Dockers, established in 1986, is the division of San
Francisco-based Levi Strauss & Co. that’s devoted to khakis and casual
accessories. It’s a leading brand of business casual clothing for men and women.
We were curious to look at Dockers because it’s part of a larger company, but
has its own brand. The main About Us page is here.
OVERALL GRADE: C
minus
The biggest flaw in this set of About Us pages is that we
found them via a Google search, and can’t find a link to them on Dockers’ own
site.
The main page has two headings, each with a distinctive
tagline: Our Products (“Well-crafted comfort to help conquer the day,” with
links to pages on size and fit) and Our Company (“A rough and tough work ethic
is deeply rooted in our family tree”). Below these are links to Contact Us and
Careers. It’s a simple, clear layout that works almost as well on a desktop as
on mobile. (In fact, these pages are among the least offensive mobile-friendly
pages we’ve seen, in terms of layout, because the header images are much less
high than wide. Hence on a desktop screen, they don’t fill all of the prime above-the-fold
real estate.)
Products/Services: A
Under the Our Company heading on the About Us page are links
to About Levi
Strauss & Co., History and
Heritage, and Social
Responsibility.
About
Levi Strauss & Co. has a pithy statement linking the current brand to
the long corporate history of Levi Strauss. One minor glitch: this opening
statement says the first blue jeans were created in 1853. Further down the
page, under “Our Values,” the “Originality” blurb gives the date as 1873. Our Commandment
9 of About Us pages is, “Worship clarity.” An error such as this leaves the
impression that someone isn’t minding the details.
The Timeline (“History
and Heritage”) is good corporate storytelling. It focuses on the long history
of khaki pants at Levi Strauss, then offers nostalgic glimpses of pop culture (Seinfeld) and advertising history (“Nice
pants!”). Haute couture and culture are represented by names such as Alexander
Wang and Vanity Fair. Each timeline entry
has an intriguing headline, a short blurb, and an archival image – all large
enough to see easily. Having done a timeline or two ourselves (such as this one for California’s State Compensation
Insurance Fund) we appreciate the design and content of the Dockers example.
Personality: D
The Timeline is
excellent for showing where the company has been, but not for showing what its
current goals are. No information or links are given for the company’s
leadership. Mentioning Levi-Strauss as a parent company doesn’t fill this gap,
since there are no links to Levi-Strauss’s leadership team, either.
Accessibility: E
The Contact Us page
(accessible via the main About Us page or the Help link in the footer) is elegant
in layout but quite confusing. The options are “Find a Store” or “Get Help.” Clicking
“Get Help” sends us to a page with the
options “Contact Us,” “Send Feedback,” “Find a Store,” or “Top Reads” (a FAQ). But
clicking either “Contact Us” or “Send Feedback” takes us right back to the Contact Us page. So in fact, the only ways to reach Dockers are
via the 800 number in the footer and the online email form that is (we
eventually noticed) below the fold on the Contact Us page.
Our Commandment
8 of About Us pages is, “Remember to make yourself and your organization
easily accessible.” Dockers, do you really want to hear from us?
TAKEAWAY
Have a fresh pair of eyes (or two or ten) look at your About
Us pages for obvious errors, including whether those pages can be easily discovered
and whether visitors to the site can contact you easily.
Does your Web site’s “About Us” section
accurately convey your organization’s history and capabilities? Every two weeks
we evaluate one example, grading it in three areas that are key to potential
customers: Personality (Who are you?), Products/Services (What can you do for
us?), and Accessibility (How can we reach you?). To talk about your About Us
page, contact us!
Today’s example was chosen at random;
CorporateHistory.net has no ties to this company.
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