SISU

SISU: Finnish for stregth, willpower, and determination. This is the adventures of a girl with a dream to travel the world.

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Throughout these seven weeks in MIS 225, I have realized how complicated websites can be. The marketing and management behind the site is extremely important. It’s proven in the analytics, websites that are user friendly, relevant, and easy to find gain more traffic and often produce more sales or conversions.

 I find that most franchises, national, and global organizations have great websites that meet the criteria, and gain competitive advantage through their websites. There are whole departments dedicated to the content, imaging, production, and upkeep of these sites. All of which are critical to the website’s success. I find that local businesses can struggle with developing and maintaining a good website because it does take time, energy, patience, and tons of research to produce a great website.

 Today, I searched through some sites of local businesses in town. I directly searched for the Periwinkle resale stores to see if the site had changed in the last year. I have known the owner for many years and have been so impressed by her business that she has maintained and opened in this town. This assignment calls for me to examine the areas of improvement. Here they are:

  Þ   Some of the images need changing, or retouched. They are fuzzy. For example, on the homepage, the big logo to the right is blurry and makes the site less attractive.

 Þ   The events page needs to be updated. They are missing a calendar of events. Even if there are no events happening, they could feature past events, or simply show that there are no events available at this time.  It could confuse users.

 Þ   The contact information and store hours are below the fold. Most of the time when people search sites, especially customers or co-signers, they want to know if the store is open or would like to contact someone. Moving that information above the fold line could lead to more conversions. A great interactive feature would be to have the phone number and e-mail hyperlinked to make the site more convenient.

 Þ   There is no “home” or back to homepage button. I knew to click on the little logo but other customers may not be aware of that.

Overall, I was impressed with the improvements of the site from the last time I visited about a year ago.  

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If you are purchasing on the internet, look for certified sellers. Logos like this will be displayed on the web page if the business uses coding to protect your information. For example, if you purchase a book or clothing from the OIT paper owl bookstore, the payment page will display their certification to gain your trust. Check it out --->http://www.bkstr.com/oregonitstore/home/en?cm_mmc=Redirect-_-VanityURL-_-oregontech.bkstr.com-_-243405

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Personal Info and Internet Purchasing

Advancements in technology and analytic systems have made internet purchasing increasingly easier and more convenient. I have grown to become a frequent internet purchaser. Not only do I use the internet for specific things, but I often shop the internet for apparel as well. There is very little to offer as far as shopping goes in my hometown, so I often refer to the internet for specific items or check out the clothing sales on my favorite sites. As an internet purchaser with many good and bad experiences, I have grown to expect certain things from websites.

I have been fortunate enough to not have my identity compromised. However, many aren’t as lucky. The increase of technology has made identity theft much easier to commit, and businesses often have their information compromised by hackers with bas motives. I worry about my security and the sharing of my personal information on the internet. I do understand that coding and securing personal information is a widely-used practice. I have learned to buy from sites that ensure my information is confidential. I also check to see that the business is accredited, either by a security system, or the BBB. I care about this because I care about my own security and my funds being drained.

I also understand that the information I share is being used to data mine, and in return, give me personalized results for my searches. Personally, I think data mining is useful, and it has made my shopping experiences more convenient. I am willing to trade some information in order to have a better shopping experience. However, I do not support sales of my information to any other company or third party. As a frequent shopper, and marketing student, I understand the importance of studying personas and analyzing the paths taken by customers. I do not think this information should necessarily be confidential. However, information that can be detrimental if another party was top access that is a different story. I expect my shopping sites to hold my personal information for shipping, and payment purposes. I do not support the sharing of my personal information for sale to gain more revenue.

[travelingcolors-deactivated2020]

I really want to visit Barcelona. I was wondering if it's worth the money to go?

Of course it is worth it. It is probably one of the most beautiful cities in Spain and therefore, in Europe. Check out the pictures I’ve ever posted on this blog: http://travelingcolors.net/tagged/barcelona and judge yourself.

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Bad service, good lessons!

 When I decided that I wanted to run in the Miss Klamath County/City of Sunshine pageant, I searched for bathing suit for the fitness portion of the competition. I wanted something fun and different. Something that was good material fit well and made me feel comfortable. Because there is very little to choose from in my hometown, I started searching online. I ended up finding this great bikini with high-waist bottoms, and a cute top with a bow. After searching websites and stores for weeks, I decided that I needed to have this suit. I was reluctant because the suit was priced at $78, way above my price range. But with my mom pitching in, we decided to buy it!

The website and the online transaction was easy enough. Maneuverable, simple, and I could track my shipment. I was excited to receive this suit. I became nervous when I realized that after 10 days I had not received my package, nor received e-mail about shipping. I called the number that was provided on the page, on a Tuesday during normal business hours. The phones sent me to a voicemail box and said that they were out of the office. I e-mailed customer service, waiting until the next day, and did not receive a reply to any of my messages. I did however receive an e-mail that my order had finally shipped. So I called the number again only to reach the same message.

 I wrote the company again to express that I was concerned with the late shipping, the time it takes to ship to me, and told them that I did not need the suit any longer. The company wrote me back a very impersonal response with a tracking number on the suit for my order. The employees didn’t comprehend anything that I wrote in the messages to them. I tried explaining my situation again. Numerous e-mails later, I had the same responses that total waste of time to read, and didn’t help my situation at all. I finally received the suit six days later to discover that the bottoms were made very poorly with cheap material, and sued very poorly. The top did not fit well at all. It was poorly made, with awful fabrics, and looked like I could wear and wash the thing maybe one time before it fell apart.

 Then, angry that I wasted all my time and $80+ on something that I couldn’t even wear, I wrote them another email stating that I work in customer service and did not appreciate the transaction and how I was treated at all. I told them that I needed my money back, that I did not want the suit, and after a poorly written and frankly rude response, I told them that I would review their business in the worst way. In the end, the manager told me to only write honest reviews about her boutique and that I could only receive store credit back.

 Good thing I love the look of the bottoms, and know how to sew buttons so I don’t feel total remorse for the bad deal and horrible service.  

THE LESSONS:

Provide viable ways of contact

Provide terms of returns in order purchasing e-mails

Look for BBB certification

Always treat a customer with respect and LISTEN to them

Don’t buy an $80 swimsuit

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The wedding of the year

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"The cure to anything is salt water, sweat, tears, or the sea"

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Temples in Thailand

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“To travel is to live”

When I was a child, I had dreams of travelling the world. I always enjoyed looking up pictures of breathtaking sights and foreign places that I longed to see. I have always had a sense of adventure that could only be cured by exploring territories unknown to me. Lucky for me, my mom is an international flight attendant and I’m fortunate enough to use her flight benefits. My family often took vacations while my mom was flying overseas. Together, we explored Sydney, Osaka, Nara, Beijing, Paris, Versailles and Frankfurt (just to name a few). I firmly believe that everyone should have an opportunity to travel abroad. Traveling expands horizons, tests comfort zones and builds character in a person. I’ll admit, I’ve had some not so great times travelling, but it’s all part of the experience! I have seen so many beautiful sights, learned rich history, and met amazing people around the world whom I still have connections with. One of my favorite trips, in which I did all of these, was my vacation to Laos and Thailand. My best friend, Teresa, is a person very close to my heart. We met each other since 7th grade and have been partners in crime ever since. Her family invited me to travel with them to her mother and father’s homeland in Vientiane, Laos. Traveling was myself, Teresa, her mother and three cousins. We would explore Bon Hom in Laos and Phuket, Krabi and Bangkok in Thailand. You could say I was culture shocked. The moment we touched down in Laos, I knew I was in a different world. A third world country that had a whole new set of beliefs, language and law completely different from home. I had no idea how to speak Laotian or Thai except for a few curse words, “hi” and “let’s eat”. Thankfully, I was with my Laotian family, and we were all ready to submerse ourselves the experience. In Laos, I attended and greeted guests at Teresa’s cousin, Maleth's, wedding. The whole town, including the mayor was invited, and most came to this extravagant, traditional Laotian wedding. I met most of Teresa’s family, close and extended. Even though we couldn’t speak the same language, I could still communicate, laugh and joke with everyone. I even made friends with some of the townspeople and villagers. After a week in Laos, we set off for Thailand. First stop Phuket for two days, then to Krabi for a night and to Bangkok for two. Phuket had the most beautiful beach I had ever seen. Riding jet skis in the ocean, lying on the beach and getting henna tattoos was probably the most relaxing and fun part of the vacation. We experienced the night life, which was unlike anything I had seen before and deserves it’s own blog post, but I won’t get into that now. Along with the beaches, we saw sacred temples, the big Buddha, the palace in Bangkok and the spiritual jade Buddha. All-in-all I had an amazing vacation, and made close connections with places and people that didn’t even speak my language. I left a piece of my heart in Thailand and encourage anyone who gets the chance to see it, to take it!

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"You know us creative people... We love to express ourselves"

Jennifer Hudson

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Looking through all of these pictures makes me miss the beach. 

T A K E . M E . B A C K . 

#oregoncoast

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"It's better to be absolutely ridiculous than absolutely boring."

Marilyn Monroe