The Times Online – in with the times or out of time?

Website Analysis for my course module Web Communication.      

Times Online is the web edition of The Times and The Sunday Times newspapers (est. 1785) and was launched in 2004 (Times Online 2010). Yet how effective is Times Online and will its plan to charge for its service in June 2010 justify their content and add value or repel their 8.1 million unique monthly users (Times Online 2010)?      

Times Online won Best Electronic News site in 2009

 

This is what was discovered:       

Searchability (search engine optimization, SEO)      

• Times Online effectively appears first on the two most popular search engines Google and Yahoo.
• Yet the URL includes ‘news’ and directs you to the news pages which can be misleading, ineffective and less memorable to find without a search engine (Nielsen 2010). This risks offending viewers by wrongly assuming their preference.
• Like the BBC, the site should link to a general homepage and keep the URL simple.

Usability       

• Usability ‘assesses how easy interfaces are to use’ (Nielsen 2010).
• Times Online has high usability and is technically stable, with items uploading in 1 to 2 seconds.
• Faster internet connection speeds due to new technology effectively increases audience satisfaction and loyalty.

 Navigation     

• Times Online has ‘persistent navigation’, comprised of five basic elements which not only retain consistency but help the reader effortlessly navigate the site (Krug 2006).
• Consistencies include the lime green ‘You are here’ tab and the simple, direct ‘search’ button.
• However, Times Online would benefit from fixing the navigation of their ‘Help’ page and faulty hyperlinks including ‘need to drop us a line?’ This technical difficulty named ‘linkrot’ often causes split user loyalty (52%) and risks customer trust (Nielsen 2010).

Design      

• Overall, the design is highly effective with a consistent, complimentary colour scheme, which is aesthetically pleasing and easy on the eye. The colours for the main heading Times Online are split into black and electric lime green, reflecting its professional yet cutting edge spin.
• The scroll bar at the top effectively reiterates the latest news headlines and reinforces Times Online’s reliable and up to date approach.
•  However, the site should differentiate visited links to avoid user confusion (Nielsen 2010).
• Due to the excessive flashing adverts and pop-ups the interface feels crammed. Although this may increase the company’s revenue, it confuses navigation and creates frustration among users (Flanders 2010). Krug (2006) suggests reducing adverts and using hyperlinks would be more effective.

Content        

• Overall, the Times Online boasts a vast selection of well-written, updated stories aimed at an educated, middle class audience who are interested in current affairs, politics and the arts.
• Stories are concise, objective and bulleted which is effective as 75 percent of Web users scan articles.
• Articles are innovatively categorised into sections such as ‘Most read, most commented, most curious: Today’ making them sticky, ensuring continual customer return (Flanders 2010).
• To optimize their success, Times Online use convergence by offering their services via ‘Times Mobile’, thus attracting a broader target audience.
• The ‘outbound hypertext links’ to external sites such as Twitter displays the site’s confidence in their success (Nielsen 2010).

Video       

• The Times Online has a useful, clear sub-section devoted to ‘Video’ aimed at ‘tripling page impressions’ (Journalism.co.uk 2006).
• However, to retain user attention, videos should be cut from three minutes to one minute, remove adverts and allow maximization (Nielsen 2010).

Audio        

• Audio features most prominently on the website in the form of podcasts.
•  However, the podcasts should be better signposted, cover more categories and include an archive to prevent user frustration and abandonment.

Interactivity       

• The Times has transferred their ‘long history of commissioning opinion polls’ into interactive polls Online (BBC 2008).
•  However, these polls should be clearly signposted in the top navigation to ensure usage.
• To increase site traffic and the number of comments on their content, Times Online should allow unregistered users to participate.
• More interactive features of the site include interactive maps and a picture grid of all soldiers who died in Afghanistan. This is an example of ‘non-command user interface’ which adopts the user with a new sense of flexibility and control (Nielsen 2010).

User-generated content (UGC)      

• Having attracted over 35,000 visitors in 2009, software CoveritLive enables readers to comment and participate in live debates, effectively strengthening their sense of active participation (Journalism.co.uk, 2010).
•  Users can also submit their own pictures and videos boosting interactivity levels.  

Times Online is highly effective and user friendly, evidenced in its triumphant win of Best Electronic News site in the 2009 Newspaper Awards (Journalism.co.uk 2010).      

However, with its new strategy of charging, it needs to improve its competitive advantage against free competitors like The Sun and News of the World (Times Online 2010).

A death in the Polish family: President Kaczynski

      

President Lech Kaczynski and his wife Maria

 

I have just returned from a memorial mass for Polish President Kaczynski and the other 96 Polish elite who died in a plane crash in Smolensk, Russia last Saturday.      

• For those of you who don’t know, the Polish President and other senior public figures, including Mr. Kaczorowski the last President of Poland in exile, were on their way to mark the 70th anniversary of Katyn.
• This was the massacre of thousands of Poles by Soviet forces during WWII. Ironically, the President’s plane then crashed in the very same woods.

As usual, the typical conspiracy theorists have latched onto this story like blood thirsty leeches but it’s all too easy to instantly pin blame on the enemy. Perhaps and as speculated so far, it was simply a tragic yet undeniably foolish mistake on behalf of the pilot? The death of Princess Diana quickly springs to mind. Conspiracy versus accident. I guess everybody loves a good conspiracy theory though. It almost seems easier in a way.      

As a Pole myself, it almost feels like there has been a death in the family. Polish and even English friends steadily approach me with their thoughts and sympathies. Their genuine concern is heartwarming. Some even express how it troubles them more than if England’s elite had perished; “If Gordon Brown died it would be an excuse to go to the pub!” This is when the Poles’ sense of solidarity is comforting. Like with all of Poland’s tragedies, it has strengthened bonds among Poles even further. Candles have been lit. Flowers placed. Memorials made and memoirs signed. Like we have before, we will once again fight our way through this catastrophe. It is in our blood.        

Capital Warsaw mourns

 

 As Poland’s national week of mourning comes to an end on Sunday, I still don’t know how to feel about this tragic event in Polish history. Raised as a third generation Pole but born in England, I can’t help but sometimes feel a sense of split national identity. It is true to say that when in England I feel more Polish but in Poland more English. Although admittedly shocked and deeply moved by this major tragedy it saddens me more to watch those around me, both public and personal, suffer as a consequence.      

Plastered all over UK news when it happened early Saturday (10th April), the hype has already seemingly calmed down. My mum however is outraged because she feels it hadn’t been covered enough in England. ‘The Queen pays tribute, how is that relevant?!’ she snaps bitterly whilst I try to explain the journalistic convention of agenda setting and relevance to her. However, bred and raised a Pole her entire life, her compassion and unwavering loyalty are hardly questionable. I just know that this will live on a long time in the hearts of the Polish people. Something like this is not easily forgotten, especially considering Poland’s long and turbulent history.      

This sense of honor and tribute is certainly reflected in my household. TV Polonia now continually plays in the background whilst I go about my daily routines. It has almost become a soundtrack to my life. I am hardly surprised, when I come downstairs in the morning and go to bed at night, to see my mum devotedly glued to the TV screen. Although monotonous, it is somehow admirable – I am proud to be part of such a strong-willed, united nation. It is certainly rare to find in this current climate.      

President Kaczynski and his wife’s funeral is to be held this Sunday 18th April 2010 in Krakow, Poland.      

For more extensive coverage or recent updates visit the BBC news pages, The Guardian or Times Online.   

You can also visit the Polish Embassy in London.