Comments - Website
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30,000 or fewer
Bronze: Richmond Parents Monthly; Denine D'Angelo, webmaster; Lisa Crutchfield, content editor
Bright colors and large fonts on the article pages make the pages pop. Plenty of entertaining categories and fun blogs such as Frumpy Zone. Silver: Montreal Families; Lisa Fisher
The site's organization by publication issue is different than most but is easy to follow. The archive of articles includes both the headline and date of publication, which is very useful. Gold: Little Rock Family; Jennifer Pyron, editor; Mike Ortega, creative director
Very easy to navigate, lots of entry points on the home page. Reader poll on the home page and list of most read articles point to reader interactivity. Many video reports on the site show an understanding of multimedia for the Web. Little Rock Family also has Facebook and Twitter connections, utilizing social media to connect with readers. 30,001 - 54,999
Bronze: Nashville Parent; Stewart Day, publisher; Chris Teague, webmaster
Well-organized site that's easy to navigate. It's nice having categories by age range as well as topics. Search function works well for finding a specific topic. Reader photo gallery, poll on homepage, Facebook and Twitter links all help to connect more with users/readers. Parenting Help videos seem to be ads, but they are integrated well into the site and provide good information. Silver: Kansas City Parent; Michael Gimotty, publisher
Nice color theme and lots of good white space keeps the site light. The simple color theme is used consistently on the site. Connected to readers through social media. Rotating features allows for more content and entries point from the home page. Gold: Chesapeake Family; Donna Jefferson, publisher; Selma Manizade, art director; Heather Grant, graphic designer
Home page is vertically deep and provides a lot of entry points with good topics highlighted on the page. The lead element contains four rotating stories, which rotate at a good pace or can be selected manually. The physical magazine can be viewed online as PDF pages; a nice mix of old school and new technology. 55,000 or more
Bronze: ParentMap; Kristin Hart, Web product manager; Alayne Sulkin, publisher
Clean design and soft, muted color palette make the top of the page very pleasing and easy to navigate to the links and content. Inside pages are equally clean, easy to navigate. Many of the page elements are the same from page to page, making site recognition easy and distinct. Silver: Columbus Parent Magazine; Liz Warren, web producer
Lavender color theme with lots of white space is pleasing and easy to read. Tabs on the home page are easy to navigate. Reader poll and links to Facebook and Twitter show concern for reader involvement. Teaser information is provided for the stories featured on the home page. Ample links (with many subdivisions) to the features of the site. The menus are easy to use. Gold: San Diego Family Magazine; Rik Thiesfeld, graphic designer; Jennifer Hom, graphic designer; Michele Hancock, marketing coordinator
This is a pleasing home page with a clean and uncluttered look that seems like old school Web design: content ahead of gimmicks. The clean design features a dominant lead story element of four rotating stories backed up with good content and resource links. Lead element uses big photos that are easy to read and uncluttered. Rotating articles provide the multiple features as entry points without cluttering the page. Lots of reader contests highlighted. The site uses video, asks for reader-submitted content and uses social media.
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30,000 or fewer
Bronze: TulsaKids Magazine; Betty Casey, editor; Charles Foshee, publisher; Anna Casey, Web editor
TulsaKids is clearly a valuable parenting resource for its readers. A robust events calendar and in-depth articles on parenting in different age groups are two of the notable features of the site.
Silver: Genesee Valley Parent; Barbara Melnyk, publisher
Genesee Valley Parent has an excellent variety of content on its site. Especially notable are its Family Resource Directory, which can be viewed in its print format in an interesting interactive way. Multiple guides updated annually are also available for parents. Site has a strong variety of local columnists.
Gold: Little Rock Family; Jennifer Pyron, editor; Mike Ortega, creative director; Lindsay Irvin, assistant editor
Little Rock Family had by far the most comprehensive set of information for local parents of any publication in this category. Easy navigation leads parents to parenting info, resource guides, calendar and Web links, sorted by category and age group. Stories were lively, originally sourced, easy to read and in-depth, giving parents confidence in what the publication has to say. Video stories were surprisingly well produced, proving that even a small publication can do multimedia well.
30,001 - 54,999
Bronze: Chesapeake Family; Donna Jefferson, publisher; Kristen Pace-Kirby, editor
Chesapeake Family is clearly a great local source of news and information for its readers. Weekly e-newsletters are a great news and advertising opportunity for the magazine, and a good way to keep in touch between print publishing cycles. Directories and local blogs are very strong.
Silver: MetroFamily Magazine; Sarah Taylor, publisher; Mitzi Massie, art director; Mari Farthing, editor
MetroFamily Magazine offers a wealth of stories, resources, blogs and local contests for Oklahoma families. A robust calendar and event section is front and center on the site. Of particular note is content directed towards dads, which not all parenting magazines emphasize. Gold: Kansas City Parent; Michael Gimotty, publisher
Kansas City Parent had the best updated local and world news of any site in this category, including information on Haitian relief directly after the earthquake. A product recalls section on the front page is an easy, quick way for parents to keep up with product safety. Of particular note are stories written by Kansas City area teens, for Kansas City area teens. Site integrates particularly well with social media sites, and gives parents a quick way to follow blogs in particular on iGoogle.
55,000 or more
Bronze: Charlotte Parent; Eve White, editor; Meaghan Clark, Web editor
Charlotte Parent offers a good set of stories and resources to help guide local parents. Of particular note are front-page links to other sites that provide timely information -- the idea of being a starting point for any Web content of note to parents is gaining more currency. The North Carolina college guide is particularly strong.
Silver: Columbus Parent Magazine; Staci Perkins, editor; Liz Warren, Web producer
Columbus Parent has two excellent e-newsletters that serve distinct sets of readers -- one aimed at moms, with coupons, recipes and tips, and a weekly roundup of new content from the site. Those are both great ways to connect with readers. Stories overall are very strong and written with authority.
Gold: ParentMap, Kristen Russel Dobson, managing editor; Kris Collingridge, Calendar and Out and About editor; Kristin Hart, Web product manager; Alayne Sulkin, publisher
ParentMap has mastered the art of writing for the Web, with a liberal use of short paragraphs, bullet points, bolded words and quick reads. The front page is a great listing of important news now -- the site reads like a news site and less like a magazine, taking advantage of the immediacy the Internet offers. Directories and calendar listings are very robust and contain great information for parents.
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