Have You Visited SkinInc.com Lately?

Allured Web team members (from left) Andy Frederick, Nick Mason, Jan Ludwig and Jon Allured.
Allured Web team members (from left) Andy Frederick, Nick Mason, Jan Ludwig and Jon Allured.

You must take a spin through our newly designed and incredibly usable site that is jam-packed with content and searchable by using our intuitive site search or by topic--broad or narrow. Jon Allured, Skin Inc. magazine’s Web developer, highlights the search bar: “We’ve worked to improve our search results by taking advantage of the Google search algorithm. Because Google is the world-leader in searching the Internet, it was a no-brainer to use its technology for our site search. Now more than ever, you can search SkinInc.com and find exactly what you’re looking for among its thousands of pages.”

Associate editor/Web editor Cathy Christensen input three years of Skin Inc. magazine articles, and is adding to the offerings each month. “The feature on the new site that I love is the ability to narrow your search,” says Christensen. “For example, if I am searching under Products for facial products, on the left-hand side of the screen, I have 14 options that will help me narrow my search. Users can locate the information they need quickly and efficiently.”

The home page provides immediate access to new products, news items and a daily-changing carousel of up-to-the-minute events and features. The search bar, subscriber information and customer service is found at the top of every page on the site, along with access to SkinInc.com’s e-newsletter and RSS feed.

The main navigation bar offers a user-friendly way to get to information, including Spa Business, Skin Science, Treatments, Products, Networking, Events, Education and (Skin Inc.) Magazine. Content appears in descending date order. Make one more click on those topics and you’re presented with a secondary navigation bar brimming with relevant information.

Andy Frederick, Web designer, adds, “I am very happy with the overall sophisticated-yet-calming feel of the site. Additional content, such as images, figures or tables, relating to a particular article, is now on the first page of each article. This new, flexible design allows for the addition of many new features as the site grows.”

The Web team spent many hours interviewing spa owners about how our site is used and their expectations and needs from a viable Web site. Their input formed the basis for this redesign.

Allured President Jan Ludwig states, “My goal is to ensure that our business develops online initiatives that first serve our market’s needs, and then second take full advantage of the benefits that Web technology offers. The Web is all about serving up information based on what a user is looking for and Skin Inc.’s site has been redesigned to do this.”

My sincere gratitude goes to our Web team for its professionalism, Web knowledge and practicality as applied to SkinInc.com. Please add to our knowledge base and site useability with your comments and suggestions. This is just the beginning of Skin Inc. magazine supplying your information needs!

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