Search At Core Of New Twitter Home Page

As promised last week, Twitter has launched its new home page with a new focus squarely on search and discovery.

The new design invites you to “see what people are saying about…” by using the search box. Below that are three rows of popular topics: by the minute, day, and week.

In a post on the Twitter blog, co-founder Biz Stone says the new home page is designed to be a stronger introduction to Twitter for new users.

“Helping people access Twitter in more relevant and useful ways upon first introduction lowers the barrier to accessing the value Twitter has to offer and presents the service more consistently with how it has evolved.”

Following last week’s launch of the Twitter 101 business guide, the new home page is step two in Twitter’s effort to reposition itself and be more accessible to new users. In his blog post, Stone explains the friction that some users found on seeing the previous version of Twitter.com.

“Defining a ‘tweet’ for the uninitiated and explaining how to create an account doesn’t resonate with everyone. ‘Why would I want to do that?’ is a common reaction. However, demonstrating the power of Twitter as a discovery engine for what is happening right now through our Search and Trends often awakens a sense of wonder which inevitably leads to a much more compelling question, ‘How do I get involved?'”

If you don’t see the new home page, try logging out of your Twitter account.