Flickr photo credit: Overview
Recipe.com is a valuable domain name that has the potential to be much more useful than it currently is for users, advertisers, and the owners alike. Looking at the source code, one can see that the site includes a great emphasis on search engine optimization, ad placement, and Web analytics. The users and recipe content is not currently organized or formatted in a coherent manner. Labeling, categorization, and structure are lacking if not completely nonoperational. Additionally, there are multiple instances of inappropriate postings by users and an ambiguous privacy policy.
Our goal in reworking recipe.com is to create a recipe site that utilizes XML to add value by bringing together users and recipes (see figure 1). Users will be able to add as many new recipes to the database as they like, creating a huge compilation that grows daily both in value and size. Using ratings, comments, and recommendations, users can both find the perfect recipe and help other users do the same. Finally, a strong searching capability will allow users to take advantage of the collection without allowing the size to become unmanageable.
With the suggested improvements to the user and recipe systems, the site would attract a greater user base that could compete with similar sites such as allrecipes.com and cooks.com. The owners could increase site traffic and user loyalty. As a result, more advertisers would be interested in the site and advertising rates could be raised.