DISNEY REDESIGNS ITS WEBSITE

                    As a corporation that continues to dominate the theme parks and animated films sectors, the Walt Disney Company is proving to embrace the growth of the online market and the importance of an effective website for reaching consumers and potential Disney enthusiasts. As a corporation that targets children, in hopes of then creating lifelong consumers, it is especially important for Disney to gain a high sector of internet user minutes due to the trend of this young demographic moving their lives online. However, this goal of integrating the internet and e-commerce into the company’s global strategy has been a struggle for the Disney Corporation, shown by 15 consecutive quarters of losses in the gaming, mobile, and internet divisions (Barnes, New York Times).

          After redesigning its main website, Disney.com, for the third time in five years during the end of October 2012, Disney hopes its “cleaner, simpler, more elegant” layout will be one of the essential tools in maintaining its consumer base, with executives referring to Disney.com as the “front door” of the company. Disney Online includes not only the Disney.com main website, but also subsidiaries such as a parenting site, theme park websites, news regarding new movies, music, and projects, and an interactive online gaming site. Therefore, the Disney main website serves as a hub to the various outlets Disney operates online and by redesigning the layout, Disney hopes to serve its consumers in a user-friendly, softer way that moves the focus from an advertising-heavy webpage to a more interactive, modern approach.



Sources
Barnes, Brooks. Disney’s Digital Struggle. New York Times. October 22, 2012.
Disney Main Website: http://disney.com/
Image: http://media.smashingmagazine.com/images/strategic-design/disney.jpg