Walmart is not alone in the eCommerce world for going overboard with bleeding-edge web development practices. Rather than using W3C standards, a set of guidelines created by web developers all over the world to ensure that all web sites work with all browsers, Walmart and companies like them are choosing to use proprietary web development techniques that are buggy and break different web browsers. To add insult to injury, customers using the site take advantage of the Walmart invitation to contact their support and report defects, only to be insulted via a response from Walmart that assumes the problem is entirely with the customer’s computer system. Hey Walmart, don’t always assume it’s the customer’s problem.

Talking Points:

1. Walmart incorporates JavaScript & CSS that doesn’t work with all the most popular web browsers, including the latest version of Mozilla Firefox.

2. They provide a way for users to submit web site issues to their support staff.

3. Their support staff responds with a patronizing email assuming the customer is an idiot with a broken PC.

4. Walmart developers unaware that their site malfunctions on some of the major web browsers, like Mozilla Firefox, continue to use non-standard web development techniques so they have a few more fancy and unnecessary bells and whistles.

Sure, a lot of people do have messed up computers because they download and install too much dubious web software, like browser “enhancements.” However, there are technical computer owners that keep their systems basic and pristine. At the company I work for things like “Google Toolbar” are not even allowed.

This is an actual experience with Walmart web site support, and screenshots of the problem they refuse to acknowledge.

After spending over an hour going though the Walmart Photo Center web site, building a Christmas greeting card for friends and family, and putting a lot of time an effort into the card, it is time to place the order. During the card building process the Walmart Photo Center web site worked fine when navigated using Mozilla Firefox 3.0.5.

The place order process is initiated and the option to have the greeting cards printed at the nearest Walmart store for pickup is desired. The web site requires a store be selected from a list generated based on the zip code provided. However, on the page with the list of Wal-Mart locations, there is nothing to click to select the desired location.

A web site defect is not the first instinct to suspect because the entire site functioned well up to this point. The place order process is, after all, the most critical part to Walmart because that’s how they get paid. Reloading the page doesn’t help. Spending 20 minutes reading though the Walmart Photo Center help resources doesn’t address the problem.

What the heck? The order process won’t allow me continue unless a store location is selected; yet the list of locations has nothing to click to select a store!

ILLUSTRATION A: Mozilla Firefox 3.0.5 with JavaScript Enabled and Default Settings

Running through the mind are thoughts like: Well gosh! What a 3rd rate web site!

So the entire card building process must be repeated, starting from scratch, with the notoriously insecure Microsoft Internet Explorer web browser. eureka, now when the finally back to the order process it is observed that there is a blue “Select Store” button under each store location in the list.

Where was that blue “Select Store” graphical button when viewing the page with Mozilla Firefox? What kind of broken JavaScript or CSS are they using to display that button? Why can’t they just do it the standard way so everyone gets a button to click?

ILLUSTRATION B: Microsoft Internet Explorer

So it appears the Walmart web developers failed to thoroughly test all areas of their web site with the major web browsers. Had the option to have the photos delivered by mail been used the order could probably have been completed using Mozilla Firefox.

So it is decided that Walmart should be notified about the problem with the web site so that they can fix, saving other customers using Firefox from having to deal with the frustration.

But did they care?

EMAIL #1: From CUSTOMER to WALMART

Dear Walmart Customer Service,

In Regards to the Walmart Digital Photo Center Web Site: when selecting
In-Store Pickup and attempting to place an order, I am prompted to
“Select a store” before I can proceed with the checkout process. The
page titled “Wal-Mart stores offering 1-Hour service” allows me to
enter my zip code to find a store. From there I was not able to
proceed. The list of stores appeared and there was no place to actually
select my store. I could not continue the checkout process. After much
testing and my personal time wasted I determined that your site is not
compatible with Mozilla Firefox. You expect everyone to have a
Microsoft Windows PC with Microsoft Internet Explorer. The blue
“Select Store” button is not visible to users of the current Firefox
web browser. It is quite puzzling to sit there looking at a page that
is complete with the exception of the only important button allowing me
to continue and place my order. Do your developers actually test the
site with other browsers? Why don’t you require your developers use
W3C standardized JavaScript and HTML so that your checkout works
correctly with all the major web browsers? Do you wish to exclude
people that don’t use Microsoft Internet Explorer, including all
Macintosh users? Mozilla Firefox is the #2 most popular and widely used
browser on the Internet next to Microsoft Internet Explorer and is
available to PC and Macintosh users. It is rather disappointing and
very frustrating that your site should fail during the checkout process
when it worked fine during the card creation process. That is a
significant oversight. One would expect a major merchant like Walmart
to have a better web site. I have screenshots available if you would
like to see them respond to this message with instructions on how you
would like them sent.

EMAIL #2: From WALMART to CUSTOMER

My name is Julie. I am with the Walmart.com Customer Service Team. Thank
you for allowing me to assist you today.

We apologize for the problems you have been experiencing with your Photo
Center account and your computer system. Please allow us to make some
suggestions in an attempt to correct the problem. The Walmart.com Photo
Center is compatible with most current Internet browsers and computer
operating systems. If you are having difficulties, please contact your
computer?s technical support group to help with your computer settings.
Go to the following link to see the current compatibility information
and browser settings needed for optimal Digital Photo Center
performance: http://photos.walmart.com/systemrequirements

Additional questions about the Wal-Mart Digital Photo Center can be
answered by visiting Photo Center Help.

We apologize for any inconvenience you may have experienced.

Thank you for visiting Walmart.com. We appreciate the opportunity to
serve you and look forward to your next visit.

If we may be of further assistance, please email us at help@walmart.com.
We’re here to serve you 7 days a week!

Sincerely,

Julie
Customer Service at Walmart.com

Well honestly, that sort of response just makes my blood boil! Look at the verbiage that Julie felt it appropriate to use. Apparently, it’s all my computer and I’m just some bumpkin that needs to call Technical Support for help. Maybe I need Geek Squad? I rather doubt it.

The bold red highlighting was done here to point out the phrases that this Julie should understand are inappropriate.

EMAIL #3: From CUSTOMER to WALMART

Dear Julie at Walmart Photo Center Support:

It is nearly pointless to bother contacting your web site support to
report an issue because you want to blame my system. I understand that
many people have highly customized systems full of browser plugins,
spyware, and so on - that impacts system stability.

However, I am an older IT professional and have worked with computers
since the days of the binary punch card. I have a business workstation
with few applications installed, all the latest Microsoft updates and
service packs, and I am using the latest stable version of Firefox.
There are no 3rd party addons, toolbars, or other shareware type mods
installed on my system. It is configured as a productivity workstation.
We use Mozilla Firefox at my company for security purposes as a
substitute for MSIE.

Please do not insult me by talking about problems with my computer. In
my office I can move to another workstation and open Firefox, load the
Walmart photo center web site, and experience the exact same problem.

Again - I have offered to share screenshots for your web developers.

What I am trying to share with you is that there is a defect in the
JavaScript that places the “select store” button on that particular
part of the photo center web site in the order process.

[…]

Please - forward my original email to a technical person that can let the
proper people know about the legitimate defect in the photo center web
site.

Next holiday season this customer will seek an alternative to using Walmart for creating custom greeting cards.

trc contributor: Derek Winterstien

This entry was posted on Monday, December 22nd, 2008 at 11:17 am and is filed under Industry News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.