New homepage, different from the old homepage… kind of

22Mar10

I just helped launch another new homepage redesign or rather update for my company. Not too much changed since the last big homepage redesign I did last year, but I feel like the update makes the page a little more organized and user-friendly.

A few things I improved on this new rendition:

1. Live Content All the Time!
Combined all the social media feeds into one big “What’s New” feed to showcase the latest blog posts, tweets, and podcasts as they happen.

2. Show me the Markets!
Made the market tracker a little less prominent by moving it to bottom, but the idea is that we will be able to incorporate it into the footer and include it on all pages. So no matter where you are in the site, you can still get updates on where your positions are.

3. Ads: bigger, better and more plentiful!
I moved the one ad that was on the bottom of the page up into the middle and through the process of design mitosis I split the one ad into 3 promo boxes that can be easily updated and changed out for upcoming promotions. The middle ad plays a double role acting as a promo box for the events and a calendar reminder of what is coming up next.

4. Stick to the basics and the masses will click.
In the first design I had used blocks of copy to describe four top selling points of the company with links inside the type that changed color on rollover. I thought it looked simple and clean but apparently people weren’t getting they were links. So now it is back to the basics, and I have made the links a standard underlined blue style. I also took out all the superfluous copy and just made the links into a list because hey, proven by fans of David Letterman, everyone loves lists!

So now its time to wait and see if these changes will truly make a difference in sales ,which as much as we hate to admit it in the design world, is really what it’s all for.