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by Scott Frangos

How about redesigning your website to simplify it… and make more content accessible at the same time. Is it possible? Yes, and that’s exactly what the venerable print magazine, “The Economist” has done. I think they’ve succeeded on some key points that are equally relevant for BlogMasters, and CMS website content managers who are also in the publishing business. You could even call it savvy “Content Marketing” (to learn more about that new focus, see this article). Let’s look at what they did.

A second aim was to make more content readily accessible—strange as it may sound, to combine greater simplicity with greater depth.

The new design took affect this May. Looking back just about 2.5 years, you can see just how much things have changed, and how savvy the editors of The Economist are to capitalize on new technology aimed at helping readers get the content they want and need… dynamically on the web.

Above, the Economist website in July of 2005 — just less than 3 years ago really looks dated. It basically mimics the print edition with no smart, dynamic use of content.

Key Redesign Considerations

Above, the redesigned Economist has made smart use of dynamic content to both streamline the user experience and offer more immediate access to a greater amount of content. One example is the three small roll-over pictures next to the lead photo which offer immediate access to three featured stories in the same space where one used to appear.

• They used their Content Management System (CMS) in a smart way to automatically bring articles to the home page that are popular with their readers. Their measurement system involves counting comments, and factoring in reader recommendations via a “recommend” button which may be clicked next to articles you like.
• They have now featured Blogs, Audio & Video content — things that do not and cannot appear in the print edition.
• The Dynamic capabilities of a good CMS are also exploited — “Readers can also switch the top story by scrolling over the four main features. The page will be “alive” in other ways, too, changing throughout the day, so it will be worth returning to more often,” explained the Editor in an article about the redesign.
• They have found room for a couple of large ads — as good economists should do.
• Navigation was streamlined. “We have removed long lists of articles and replaced them with a pithier selection. The navigation that runs down the left-hand side of the page, and throughout the site, is now completely visible right away, with no need to scroll down “below the fold”. By rolling your cursor over the main categories of content you can reveal more detailed sub-categories.”

The bottom line is that access to content drove the smart redesign of this site. The editors themselves are able to concisely articulate their goal (and the publication is well-read precisely for their excellent writing — content… that’s the secret). I’ll end with a quote that says it all. Study it carefully:

“A second aim was to make more content readily accessible—strange as it may sound, to combine greater simplicity with greater depth. At the top, four main items of content rotate before settling on the lead story. You can readily scroll through all the columns. There is more breathing room for our blogs. Articles from the print edition are easy to find via the cover image.”