Microsoft Word 2007 ichrie conference Proceedings Final-Final 06-06-07. doc

 
2007 Annual International CHRIE Conference & Exposition 
470
Website effectiveness has been evaluated from two different perspectives; the website's market 
effectiveness and its effectiveness as a trip planner assistant. For market effectiveness the websites were evaluated 
on their ability to provide: market specific and up-to-date information; the availability of tangible elements such as 
photo galleries and virtual tours; the provision of a guest book; and a FAQ section. The ratings in this category are 
relatively low, ranging from 11% to 58%. Again Singapore is rated highest with 58%. Dubai is rated second with 
41%. Qatar and Mauritius are third and fourth with 30% and 25% respectively. Egypt scores lowest in this category 
with 11%, however, Bahrain joins Egypt with the same 11% score. The market effectiveness distribution has a mean 
of 29 and a standard deviation of 18.1. A website’s effectiveness for trip planning indicates its ability to provide 
essential information for potential tourists including a list of the documents needed by international travelers, things 
to do at the destination, local weather, and bank information. The ratings in this category are higher than in the 
market effectiveness category and range from 15% to 81%. As in all other heuristic usability categories, Singapore 
is at the top with 81%. Mauritius is rated second with 54%, closely followed by Dubai at 51%. Qatar and Egypt are 
rated fourth and fifth with 31% and 21% respectively while Bahrain is rated the lowest in this category with 15%. 
The trip planning distribution has a mean of 42 and a standard deviation of 24.8.
 
For ease of navigation, the websites were evaluated on features such as clear and effective navigation tools, 
availability of site maps or indexes and a link or icon to 'home' on each page. Singapore and Dubai are rated highest 
each with 53%. Qatar is next with 45%, closely followed by Bahrain with 43%. Egypt and Mauritius are rated 5
th
and 6
th
with 19% and 18% respectively. The ease of navigation distribution has a mean of 38 and a standard 
deviation of 15.9.
 
The six websites were evaluated using an automated tool for technical aspects such as: browser 
compatibility, load time, spell check, HTML check and number of bad links. As previously mentioned, the scores 
for this category were obtained from the NetMechanic website. Qatar was rated the highest with 84%, Singapore 
came a close second with 80% while third was Egypt with 72%. Next, Mauritius and Bahrain were equally rated at 
68%. Dubai was rated lowest with 52%. The technical aspects distribution has a mean of 71 and a standard deviation 
of 11.2. Table 1 provides a summary of the key findings for the study (Note: the legal compliance findings and 
discussion have been intentionally omitted from this paper).