VanityFair.com Website Design Review

ARTICLE SNIPPET - The Most Pressing Question About VanityFair.com is the Strategy of the Site. Is it a True Content Site or Just Marketing Print Subscriptions?

Vanity Fair is one of those cultural icons that doesn't have to introduce itself. But, being a bit of a cultural dork myself, I'll let them do it anyway:

"With a unique mix of image and intellect, Vanity Fair captures the people, places and ideas that are defining modern culture. From the arts and entertainment, to sports and media, to politics and world affairs, Vanity Fair is what the world is talking about now."—Vanity Fair Media Kit.

VanityFair.com, the online presence of Vanity Fair magazine, is a mixed bag as far as the Mequoda website design scorecard is concerned. The most pressing question being about the strategy of the site. Is it a true content site or just marketing print subscriptions? The overview—there are some real A-list moments here, but also some B-list moves.

A-List:

• Great subscription marketing strategy: the site increases print subscribers with multiple points of entry to the order form.
• Exclusive multimedia content: getting additional, webified content from existing editorial efforts creates a reason to visit the site and extend the brand reach.
• Community: the chattering classes are given a forum to express their witty opinions.

  B-List

• Content: a shallow site is too easy to love and leave.
• Site Design: confusing navigation makes what content there is, harder to find.
• Relationships: with no relationship-building devices, readers can't even pretend they're in the VIP room.

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