SALT LAKE CITY — With more readers consuming content on mobile devices, the Deseret News has launched a new design of DeseretNews.com aimed at providing greater speed and a more reliable experience for users.
Burke Olsen, general manager for DeseretNews.com, cited analytics that show more than half of the website's readers access content on phones and tablets. In order to accommodate screens of all sizes, Olsen's team implemented a responsive design, larger photos, and new fonts with bold, easier-to-read headlines, among other changes.
"One of our primary goals was to create a better experience for readers who access our content from their mobile devices," Olsen said. "I think our team did very well in that regard."
The new version of DeseretNews.com comes with a new look and feel across the site. The design will help make content easier to digest without readers having to click between pages or parts of stories, Olsen said.
The last redesign for DeseretNews.com came in 2012, Olsen said.
Olsen sympathized with loyal readers who may not embrace the changes, but hopes they warm up to the new website and see the value in evolving with technology, he said.
"Readers will immediately notice the new design, but many of the most important changes are under the hood, so to speak," Olsen said. "We’ve built the new site on a platform that will allow us to make many more improvements over time."
Paul Edwards, editor of the Deseret News, said the new website will enhance the experience for its target audience — families.
"Everyday Deseret News reporters seek to provide world-class coverage of issues that matter to Utah's families," Edwards said. "It is exciting to have that content roll out onto a world-class website that shares that coverage in the most accessible and responsive way."
Chris Lee, president of Deseret Digital Media, said the design team met in focus groups with readers and advertisers to improve the experience for both. For example, lists have been re-formatted to provided advertisers with viewable impressions without requiring constant clicking by the reader. Another new idea involved ads that previously appeared over the top of content and required closing the ad. Now they simply appear at the top of articles, Lee said.
"The website has been designed to put the audience first because it is built to work beautifully on any device," Lee said. "The site brings new advertising opportunities for sponsors that are preferable for readers."
Olsen invites readers to share their constructive thoughts and ideas for improving the new site by sending an email to dn-web-support@deseretdigital.com.
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