Will's Weak Web Presence (wyoung.co.uk)

Member Name: blackjane

Product:	wyoung.co.uk
Date:	17/02/02 (150 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: May Improve With Time

Disadvantages: A Token Gesture, A Missed Opportunity, Could Do Much Better!

Now that the media hype surrounding Pop Idol has died down a little following Will Young's spectacular victory, we might be expecting that some of the momentum could be maintained via the Internet.

Sadly this does not appear to be the case, and if you take a look at Will Young's official web site, at www.wyoung.co.uk (presumably some smart Alec beat BMG records by registering other domains with combinations of Will/William Young) you may be slightly disappointed to say the least.

Nowadays an Internet presence is an integral part of any promotion strategy for an up and coming artist. Admittedly the publicity that has surrounded the Pop Idol phenomenon, and in particular the latter stages, has meant that perhaps in this case additional promotion channels do not matter quite so much. It is my opinion that this is rather a complacent strategy to take and that all available channels should be used to their maximum effect in order to ensure a more balanced campaign.

Perhaps it is the case that the bigwigs behind the Pop Idol programme, and also the people that are now hoping to elevate the winner (as well as some of the other finalists) towards superstardom do not fully appreciate the importance of the Internet as a promotional vehicle. It was certainly disappointing to look at the content as well as the levels of interactivity from the official Pop Idol web site during the time the programme was on air, as compared, for example, with the great job that Channel 4 did with Big Brother.

Sadly, this trend appears to have continued with the official web site that has been put together to promote Will Young and his much awaited debut single. Over a week has gone by since the Pop Idol final took place, and there have been no further news updates during this time. Will Young, according to reports elsewhere, has been abroad recording a video, but there is no information regarding this or any other build up towards the release of the sin
gle on February 25th.

The 'Music & Videos' section does allow you to view the lyrics of the two songs that will appear on the single, namely 'Evergreen' and 'Anything Is Possible' as well as listening to Real Audio versions of the songs. However, this is hardly an exclusive as almost all major music sites had the same material just a day or so after Will had been voted as Pop Idol.

The site also has a brief 'About Me' section, giving some details about Will Young's life, although there is nothing really earth shattering to note from this either. The fact file and photo gallery are very run of the mill, and leave you thinking that there should have been more. There is also a 'Community' link, although there is nothing at all in this section yet.

The 'History' section has a brief background to the Pop Idol series, as well as about ten short and low quality video clips (although the minority of broadband users will probably get a slightly better look at this material via the separate links.)

The site is fully available at present for all to view, although shortly you will need to register in order to see all the available information. I suspect that although many fans will feel inclined to register, there may be many more potential fans who would not be impressed enough to bother.

William Young received over four and a half million votes to become 'Pop Idol' champion, but I suspect that the hits on his web site will be significantly smaller. I suggest that BMG entertainment re-think their Internet strategy and take a look around at some of the other official (and unofficial) web sites for other artists in the music industry. An important opportunity has most certainly been missed, and some remedial action is required in order to ensure that their latest star is not handicapped by this disappointing site that could have provided so much more.

It is sad to sa
y that there aren't really any other redeeming features to a site that could have offered so much more. I am sure that this web site will develop with time as more information and material becomes available, but so far the record company and management team have failed to make the most of what they have. If Will Young is to establish himself in the music business then this is going to be despite a his Internet presence, and not because of it.

{Another original Dooyoo opinion
© Blackjane 2002}

Summary: