The new offering brings together WW’s in-depth knowledge of canals and rivers and its expertise on all aspects of owning a boat.
The new website includes, say the publishers, the biggest online listing of used canal boats for sale with its BoatSearch facility, plus breaking stories from across the network.
Peter Johns, publisher of WW, explained that a second phase of the launch will follow shortly, offering a Premium level subscription service providing full access to news, boat reviews and other exclusive features.
Meanwhile all visitors can access the magazine’s repository of boat ownership advice, including the ‘Ask an Expert’ feature, and collaborate on its community-focused ‘Your Waterways’ pages, where users can share favourite moorings, towpath attractions and more. A pubs database and interviews with popular waterway personalities add further colour.
The website, which launched in late May, was developed entirely in-house with its own Content Management System.
Peter Johns said: “It was important to develop our own fully functioning CMS to ensure complete integration of content with our editorial workflows and with our extensive archive. The website also draws on various databases that the team has developed in-house to allow dynamic updating of the website from a centrally held single source. And we also need full integration with our subscription management and webshop facilities to provide real time sign up and access to the unique content for our subscribers”.
The new website forms part of WW’s continued efforts to strengthen the brand online. Over lockdown it has been offering free digital access to the monthly magazine.
