It was only two years ago when NRN.com completed a massive redesign to improve navigation, search functionality and multimedia capabilities. But two years is a lifetime for digital media, and we've evolved even further.
The new NRN.com includes everything you expect from us, including news, in-depth analysis of trends, business data, videos and columnists. But now it also includes new elements and access points we know today's readers need from a digital news brand. We’ve built easier, at-a-glance views of information, organized content by restaurant segment and business function, added interactive polls, and aggregated content from partners like Restaurant Hospitality and Food Management, as well as data providers like Black Box Intelligence, Tracking Social and Sullivision.com.
One of the biggest upgrades to the new site is that it's optimized for mobile devices. gaining access to NRN.com while on the go will be easier than ever.
Many of our improved features are still under construction, and we’re even keeping some of them under wraps until they're perfected. But all of what you see online today has been driven by feedback we’ve received from our readers and built on best practices for digital media.
To gain access to all of our new offerings, please register on NRN.com. And soon we’ll be offering premium content for paid subscribers.
I've chosen 10 of the best new NRN.com features to help guide you through the site:
1. Navigation: Easier to read and easier to scroll, our new navigation is also organized based on how our users interact with the site. News is highlighted and content is broken down by restaurant segment and job functions like operations, marketing and finance.
2. Mobile optimization: We are admittedly late to this party, but we’re here. Now you can use NRN.com on your smartphone quickly and easily, as it should be.
3. Top 100 Data Tables: NRN has published its franchise Top 100 special report for 39 years. It will now be available online in data tables formatted for easy viewing and sorting. What you see today is only a preview based on 2012 data. Soon, it will be more robust and will require a paid subscription.
4. News Dashboard: One page gives you all the news you need. Find the latest headlines on executive moves, consumer trends, franchising, international growth, regulatory or legislative updates and supplier news.
5. Sales & Sentiment Tracker: Our most popular stories are often the monthly looks at industry sales, traffic and operator sentiment from valued content partners Black Box Intelligence, MillerPulse and the National Restaurant Association. Now, find all of this data in one place with easy-to-read, interactive charts in addition to our analysis.
6. Reader polls: After you register on the site, participate in our new polling feature to compare your views with those of other restaurant operators. Participants get immediate results, and we’ll update these polls frequently.
7. The NRN Social 200: We’ve partnered with social media tracking firm TrackingSocial to create an exclusive index that monitors and measures — on a daily basis — the social media footprint of the largest 200 restaurant brands. Find your business, watch your competitors and track the industry’s social media health with this new feature.
8. The Menu Section: Think of the new Menu section as its own website, where we’ve gathered all the food and beverage coverage you need, from restaurant chain menu news to chef insights, and from special features like wine picks to specific areas of interest like nutrition.
9. Same-store sales: One of the only places you can find same-store sales results from all public restaurant companies in one table, we broke down the numbers by segment, and by corporate or franchised results, in this new section. We will update the data as reports become available.
10. Top 100 chain profiles: Not only have we moved our Top 100 data online, but we’re also building profile pages for each of the largest chains. Want news and information on McDonald’s? We’ve got it, and now so do you. We’ve built our first 20 profiles and we’ll be at 100 in no time.
Welcome to the new NRN.com.
Sarah Lockyer
Executive online editor, Nation's Restaurant News
E-mail me: [email protected]
Follow me on Twitter: @slockyerNRN
