The Designers Institute has a fresh website which puts the spotlight on organisation members. The simplified home page, with ‘760 Designers’ in large type, links to a member directory, while a pared back menu has information about the institute, its events, sponsors, awards and business resources.

The new site reflects changes in the way the design community seeks and finds information, says CEO Cathy Veninga.

“We didn’t need to have such a content rich site anymore. We had news and features and it was hard to provide content for that, particularly when everyone is so all over the internet and get information from everywhere.

“We’ve tried to understand our market and focus on who we represent.”

The new site also showcases on the Best Design Awards Purple Pin winners, awarded for work that raises the standard of Kiwi design.

Sons & Co, the creator of the new site, also developed a new site for the Best Design Awards in 2010, when it won a Purple Pin for interactive design for remaking the website for the Christchurch Art Gallery.

“They have a strong, contemporary aesthete and which will ensure the [Designers Institute] site to be globally recognised,” Veninga says.

The company will refresh the Best Design Awards site in the lead up to this year’s call for entries. The Designers Institute site will also continue to evolve, says Veninga.