Prior to the planning of our own website, we researched existing artists to analyse what features we admired and what worked well when viewing the websites as an audience.

I initially researched Ed Sheeran’s website, he is now a very well established artists and falls generally into the genre of pop music – linking to some aspects of our product. I like his website because it is very stylized, the format is blog like and simple. A limited colour palette of white, black and green gives the website a fresh vibe, the font is quirky and compliments the simplistic layout.

When you first enter the website you can see a playlist of his latest videos, this instantly allows the audience to view his work. There is also a live Twitter feed linked to Ed’s personal Twitter account. Clear navigation links are located down the left side, ensuring easier navigation when moving from one page to another.

When I first entered the website, I was asked to select and specify which country I was visiting the website from – I thought this was a clever yet useful feature as it allows you to tailor the website to your understanding. It welcomes a broader target audience as he is tapping into wider markets.

An additional feature that I admire on the Homepage is the social networking navigation buttons across the header. Viewing the website as a contemporary audience, this feature is essential .

This page displays his Live Tour Dates, it shows his fans when and where he is touring and gives them the opportunity to purchase tickets. I like this feature on the website because it feels more personal and intimate as if he is personally inviting fans to come and see him.

This is a contact page on the website, it displays information on how to contact his team and also further more offers website links to purchase his merchandise – this is a clever advertising tool provoking the audience to buy additional products.

This page is for news updates, I like this features because it personally updates his fans on upcoming events and news. It also has links to his Twitter page which is essential to tap into contemporary audiences. I want to include this feature on my website as I think it will be a good tool for a new band to connect with audiences.