LesAffaires redesigns, new pastel colors and blogs (2)
LesAffaires.com has relaunched last friday, one month after they unveiled a new design for the paper version of the business magazine.
Like in the paper version, the most visible part is that it’s now more colorful and with more graphics. Also, information is now distributed into 6 main sections. Those who work in web development should notice however the new pastel colors, the gradients, AJAX panels, and the focus on blogs, podcasts and video, with 2 additionnal bloggers, as if they followed a “web2.0 your website” textbook.
I should congratulate them because the magazine had 2 pages about Montreal Tech Watch last week, about the map of the web. But the weekly magazine presented itself as the #1 finance and business paper in Québec, with a circulation of 100.000, and as such, I expected more from the relaunch. I hoped for instance they’d merge the paper and web version, treating them not as separate publications, with different content, but as a same content distributed to different media. I also hoped there would be more interactivity (read:comments) for each article. Overall, it’s for me a welcomed change from their previous website, but still lacks a lot to be desired.
From a design perspective, I suppose it could be a lot worse. But it’s still following all those Web 2.0 sites and their bad designs. It’s still very difficult to figure out the logic of the layout and therefore difficult to figure out how to find what you’re looking for.
They label their advertisements as such, which is interesting.
I also like the design of lesaffaires.tv, though their video introducing the new site is once again just a talking head in front of a camera. You’d think a video about a site redesign would actually show us how it works.
Thanks Heri for the reference.
I agree with you on the cross-reference between print and web. This is scheduled for the next phase. We first had to redesign the display and the information structure before we try anything with the paper guys.
This is a very tough challenge to make print and web talk because, mainly, of human factors.
Fagstein is right about the intro vid (even if I am the talking head!) but you know how it goes… we simply did not have the time to do more, so we decided to just be polite and do something to great readers. :)
I invite you all to comment and share some ideas. This media could / should become more community built…
Chrystian Guy
Product Director, Economic Websites
Medias Transcontinental
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