Condé Nast's
Brides.com has redesigned its community section with upgraded features such as the ability to filter threads by wedding location and date, enhanced user profiles, streamlined navigation and more.
The site also has launched a new community forum, "Fashion Focus--Your Wedding Dress & More," with leading women's retailer Ann Taylor as the charter ad sponsor. The forum is geared to
brides to give and receive advice on their wedding wardrobe. Brides are also encouraged to blog about their bridal party's attire. Ann Taylor's ongoing presence on the board will include two fixed
in-page display ads.
With an average of a million brides-to-be visiting its various community boards every month and a 60% year-over-year growth in traffic, Brides.com has capitalized on one
consumer arena that is seemingly unaffected by the faltering economy.
Brides.com's editorial team creates original content, develops interactive tools, cultivates an engaged community and
provides an array of imagery and video to empower the bride throughout her wedding-planning process. Brides.com aggregates content from three national magazines--Brides, Modern Bride, and
Elegant Bride--along with 16 local bridal magazines.
"With Brides.com visitors flocking to our community forums to share ideas and advice, improving the boards' flexibility and ease-of-use
is always top of mind," said Michelle Preli, editor in chief of Brides.com, in a statement. "The fact that Ann Taylor has signed to be a charter sponsor for our new 'Fashion Focus' board, underscores
the vitality of the Brides.com community and the importance of maintaining a vibrant, interactive environment."