Recent changes to www.opticianonline.net have smartened up the website and made it more attractive and have been accompanied by a complete change in the way the Optician team of writers work, speeding up the delivery of news, features, jobs and CET.
Optician conducted research into the way our readers used the website and the kind of information they want. This gave our designers an insight into the best way to present what we do and guided the resulting look and feel of the site. This has created a three-pronged approach to content where continuing education and training, news and jobs take centre stage. All of our information is contained under six simple headings and all previously published material, from recent years, is easily searchable.
When the new look website was launched in May of this year the Optician editorial team changed the way it worked. News on the site is updated throughout each working day and on some days over a dozen stories may be published to the site. Features are also uploaded as they are written, bringing important content to readers much more quickly. Each week as Optician closes for press the most important and timely stories plus more exclusive material is published in the magazine in the same way successive Optician readers have enjoyed for over 120 years.
Expert comment
Alongside news and features Optician journalists have continued to blog on all aspects of the optical profession. Their expert comment has been brought together with the Optician editorial leader and our columnists; Moneo, Verum, Visus, View from the High Street and Mano to create an Opinion area on the site. Specialist blogs are written by Optician journalists on news, contact lenses, clinical issues and products along with the ever-popular Big Optometry blog.
The launch of the new-look website was supported by the delivery of content in new ways. Optician’s news and features, blogs, comment and optical stories from around the web are passed on to readers through regular activity on the Optician Twitter feed, LinkedIn account and Facebook page. The idea behind all of this social media activity is to engage with people in as many ways as possible, using methods which suit them and on as many devices as possible. The Optician website has a high number of users looking at the site on their mobile phones. Tablet devices, such as iPads are also popular among readers.
To make sure that content is delivered in a readable format the website has a responsive design. This means that it is presented differently to those sitting at a desktop computer to those using a tablet or a smart phone.
Over the coming weeks a series of articles will outline the various areas of the site and the new features they contain. We want to encourage all of our readers to take time to look around the website and discover for themselves how accessible, searchable and useful it is.
The next big change will see a subscription pay wall introduced. This will limit access to some areas of the website for individual subscribers and members of bulk subscriptions. If you are a subscriber or work for one of the organisations that subscribe on behalf of their staff, log in today and update your details. This will ensure you have full access to all areas of the site when the pay wall in introduced later in 2015.