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Is it time for a Web 2.0 design change?
Abebooks, Alibris, Amazon, Biblio, and Half all have displayed nearly the same homepage design for some time. All of them follow the same idea of crushing as many boxes and marketing schemes as possible. There isn’t one that you wouldn’t call “busy.”
The trend among new websites and tech-forward is Web 2.0 design. There is a ton of debate surrounding what exactly this means but in general means a simple, centered layout, a good amount of white space, big text, custom icons and 3d effects (sparingly), easy/clear navigation, rounded corners, among other traits.
So, is it time for a change? I am not sure. I tend to think that this type of change would benefit an emerging site like Biblio more than Half. There is a huge market play involved in creating a good Web 2.0 design that includes viral internet marketing. The Web 2.0 embracers are most active in blogging and tech-forward circles (they make them up!).
Apart from that, and more importantly, would customers like it? That is to say would it help to boost sales? I guess that is the ultimate question. I tend to think that customers would enjoy a simpler, clearer format that aligns with the “chic” sites on the internet. However, I am not sure that necessarily equates to more sales.
I’d like to see some of these characteristics embedded into bookselling sites. The homepage for each of these companies are so crowded and stale that it is somewhat discouraging. It is almost like the tough question is not what to put on the homepage, but what else can we fit on the homepage. I am not all that hopeful that we will see significant change this year, but it will be interesting to see how these crucial pages evolve.
