Digital Amour

In his article, “How to Create Your Best Layouts” (October issue of .Net Magazine), Eliot Jay Stocks hints that the growing presence of art direction in web design is a sign of maturation for the online community.  Stocks explains, “If there’s one area in web design I find exciting right now, it’s the concept of art direction being injected into the way we approach layout: something that, until recently, was sadly lacking in our online world.”  As evidence of the increasing role of art direction, Stocks highlights three designers and their sites — all enjoyable and worthy of passing along.  Jason Santa Maria, Dustin Curtis, and Greg Wood, all bring a visual uniqueness and stunning approach to each individual blog entry on their sites.  Their individual formulas of words and art combined in all three sites, tell stories much greater than either copy or art alone.  Eliot Jay Stocks adds, “Of course, art directing every single page isn’t something that can be applied to all websites…But it goes to show that layout on the web is finally growing up and we’re starting to achieve something that print design has enjoyed for years.”

Thank you, Eliot, for bringing these three designers to our attention — It sounds (and looks) like our little one is growing up nicely.

So, since my CNN.com re-do post, there’s been lots of feedback from readers expressing their utter dislike for the redesigned site. Not having thoroughly dug thru the site, I haven’t been able to offer a strong opinion either way. I can certainly appreciate the discomfort someone may feel when landing at an unfamiliar destination. We’re creatures of habit, who develop expectations driven by mental-models. The former CNN.com conditioned ours expectations for the experience, and now in an attempt to improve site usability, CNN has pissed-off some site visitors.

Will these agitated users in need of their daily dose of news ever warm up to the new look and feel??  Perhaps, they need a comparison of the past and present to sway their thinking.

In a recent post by Louis Lazaris, a writer for Web Designer Depot, he presents a fairly in-depth site evaluation of the new CNN.com.  Lazaris’s findings offer that although there’s still room to grow, the new design is quite an improvement over the previous version.  In addition to customized content and new content partners, Lazaris highlights the site header, use of space, and revamped category/article pages, as notable improvements.  On the flip side, the post suggests that areas of information overload and the usage of small typography could lead to usability issues.  Overall, Lazaris writes, “I think web designers and those interested in improving usability on their own sites would do well to consider and try to learn from some of the changes presented on CNN’s new website.”

Although, Lazaris presents subjective thinking, his case for an improved site is strengthened by his comparison against the old.  A site redesign is always at risk to draw criticism, but hopefully as our (myself included) number of visits to the new CNN.com continue, and we reshape our mental models, we can begin to appreciate some of the alterations CNN has made to feed our craving for the sensational.

Recently, as part of the Today show’s “Today’s Entrepreneur” segment, correspondant, Tiki Barber, visited with the 19 employees/owners of Bonobos, a manufacturer and marketer of men’s apparel.  Named after the endagered ape of the Congo, the company was launched in 2007 by Brian Spaly and Andy Dunn, roomates at Stanford Business School.  In addition to providing men with a high-level of fashion without the sacrifice of comfort, the company has placed great emphasis on the online shopping experience and customer satisfaction.  As a result, they’re not only providing men with a “Better Fit, Better Fabrics, & Better Style” but also a “Better Shopping Experience”.

At this point, the gang at Bonobos seems to be doing a lot right.  Google “Men’s Pants” and there they are at #1.  Or, go to one of your favorite destination sites and you’ll most likely find a Bonobos ad somewhere.  In addition to the clean display and very user-friendly product pages, the site’s supplemental content clearly highlights the variety of causes the company donates a percentage of sales to.  Care to hear directly from members of the Bonobos squad?  Check out their blog for style content, product reviews, fashion in the news, or other office happenings.  With a limited marketing budget, the resourceful organization is working hard to create buzz and brand awareness.  Ultimately, it seems to be paying off.  Although the young company has yet to turn a profit, this year they’re expecting 2-3 times their 2008 revenue of $1.6 million.