About.com relaunched today with a cleaner, smarter new design. Forrester Research Charlene Li tells MediaPost the new design is significant for two reasons: “First, they understand that half of their users originate as a result of a search query.” In othed words, About understands that its users go directly to content pages and has re-designed the site accordingly, so that every page serves as a landing page for visitors.
In addition, About “will vary the content based on past visits … first-time visitors will receive introductory content and navigation, while loyal users will see content promotions based on the type of previously viewed content.” Li says this is a good move since it offers the potential for “hassle-free personalization where technology, rather than the individual, will do the heavy lifting.”
