Web site classification on information and entertainment profiles

Purpose - Web sites are the first point of interaction in the virtual environment and information and entertainment aspects are the most important tenets of web sites. Thus, it becomes important to know how much information and entertainment is required, is adequate and appropriate for a web site. The purpose of this paper is to classify 43 web sites into information and entertainment profiles. Design/methodology/approach - The sites were selected from two Indian rating web sites and engineering students. From the pool of the selected web sites, the present study classified 43 web sites on information and entertainment profiles. The web site profile comprised informativeness, organisation of information elements, entertainment properties and organisation of entertainment elements. The classification was done by three independent judges. Findings - The results revealed that out of 43 web sites, eight were high on both information and entertainment profiles, 15 were high on information and low on entertainment profiles, six were low on information and high on entertainment profiles and 14 were low on both information and entertainment profiles. Practical implications - Marketers may take cues from the classified web sites and design their web sites to ensure that the web site content meets their goals and satisfies the users while filtering out the content which is irrelevant to their business and incorporate what is essential. Originality/value - This study provides guidelines regarding the information and/or entertainment aspects which should be stronger in information and/or entertainment‐oriented web sites to attract users. The present study targets the marketers who should prioritise web site features depending upon the needs of their target group.