Copyblogger

Check Out the New Copyblogger Design

written by Brian Clark
posted on
Tweet
Share
Share
Pin
Check Out the New Copyblogger Design

OK all you feed and email readers, go ahead and click through for a look at the new Copyblogger design.

Chris Pearson’s breakout design for Copyblogger has served me well for over a year, and I think his latest reinterpretation is even better. Feel free to share your feedback in the comments section, and thanks as always to Chris for all his hard work.

I’ll have more new developments soon, so stay tuned.

P.S. – Whenever you’re ready, here are 4 ways we can help you:
  1. Copyblogger Academy - Our community gives you 9 full-length marketing courses (over 30 hours of education total), ongoing education, expert Q&A, and more. Join 1500+ members inside.
  2. Content Coaching - If you want hands-on assistance with your content, SEO, social media, or personal brand, we’d be happy to help. Hit that link and enter your information to learn more.
  3. Newsletter Sponsorship - We'll put your product, service, or lead magnet in front of at least 30,000 people. We'll also help you write persuasive copy for it. Fill out the form to see if we're a good fit.
  4. Digital Commerce Partners - If you want us to fully manage your blog and SEO, you can hire our agency partner, who applies our exact methodology. Fill out this form to apply for our program.

Reader Interactions

Previous article:
Next article:

Reader Comments (91)

  1. Looks great. I especially like the rss button and envelope hanging off the side. That’s a nice touch that I haven’t seen before.

  2. Looks wonderful, Brian: familiar, clean, and useful. Chris, if you’re reading this: once again, nice work.

    Room to spread out, without getting cluttered. Colors are pleasant, too.

    We also redesigned this weekend. Spring cleaning seems to be catching.

  4. It looks really good and I’m glad you kept the old basics too like the Verdana font.

    I know it sounds lame, but I’m a whole lot more likely to stop and read a blog if it’s in Verdana 10pt.

  5. Didn’t like the first one, love this one. It actually looks good at the same time as being usable while preserving your brand scheme. I like the way the subscription options are displayed.

  6. Brilliant!

    My only gripe with it is that the posts are now “narrowed”, feeling a bit cramped. However, since I can’t find a post that has a somewhat “big” image in it, the layout would be still be bearable.

    Nevertheless, still a brilliant design. Simple and functional 🙂

  9. This is one sick design, i liked the old one too, but i think this one looks way better, still has the same “vibe” to it, it’s cool. I like where the “subscribe” and “e-mail” graphics are placed, well done! 🙂

  10. Cool! I like it! The RSS button and the email update icons are awesome. I like how they stick out and off to the side (although I could argue that it goes against the whole alignment aspect of design 😛 lol).

    Looks great though! Nicely done.

  13. Sorry but I liked the first design much better. I think it was more clearly arranged and I loved the whitespace. Now it´s a little bit boxy and closer on a 1024×768.

    But in the end the content matters, and your content is a killer! Keep on the good work Brian!

  14. Cool layout!!!
    Superb look and hanging buttons..
    Still right sidebar is slightly bigger and less room for main content 😉

    I wish I could have spent some money on design 😉

  15. Honestly, I like the old version better…overall.
    The icons on the left are cool, sure. But it suddenly seems busy. I loved the zen appeal of the old version.
    Maybe it will grow on me.

  17. It’s nice, but I like the old design more. This one is a bit crowded, and nothing seems to stand out.

    There’s also a problem with the design: the 3-column background moves out of its place when you use a smaller browser window or a low screen resolution (like 800×600). You really need to fix this. 🙂

  18. I think it’s awesome! I can’t remember exactly what the old one looked like, could you post a screenshot? I’m sure it was similar but I was too busy reading your awesome content to notice the design details 🙂

  19. Given that it has been a while since I actually visited the site I have only the vaguest recollection of what it looked like before. Any chance of a ‘before’ screen shot?

    Having said that it looks good. The rss button seems to have got a lot of praise but on IE6.0 it looks like the background is a pixel or two out of alignment with the box it is supposed to float over. This is me at my most nickpicking though.

  20. nah. almost but no.
    it’s busier. too cramped
    too much info
    left column is great
    but ads right at the top of the right column & the size of that column just messes it all up a bit

    sorry chris – 8/10
    well… 9.5/10 compared to the rest of the web. but 8/10 for chris.

  21. Very nice. It looks a little like a magazine cover. I do agree that it is not optimized for those still using the 800 x 600 screen resolution. Maybe Chris can come up with a fluid version.

  22. Looks good, but personally I fell it’s not better than the previous design.

    Is Chris taking new orders? I think I need to have a shiny new theme soon. 😀

  28. Looks really great with the popping out graphics it has an urgent and a ‘news room’ feel to it. The only thing I don’t like is the title of the post coming in the middle — just doesn’t look right. Plus having your name at the beginning of every post is redundant, unless you’re having members post also. I’d prefer a more low key “posted by Brian Clark” or just “by Brian Clark” coming after the post. But hey, that’s just my two cents.

  30. For those wondering about the placement of the RSS and email icons, any geat blogger or blog designer and marketer knows that those at the 2 most important aspects of a blog… aside fron (or combined with?) killer content.

    The fact that they are notable to so many people says a lot about this new design’s effectiveness.

    Love the new layout, Brian. Nice work Chris!

    It’s speaking for itself already 😉

  32. looking good! Besides that post it corner, it’s way too long and not realistic looking at all. One little bug (in Safari, didn’t check other browsers) is the CSS text replacement technic on “submit comment” and “subscribe” buttons… The original text is still visible on top of the image… Other than that – great 🙂

  34. The site looks really professionally done. Really good job.

    One minor thing though: I would put “search copyblogger” block above the fold, i.e. closer to the top of the page.

  35. Nice. It even prints *kinda* nice. If you could only deactivate some of the navigation (display: none) in the print style sheet. This would be totally sweet.

  37. Nice touch of the little icons bleeding off the frame. Little stuff like that is key.

    I actually liked your old design better, but I understand why you put this one up. Better for the ads right? Nothing wrong with that.

  39. The jury is out, I’m afraid. I loved the white space in the old design and it just felt a lot easier to read. As Azmeen said earlier, it feels more cramped.

    On the plus side, it loads quicker than the old design.

    Maybe I’ll grow to like it but at the moment it’s not happening for me.

    Sorry 🙁

  40. Awesome. I like it. Congrats Brian!

    One nitpick: Maybe make your post headlines link to your post permalinks? I always like that and I think it’s good for SEO too.

  41. As one who believes Chris’ ‘Pearsonified’ is still the nicest design around, (I head over there now and again just to admire it) I can only give him credit for his work here once again.

    It was a brave move Brian, to go from a design so open, to one that’s more busy, and I half expect you’d know you’d get some negativity on the change. However, I think it’s great, and it’ll obviously serve you better for your current, and future plans.

    When I work on a design, I love to get feedback, so to be constuctive, my only query would be the centred headings. I assume though you’ve tried left aligning, and the centred looks better?

    The “by Brian Clarke” should maybe be slightly smaller too, it’s a little too prominent I think.

    I’m also not sure about the ‘copyblogger’ in the footer. I think the reversal doesn’t really work. Have you tried keeping the red at the bottom with the same lettering overhang as in the header?

    Nothing too major though. Keep up the great work, both of you.

  43. One of the new graphical features I’m seeing on the web (and in your theme) is the ‘overlapping’ graphic. I really like how it distracts the eye and calls attention to the element as it does with your RSS and Email graphics.

    I also like how you differentiate the sidebars from the main content by slight shading. That’s a great pronouncement of the hierarchy of importance with regard to content.

    Very nice. I’d love for Chris to actually ‘pick apart’ the design and explain why he did each of the things he did… it appears that there’s been great thought put into this.

  46. What happen to that nice clean white pallete and open space that presented your copy so beautifully?
    🙁

    Now don’t get me wrong the new design is nice, but does it work as well as the last? I feel everything is a bit cramped and confined. The words have no room to breathe and be taken in. Example: the title of the first blog sits right against the header and is lost all together at first glance. As I look at the home page my eye doesn’t no where to stop. The headings and links below them all blend together. Try squinting your eyes and you’ll see what I mean.

    I do like the new navigation, but I feel overall that the two column design is a better fit to display the copy and communicate your message (which is what this site is all about). Your copy now just feels like filler, unlike before – it was part of the design.

    If you decide to keep the 3 column design, I think there need to be a lot more pushing and pulling to make it more effective.

  47. Brian, I like the old one better too. And I’m looking at the site on an 800×600. It looks weird. I’ll send screenshots.

  48. Some people like 3 column designs, others like 2 column; what if people could choose for themselves?

    I’m aware that it would require some work, but it would be an absolutely amazing option for people to have.

  49. Love the design. Nicceee.
    Some clever little things like the RSS & Envelope on the left makes it unique. But…
    Waiting to see all the new stuff you have in store.

  50. Yeah, it’s good. Different, yes, but we’ll get used to it fast and forget all about the old design.

    Regards
    Shane

  51. New interface kicks ass! Everything about it screams “NOT just trying to show as many ads as possible before you catch on and close the browser.” Which is exactly what this site is not. Excellent work on Chris Pearson’s part!

  53. I loved the old one, and agree with those who find this one more cramped. I miss those really large titles.

    I think that if you left-aligned the titles, you would help open it up some. Mixing alignments is usually a design no no. The clean edge will tidy it up.

  56. I agree with akioe — the nav is nice, but it’s too crowded. The old one was the best Cutline theme out there.

    I’ll probably get used to this one in time, but for now, I’m feeling a bit skwunched.

  58. I quite like the new design. It seems more ‘focused’ and intense than the previous one, which feels a little bit lazy in comparison.

  59. Love it! Clean, professional, and now easier to navigate. The old design was easy to navigate, too, but this one helps to direct my eyes more.

    The white space in the middle helps me more, and the sidebar accent colors helps me navigate and scan them better, too. (I just visited a couple of article from your archives using the sidebar, just now, as an example.)

    Great work!

  60. I like the new design. It’s clean, fresh- it has good colors. And it looks like dozens of other sites out there. My only beef with the new design is the fact that you left behind a truly ‘distinctive’ look, to take up a more ‘common’ look. Instead of standing out from the crowd, you now blend in better, which I don’t think is a good thing.

    If I were in charge of deciding, I’m 100% sure I’d go back to the old design, maybe allowing a few tweaks to that design, but keeping the whitespace and cleanliness.

  61. I find it very difficult to give a passing grade to any design that has h-scrolling in an 800px width window. And no, I don’t run maximized. Desk top real estate is too dear to be running apps in windows any larger than they have to be.

    The middle column is a good, readable width. The sidebars are too narrow, giving a cramped, back of the magazine ad sort of feel. Widen one sidebar and lose the other.

    cheers,

    gary

  63. sorry bro. i do not really like it. a bit too busy for me. i really liked the old style design. it was simple and clean. very zen. and i thought it set you apart in its simplicity and kind of said.. judge me on my writing. but you have not lost a fan! content is why i come here, anyway.

  64. I like the way the old top menu is now more into focus on the left side, pointing more to your real skills and what you offer people besides your Great Content writing skills.

    What I miss, is that the background gifs for RSS “Subscribe” and “Email Updates” are not linked to the same sources as the buttons…

    Great Job from Chris, Redesign and keeping you Branding!

  65. It looks nice and clean and i especially like the way one can subscribe to rss 🙂

    However, i also feel it’s a bit crowded. The older lay-out seemed less chaotic.

    But i usually read this site from the my rss-feed, so i’m kinda used to very basic lay-outs 😉

  67. the old design, was absolutely my favourite blog design ever! I loved chris’s work because of it. It will take awhile to get used to this one. Looking forward to your ‘developments’

    cheers!

  70. Okay, call me what you want but one of the things I loved most about your site was the clean, simple, non-intrusive appeal it had. It seems like every web page is flooded with everything to create some sort of sensory overload dynamic (maybe it’s just me). Your site was where I could seek refuge and certainly find some serene sensibility (say that 5 times fast!). Regardless, the fact is your content reigns supreme over any bells, whistles, shapes or colors and will keep me coming back so long as you’re at the keyboard. Thanks for sharing with the rest of us!

  71. It’s a good design, but I honestly liked the old one better.

    In any case, it’s not the design that keeps me coming back for more 🙂

  73. Love the new layout!

    I especially like the icons you use next to the post.

    That Pearson guy can make some pretty good WordPress themes hunh?!

  76. I like it. I think the old version put a bit more emphasis on your copy which did work very well for Copyblogger. My guess is this version will see an increase in revenue from the ads, which is also good for Copyblogger.
    As always, your content is the reason we are here and will continue to come even if it were hideous. Well, maybe not too hideous.

  77. Sorry, this design feels claustrophobic to me. I used the previous design as a reference point for many of my clients (“whitespace is king!”).

    I’ll have to look for a new site now… I love Chris’s stuff so it might be another one of his sites…

    At the very least, I’d say that the left-hand column should be moved to the right (techcrunch/gigaom style)

  78. I echo the sentiments of what looks like the majority of commentators, in saying I really like the old design better. Annie said it well when she said “I was too busy reading your awesome content to notice the design details”. That speaks volumes. The new look is very nice, but given a choice between the two I’d take the former.

  82. Brian …. I know this in the wrong place but Chris’s site has gone down and has been for a while !!! Do you know if everything is OK or do you think he has had enough? 🙂

  84. Does anyone know how to use the 2 column Copyblogger theme and MOVE THE SIDEBAR to the LEFT?

    If so, please provide instructions… thanks.

This article's comments are closed.