New Category Pages

Later this week, Associated Content will be rolling out updated category pages with a sharp new design. Click the thumbnail below for a preview:


The new category design includes four automatically-rotating featured content slots, each with its own high-quality image. There's also a new spot that calls out some of the great Contributors from each section, including AC's Category Editors, topic experts and past award winners.

We hope these pages will draw even more attention to the highlights of the AC library and stand-out Contributors from the AC community!

Article Page Changes

As a part of our ongoing push to improve the visitor experience of Associated Content, we’ll be testing out a new article page layout starting later this week.

Here’s a preview of what the new layout will look like (click the image to enlarge):


You’ll notice two major changes:

First, we’re moving the top set of related content links into the article body, on top of the primary ad. Why? It’s a cleaner look that provides more encouragement for site visitors to continue exploring the AC library.

Second, we’re creating a space to highlight the article author at the bottom of each piece. Why? Our Contributors want to be seen, and our visitors want to know where the information they’re reading is coming from.

We’re expecting to launch these changes by the end of the week, so stay tuned...

In the meantime, be sure to update your bio and the rest of your AC profile. Very soon, it’ll be a lot more visible!

More Previews of AC's New Look

Merry Christmas! Last night we unveiled another round of previews for the remainder of the site. Associated Content's new look is nearing completion, and now logged in CPs are able to see the publish pages and the Community section (including the ever-active Forum) in the swanky new gray and blue color theme. Every page of the site is now available to be previewed with the toggle feature.

There is new navigation and other things to explore, so click on that blue bar at the top of yourscreen to toggle to AC's new look and let us know what you think! There's a thread in the Forum here and you should email admin at associatedcontent.com if you come across any issues that we need to be notified about.

Collected Feedback About the Associated Content Redesign Preview

The preview of AC's redesign has been up for a few days and our community has been very vocal in sharing their pleasure and their concerns, in almost equal measure.

The Forum has been buzzing. Michelle L. Devon's thread, started just moments after the preview went live, has passed 150 posts and is still going strong. Check it out here and add your two cents.

Please remember, bug reports and similar issues are best sent to community [at] associatedcontent [dot] com rather than just stated in the Forum. It's an organized and efficient way for us to process everything.

We've gotten lots of private messages and emails, too. With the authors' permission, I have put a few of the happy reactions below.

Aly Adair's was the first and possibly the most enthusiastic response. "I LOVE THE NEW LOOK! The content pages and profile pages look SO much more professional and more like other popular media sites. WHAT A GREAT JOB you all did on this!!
THANK YOU
THANK YOU
THANK YOU"

CP Ashley said that she likes the way her homepage looks, and L.L. called the design "crisp and professional."

Cathy, a relatively new AC-er, said "I haven't been here very long, but I plan on becoming an up and coming Content Producer and I love the change!"
Work it, Cathy!

And, finally, Michael wrote and gave props to the design and engineering teams at AC, "Whoever did the design needs a raise for this effort." Are you listening, management?

I could go on, but you get the gist of the communication that we've had thus far regarding Associated Content's new look.

Insider's Preview of Associated Content's New Look!

The preview of Associated Content's redesign is currently available to all (but only) registered Content Producers. Have I mentioned that we're thrilled and excited?

When you land on your account page tonight you'll see a blue bar on top of the screen that says "New look for this page coming in 2009" and a blue bar below the "My Information" bucket on the right side of your account page. Click on it!

This preview will be up for the next couple of weeks and registered users be able to toggle back and forth between the classic AC and the new look.

Highlights of the redesign include:

• Improved home page and site navigation
• Newly designed content pages
• Enhanced CP profiles with content filters
• Engaging content channels with a new "CP Spotlight"
• New custom content widgets and social bookmarking features that make it easier than ever to share AC content all over the Web

I spoke with Leonardo De La Rocha, AC's VP of Creative about the new design. He says, "I’m particularly excited with the overall look and feel of the new site! The redesign will offer a more polished, professional and inviting presentation that speaks to how Associated Content has become a “grown up” media site."

Take the next couple of weeks to play around and get familiar with the new look and navigation on AC. Provide feedback or report any problems you experience by emailing community@associatedcontent.com and, of course, post here and let me know how you feel.

Finally, please join me in thanking everyone at AC who has been (and still are) working tirelessly to make this happen.

Another Peek at Associated Content's New Look

Welcome back! I hope everyone had a lovely holiday weekend.

The full preview of Associated Content's redesign will be available very soon. In the mean time, since everyone is eager to see more, here is a look at the Content Producer profile page. Click on the image to see a larger version.