Digital Design Blog

Is the Homepage History?

Well, not yet. But the relevance of website homepages are on the wane. Search, RSS and widgets are driving more and more users deep into today’s web properties.

In fact, many top sites see 50% or more of their traffic originate beyond the homepage. And that’s on the conservative side. What’s the cause? Search and RSS.

Look at how The New York Times just dismantled its paid service, Times Select to try and take advantage of the massive amount of traffic driven by search and blogosphere linkage.

To quote the NYTimes:

“Since we launched TimesSelect in 2005, the online landscape has altered significantly. Readers increasingly find news through search, as well as through social networks, blogs, and other online sources. In light of this shift, we believe offering unfettered access to New York Times reporting and analysis best serves the interest of our readers, our brand, and the long-term vitality of our journalism.”

That means walking from at least $11m in revenue per year if we run the numbers. According to paidcontent.org “TimesSelect closes down with roughly 787,400 active subscribers: approximately 471,200 home delivery subscribers, 227,000 online-only paid subs, and 89,200 free academic subscriptions through TimesSelect University.” That’s not insignificant revenue. Clearly advertising and traffic is the play here.

Want even more proof that this trend is here to stay? According to our recent Consumer Behavior Study:

1. 60% of consumers customize their start pages
2. 56% use RSS
3. 54% use search engines to start their shopping experiences

We are in the early days of this shift, but as content becomes more portable (via RSS and widgets) and search plays a larger role in consumers’ web experience, I can’t help but believe that the relevance of the homepage will wane and “premium” ad placement will take on a whole new look in the not too distant future.