Months in the making, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia‘s online hub has been retooled with new search capabilities, 700 videos covering 15 years of her TV program and social media tools.  I spoke with Holly Brown, president of internet at MSLO (currently on a “working” maternity leave), as the relaunch began tonight; she insists this is more than a makeover. It is the first step of a major overhaul expected to be done by fall. The overall aim is to balance the site’s expert advice with more user content and community features.
A hint at MSLO’s future online direction is found in the new feature, SoMartha, where users can share lifestyle tips and their own “Martha moments.” Beyond fostering community, the channel has a sweepstakes component—users are invited to complete seven story templates tied to Martha Stewart categories such as recipes, wedding planning and organizing.
There’s also a change in navigation. The previous version was organized around brands, so users choosing the Living Channel would find that it was entirely separate in look and content from the rest of the site. Now, the primary navigation is centered around category or interest and relates more to other areas.
“Our next focus is on creating microsites, which are dedicated to a particular advertiser and yet, is still built into the total experience of the site,” Brown said. “We’ll continue to build those out over the year. The ‘So Martha’ site is an example of the direction the microsites might take.”
Brown provided an early demonstration of the site and it does seem very Martha. “Ask Martha” —the search engine—for “cakes” and the results can be viewed all at once or subdivided by recipes, videos or “our web sources.” Since the content is culled from all the magazines and other media outlets under MSLO, the constant problem was how to make it all manageable.
“Being able to save and organize content was the major goal this time around,” Brown said. “More personalization and more community features are the goal for the next one.”
Related:
—@ MPA: Dennis Publishing And Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Promote Sites With User-Content
—Martha Stewart Omnimedia’s Online Plans; New Online Head