14 DAY TRIAL // When designing Windows 8 and its Metro Start screen, Microsoft thought of providing users with new means to stay connected with their favorite apps and sites.
The live Tiles featured in Windows 8’s Start screen were destined exactly for that, as well as for providing updates right on the user’s desktop.
As part of this pursuit, Microsoft also designed Internet Explorer 10 in Windows 8 to offer fast access to information and websites, and to allow users to easily pin favorite destinations to the Start screen.
Data collected by Microsoft through its Customer Experience Improvement Program shows that those who installed Windows 8 Consumer Preview spend most of their time on the web, and that they return to the same sites over and over again.
“Pinned sites on Windows 8 make it fast and easy to immediately get to your sites. With badge notifications, site tiles come alive with up-to-date information and help you know when new content is available,” Rahul Lalmalani, program manager, Internet Explorer, explains in a blog post.
This means easier and faster access to content for all users, but it can also provide developers with the possibility to better leverage their websites.
“Developers can utilize pinned sites to better connect their site with their users and promote their site’s brand directly in the Windows start screen,” Rahul Lalmalani states.
“We found that sites that used this feature with IE9 on Windows 7 see anywhere from a 15 percent to 50 percent increase in site visits. In Windows 8 the experience for consumers is even better with site tile updates, even when you don’t have the site open in the browser.”
Developers can easily come up with a site icon (favicon) through which IE10 can represent the website throughout the browser, including in the address bar, on the new tab page, and on the Start screen.
In addition, the Windows 8 platform can easily poll for updates for pinned tiles on the Start screen, and can keep users informed on new articles on newsfeed, new promotions on their favorite shopping sites, and the like.
In the aforementioned blog post, Rahul Lalmalani explains more on how developers can leverage Windows 8 and Internet Explorer 10 to push their websites to user’s Start screens.