Mapping The Web

You gotta be kidding me. It used to be a joke, and now it’s just plain ridiculous. Obviously, I’m referring to the new Technorati site re-launch. Techcrunch seems to like the new offering. Don’t ask me why. I’m completely baffled by the new direction of the company.

To me (and many others), search is CORE to Technorati. It is their primary offering. But it seems that the focus is shifting. The new site looks more like a news portal than a search engine. Features such as the “percolator” and tag cloud are being emphasized. I believe these to be secondary/supporting features. In other words, they shouldn’t be showcased. As search is the core offering, SEARCH should be emphasized. And for some insane reason that’s beyond me, they’ve shrunk the search box - it’s tiny. I implore everyone to visit the Technorati home page and take a look at the size of this box. It’s comparable to a regular (small) search box on any given website. This is ridiculous for a so-called “blog search engine”. It’s unacceptable.

I wish I could talk to the new CEO and say, “What the heck are you doing?” The guy is off to a bad start already. I’m genuinely upset about this new company shift. It’s illogical and irresponsible. If less concentration is going to be placed on search and more on content and discovery, then rebrand the company. Otherwise, focus on your core competency and let the rest take care of itself. Like I say, any new visitor to Technorati would assume that the site is more focused on current blog content rather than search.

Let me go on to criticize the home page a bit more…

First of all, way too much space has been allocated for advertising. I can spot one leaderboard, one giant square, and three text ads above the fold. Personally, I think they diminish the overall experience. I understand that they are part of the revenue model, but I still think they can be integrated in a more appropriate manner. Currently, they are completely ruining the experience.

I’ve criticized the company in the past, but this is a whole new ball game. Here is my advice for the company (free of charge): throw out the new stories, tags, some of the ads, and just gimme a big friggin search box. There… I saved the company thousands in consulting fees. Thank me later.

Once again, I encourage everyone to hit the Technorati home page and try to spot the search box. It’s like “Where’s Waldo 2.0?”… I’m sure you’ll be unpleasantly surprised.