Evaluating the World Wide Web:

As of May 31, 1996 there are 29,236 commercial World Wide Web sites listed on the Commercial Sites Index. The number of new listings during the previous week is over 500, with the rate of increase expected to keep growing rapidly. Business enterprises--from multinational conglomerates to solo entrepreneurs--are staking their presence on the Internet, all poised to become pioneers in what promises to be the frontier of electronic commerce. Yet, in spite of estimates of 11.5 to 14.1 million web users aged 16 or over in the US alone, on-line business is still relatively insignificant. Apart from the obvious difficulty with bandwidth and security, technical issues that can no doubt be resolved eventually, there is the more probing question of what value is being created on the Web. Certainly, one cannot expect real progress if it is simply the digital replacement of conventional channels such as newspaper ads, TV commercials, phones, and fax. This project proposes a framework to evaluate web sites from a customer's perspective of value added. Representative samples from 40 industries, totally 1000 sites, are evaluated to give a snapshot of where we stand in mid-1996.

Framework for Evaluation

The business purposes of a commercial web site are classified into three categories:

 	I.   Promotion of product and services
	II.  Provision of data and information
	III. Processing of business transactions

Four types of value creation are identified:

	1.   Timely
	2.   Custom
	3.   Logistic
	4.   Sensational

This framework is illustrated as the three row by four column matrix below.

Typical examples of web site features or functions that fit each of the 
purpose-value combination are listed as follows.

	Timely Value in Promotion:
		items on sale; special offers; product announcements
	Custom Value in Promotion:
		product/service database search; customized product/service report
	Logistic Value in Promotion:
		rates and fare quotes; facilities locator
	Sensational Value in Promotion:
		contests, sweepstakes, giveaways; outstanding web design
	Timely Value in Provision:
		stock quotes; employment opportunities; press releases
	Custom Value in Provision:
		general database search; customized news report
	Logistic Value in Provision:
		financial reports; research data; comparative, benchmark, 
		and survey results
	Sensational Value in Provision:
		freeware; games; puzzles; downloadable multimedia
	Timely Value in Processing:
		on-line auctions; interactive brokering
	Custom Value in Processing
		custom orders; interactive consulting
	Logistic Value in Processing
		on-line customer service; delivery or job status tracking
	Sensational Value in Processing
		"surprise" discounts and bonuses; instant winners

The list is by no means exhaustive and will most certainly expand as innovative features are realized to take full advantage of the web. For a single-page showcase of current examples, visit the web site "Dr. Ho's Way of the Web" at http://www.uic.edu/~jimho/wow.html.

The Industries

25 web sites were selected from each of the following 40 industries:

Accounting, Advertising, Aerospace, Airline, Apparel, Automobile, Banks, Beverage, Brokerage, Chemicals, Computers, Construction(Materials), Construction(Services), Cosmetics, Data Services, Electronics, Food, Furniture, Healthcare, Hotel/Resorts, Insurance, Internet Services, Jewelry, Newspaper/Magazines, Mining/Exploration, Movie/TV, Music, Office Supplies, Oil and Gas, Paper Products, Pharmaceuticals, Publishing, Real Estate, Software, Sports, Telecommunication, Textile, Travel, Trucking/Shipping, Wine/Spirits.

Summary of Results

Each site was explored in sufficient detail so that all its value-adding features were identified and classified using the above framework. All evaluations were conducted in May, 1996. The percentage of sites having features in each purpose-value category is reported in the following table.

See also "Lessons from Business School Web Sites.";

"Focasting: The Future of Web Advertising."

"A Pilot Study of Internet User Attitudes toward Focused Broadcasting on the World Wide Web."