7 DE LAAN WEBSITE ANALYSIS
We are all aware of the popular SABC 2 soapy, 7de Laan. The show
started on 4 April 2000. Soon, the 30min TV show became one of SA’s top shows. Like all successful TV shows, early in
2002, the show started it's own website, www.7delaan.co.za.
Layout
The website contains an easy to follow navigational structure with the main buttons being at the top of the design. The
top of the 7de laan website has a “video scene” type graphic
of the intro as it is seen on television when the show starts. This is done so that viewers can easily associate the TV program
with the website, 7delaan.co.za.
On the left hand side of the website, there is a banner which displays a different cast member each time the site is refreshed
or a new page loaded. These banners are clickable and take you through to a page dedicated to that particular cast member. There
is also an archive section where previous cast members of the 7de Laan show
can be found along with their profile. The overall layout from a graphical perspective is not the best the world wide web has ever
seen, but taken into consideration that most of the viewers are over the age of 30 explains the fact why
7de Laan did not go for high end graphics.
Navigation
The navigation of the 7de Laan website is located mainly at the top of
the website. Navigation was well planned in the sense that enough space was left for adding new buttons. The best thing about the
navigation is the scrolling marquee text that also functions as navigational links on top of the website. This links to pages that
only appear temporarily on the website. This also can promote the 7de laan
website with regard to search engines. We all know the secret is out that search engines read the scrolling marquee text.
Functionality
The 7de Laan website is informative and fun to visit, especially for
the 7de Laan fans, but there is great potential for more aspects of
functionality. The current functionality on the website is easy to understand and follow. The one interesting thing about the
website is the list of birthdays listed for all registered readers. These birthdays are pulled out of the 7de Laan database and displayed on the right hand side of the
7de Laan home page. Signing up for the 7de Laan newsletter is easy and simply requires you to fill in your email address and click on “submit”. This option is displayed
on top of the list of birthdays.
Downloads
It will take sometime to register but when you are a registered visitor you will be able to download a variety of interesting
goodies. Wallpapers of your favourite cast members in respective sizes 800X600, 1024/768 and 1280/1024 are freely available to
download. There are also postcards you can send to your on-line friends. Photos of 7de Laan
cast members off the “Box” are also available; see them have fun behind the scenes. The video clips section allows you to
download some of your favourite memorable clips from the popular TV show. |
