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20.April.2006
Yahoo! Personals has over 9 million registered users
and is one of the most widely used dating services in the US. I interviewed for
an internship position at Yahoo! Personals in March 2006, and before my interview,
I created a profile so that I can see what the service has to offer. Since
searching and finding potential dates is why people pay for the service, I
wanted to evaluate my experience in doing just that.
After choosing a few criteria, the search results page looks like
this. There are
three tabs of viewing options. We are viewing the
Basic View tab.
 Figure
1: Yahoo! Personals Search Results
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The valuable left column is used to display my entire search criteria.
There is no need to expand every item, since I am familiar
with what I chose.
Solution: A
link titled, "Revise Search
Criteria"
that takes me back to my settings would be sufficient.
Personality Type and Love Style are grayed out without any explanation
given for the distinction. Hovering over and clicking the
links do not provide clues to why these are grayed out. Perhaps it's a
feature for Premiere members that pay the highest subscription fees.
Solution: If I'm missing out on something, this would
be a good opportunity to know what I'm missing. Maybe I would be
motiviated to upgrade my membership. Include an icon I can click for more
information.
The
5/5 hearts seem to indicate that he meets my criteria perfectly.
However, when viewing his profile, he fits my 'must have' criteria, but
not all the other criteria.
Solution: I would like more information
on how the hearts are rated. Better yet, I would find percentages more
useful. Does 4.5/5 stars mean he matches 90% of my criteria?
I
think space could be used better. I would take the left
column area of search criteria off the search results views. I would
use that space to display two columns of
profiles instead of one column.
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Second tab offers photos of search results
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The
gallery view is great for quick browsing. However, this view
supports interest based on appearances only. Names and cities
where the men live do not provide enough context for me to take
the next step of looking at their profiles. I don't have enough
information to be drawn to any particular profile.
Solution: Take the entire left column off this
view. Create space next to or under each photo to include
first few words of his narrative. Also include his last date
of activity. |
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Now that I've
actually chosen a profile to explore, all I see is the superficial
information. The "About Me" section matches my search
criteria, but I want deeper understanding. What are this man's
own words? Can he write articulately? Does he have a sense
of humour?
There is a section titled, "In My Own Words" below the "About
Me" section, where I can read a narrative of something
he wrote. Written communication is a telltale sign of compatibility
for me, and this is what I would find most relevant in my search.
Solution: I would switch the placement of these sections.
When I click the other photos, I am taken to a new window with
the enlarged photo (see below). His profile disappears. When
browsing through many profiles, extra clicks for no added benefit
is unsatisfactory.
Solution: I would use the space
better so that the photo browsing keeps me on the same page
with his profile information.
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