And while we have focused on mobile, we have also created an improved desktop experience. The challenge, then, was to develop a flexible design that looked good however you came to us and on whatever your screen size. It is what's called a "responsive site".
What has changed?
As we built the new look and features based on state-of-the-art international developments in news website design, we paid close attention to what users told us in test environments. Some of the many changes you will notice:
• Bigger, bolder images to bring important news events to life, and to better highlight our great lifestyle content.
• An improved video experience, either standalone or embedded in articles.
• Clearer sign-posting for different types of content.
• Left-side desktop navigation aimed at showing you how much content is available and how to get there quickly and easily.
• A "hamburger-style" navigation tool on mobile - three horizontal bars that open out when clicked to reveal navigation across the site.
• Signposting how long an article will take to read - either a minute or two on the run, or a deeper reading experience.
Last but not least
Our new site is designed for one thing above all - to bring our journalism to you in a way that makes it easier to read and enjoy. We are proud of our journalism, whether fast breaking news, exclusive reporting, in-depth data interactives or eye-catching visuals through video and photography.
And we are proud of our new design.
We know one thing though, nothing is ever perfect. We would love to hear your comments and suggestions so we can continue to bring you the best news, sport and entertainment with a terrific user experience.
One of our next updates will be to the NZ Herald app to bring this in line with our new look site.
Let us know what you think here. We look forward to your feedback.
