AddThis SmartLayers

New look for Midlands daily's website

The companion website to the UK’s biggest-selling regional newspaper has undergone a facelift.

In addition to the new look on expressandstar.com, the West Midlands-based daily has also signed up two publishers as digital partners to boost commercial operations.

It is offering a business directory through Local Mole, which is owned by Trinity Mirror, and car sales through Motors.co.uk which is owned by Associated Northcliffe Digital, sister company to local press publisher Northcliffe Media.

Other changes to the Express and Star’s website include larger pictures to better showcase photographers’ work, a new layout aimed at making content more user-friendly and enhanced navigation.

Recent additions to the sites include a partnership with ITN, whereby the MNA sites feature national and international news videos from the channel, along with a fantasy football game played by more than 6,000 people.

David Ratcliffe, new media manager with E&S owners the Midland News Association, said: “The new-look website, backed by the fresh platforms, will give the MNA an unrivalled commercial opportunity.

“It has a new look, a cleaner design and is intended to be more user friendly.

“People will see it has a much stronger use of images than many other news websites.

“The feedback has been very positive so far from users who have emailed us or commented via social media such as Twitter.

“We have plans to launch more exciting platforms on the site in the coming weeks.”

A relaunched version of another MNA website, shropshirestar.com, is due to go live in April.

The company said it had not yet decided whether companion websites to its stable of weeklies across Shropshire and the West Midlands will also undergo a facelift.

  • The old-look Express and Star website…..
  • …..and the relaunched version of the site
  • Comments

    Darren (12/01/2010 12:09:28)
    A newspaper website built with WordPress – interesting!

    donald (12/01/2010 13:09:34)
    It’s almost as outdated as the Express and Star in print.

    All Subbed Out (14/01/2010 14:23:17)
    I appreciate what I think Donald is getting at about the printed E&S’s design and layout. it’s certainly, err, ‘busy’. But it is an evening newspaper, packed with local and national news, which still has afternoon editions with up-to-date reports. You can’t say that about many titles nowadays, so give it some credit where it’s due.