Morningstar.com Website Design Review

ARTICLE SNIPPET - We are still in the dawn of the Internet age and Morningstar.com is one of the early lights in the crowded online investment information sky. In this website design review, Terri Edmonston looks at Morningstar.com, peruses through all 14 website design guidelines and determines they get an A. Of particular interest is the well-articulated line between paid and free content, and the excellent webification of a publication that started its life in 1984 as a fund rating guide for investors.

Morningstar is primarily a subscription and licensing business, with additional revenues from individual product sales and advertising. This 20-year-old public company had revenues of $179 million in 2004 from providing investment research via Internet, software and print-based products. Flagship print publications include Morningstar Mutual Funds, Morningstar StockInvestor and Morningstar FundInvestor. Content is also distributed via their websites: Morningstar.com (launched in 1997) and MorningstarAdvisors.com.

Her lasting impression after combing through the pages is one of a well-executed site that matches the audience, manages strategic goals, and provides a pleasant and usable information service, utilizing most aspects of successful website design.

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