WordPress.org Launches Homepage Redesign

WordPress.org made its new homepage redesign live today. The meta team worked quickly to put the new design in place in time for the holidays.

“While this is only the first iteration, the plan is to continue design and development to create something truly amazing,” Mark Uraine said in the announcement. “This is the first step toward that goal.”

The header and footer have been kept from the previous design. According to meta team member Samuel Wood, matching them to the new design is beyond the scope of this first iteration.

“The header and footer are global pieces,” Wood said. “Redesigning them, in any way, will have to be part of a much larger effort in redesigning, well, everything. The entire site would need adjustments to adjust them.”

Uraine said in a previous post that there are iterations underway for a new, more minimal header that better aligns with the new homepage style.

Feedback on the initial draft included notes on the copy, particularly the “Meet WordPress” headline. One person commented on it not being inclusive of people who have already met WordPress and are returning. Also, a few found the tagline to be too narrow: WordPress is open source software you can use to create a beautiful website, blog, or app. Some suggested the inclusion of other use cases, such as store, forum, and membership site. These ideas have not been incorporated but they were recognized by the design team in the comments on the initial draft.

The homepage redesign went from sketches to prototype to live on WordPress.org in a matter of a couple weeks. Feedback has been overwhelmingly positive so far, and most see it as a huge improvement. The new design should receive a great deal more exposure now that it’s live, which will hopefully bring in more varied perspectives towards making it extraordinary in future iterations.