After months of testing, listening, adjusting, and testing again, we're ready with the new AOL homepage. The new AOL.com has been built around the people who use it and we've made sure every pixel is perfect. Over the years, we've evolved our homepage to help you simplify the web and your life, which both only seem to get more complicated.
The new AOL.com marks a significant change for one of the most trafficked websites in the world. Features of the new AOL.com include:
The News You Need: This is where AOL will highlight feature stories, entertainment news, sports and finance content, plus the latest national, world and video news. These news items are hand-picked and updated by AOL's homepage editors, so this is content curation at its very best (as opposed to automated feed-driven content). This section of content occupies a prime top-left spot in the new AOL.com webpage, which is an indication of how focused AOL is on offering the best news on the web (the news you need, when you need it).
Video: Keep an eye out for original videos being promoted front-and-center on the page. We are bound to have something to entertain you in this spot!
You've Got Mail: And AIM Mail, AIM, and Radio! Quick access to your favorite essentials are just a click away at the top right of the screen next to the Search box.
What's on AOL: Looking for a link to AOL Games or AOL Real Estate? No worries! You can find these sites along with all other AOL websites in the drop-down menus at the top of the page.
Latest Headlines: Scan the list of top news headlines – the perfect mix of national and world news stories.
Local News: Enter your ZIP code to get the best real-time news for your neck of the woods.
Daily Buzz: The Daily Buzz is a strip of fun, engaging and important stories that people are talking about right down the middle of the page.
Trending Now: Keep your finger on the pulse with the latest hot searches.
What's Being Shared: Put AOL Lifestream to work for you by setting up all your social networks in one place; then see regular updates of the articles and videos your friends are sharing on Facebook, Twitter and more.
Market Quotes: You can quickly check the performance of your favorite stocks right from the homepage in the Market Quotes section.
Business, Sports and Entertainment News: Get the latest news headlines from the worlds of business and finance, sports and entertainment in your left-hand news column.
Editor's Video Clips: This section at the bottom left of the page offers additional video clips every day – look for TV clips you may have missed and viral videos here.
All in all, the new AOL.com page is a big improvement on the old design – visually the page is cleaner and easier to read. Oh, and a tremendous thanks to those of you who tested the site, told us what you liked and disliked, tested it again, and guided us to this final design. Since we run one of the most popular sites on the web, we don't take changes lightly. Your experience drives everything we do and your feedback is invaluable. Thanks for letting us listen, and keep the feedback coming!