I want my groceries delivered to, at checkout - much like Amazon.

So, to solve my problem, I went to the Help section of Peapod.com. I noticed a lot of options, and even a search box, so I can search for my problem!

Screen shot of Peapod.com help section

Not so. That search box is the main search box, used for searching through products. Except... it’s positioned directly above the word "Help." Common sense would suggest that search box is used for searching through the help section.

This is a bad usability setup.

The site needs a lot of work.

Categories: Services , Usability , Web Sites

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matthom is published and produced by Matt Thommes - an independent publishing enthusiast, mobile blogger, content creator, informative writer, web developer from Chicago. Never one to conform, Matt intends to promote the effect the web has on our lives, in an effort to intensify, instruct, and clarify all that is happening around us.

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