Welcome to Webwatch, a regular series in which we rate places on the web to buy used trucks. This time round, 'one-stop shop' Britcom International goes under the microscope.
Company: Britcom International
Address: www.britcom.co.uk
Homepage
Webwatch last visited Britcom International's website to report on its relaunch late last year (See Commercial Motor, 22 November 2007). Now it has had another revamp, albeit a more minor one.
The website has the same clear, bold homepage as before, but regular visitors will spot two new sections: 'Chassis Engineering' and 'Body Repairs and Paintwork'.
All of the information from the now-discontinued www.britcomservices.co.uk website can be found in these two sections in expanded form.
Another addition (as shown above) to the homepage is a news 'ticker tape' running along the top of the screen. Click on any of the news headlines as they scroll past to read the Britcom-related story in full.
As before, the stock list is accessed by clicking the 'Trucks' link in the top left of the homepage and then clicking the 'Truck Search' link.
Product search
The product search function of the website (shown below) works as it did previously - select a vehicle make and body type from the drop-down lists and then click 'Search Now'. Disappointingly, there's still no ability to search the stock by a keyword of your choice.
There is one improvement to this part of the site, however: you can now specify whether you are looking for left-hand-drive or right-hand-drive vehicles, useful for the export market. At the time of writing, there were no left-hand-drive vehicles in stock.
In its defence, the Britcom stock list has grown since our last visit - up from around 200 vehicles to more than 250.
Once you have spotted a vehicle that is of interest, click on the 'Full Details' link to find out more. Here you should be able to enjoy another new feature: "additional images to enable you to see a vehicle from more than one angle before purchasing," as the site itself promises.
However, we looked at a selection of makes and body types of truck and were unable to see more than one image per vehicle. We had more luck getting this feature to work with the 'Plant' section of the website, so suspect that it has yet to be fully implemented across the stock list. When it is in place for trucks too, it will be a welcome addition.
Other pages
The rest of the website reveals plenty of other changes. The newly separated 'Chassis Engineering' and 'Body Repairs and Paintwork' sections, for example, contain a number of image galleries so you can see for yourself examples of Britcom's work.
And within the 'Engineering' section of the site, you will now also find downloadable brochures and spec sheets on EFFER lorry-loader cranes, for which Britcom is the North of England dealer.
We like
- The revamp adds more functionality...
- ...but retains the clear design
- You can now get all your Britcom info in one place
We're not sure
- No left-hookers in stock at time of writing
- Still only one image displayed for most vehicles
- You can't search through the stock by keyword
Conclusion
This is very much a case of evolution rather than revolution, but the changes to the Britcom site do make it better. It's a shame that not all of them seem to have been fully implemented - yet.
Web rating
Appearance: 10/10
Information: 8/10
Navigation: 9/10
Check out our other recent Webwatches, including:
If you would like your used truck website to be considered for a future Webwatch and appear on this blog as well as in Commercial Motor magazine, please email james.clark@rbi.co.uk