How has social media changed the nature and design of websites over the last decade? — James

I would say yes to this question, social media has definitely made an impact on the designs and layout of websites. On most websites now the first thing you will be hit with are the companies social media account links. They will always be towards the top of the page or be shown as a pop up box. This will be because the top part is where the user will first look. If they are put too far down a page the user will not see this as once it gets so far down a page most people will become bored and navigate away from the page. Putting first will mean that they will read the title and then the social accounts. As they are main points of the page they be easier to remember. Gaining a following on social media is a big deal for a company as this will draw a lot more attention towards them. The biggest thing social media has done for websites is risen the amount of traffic that a site receives. Most visits thats sites receive now will be through this way and has risen plenty as social media has become more popular. For example, I personally will never really visit the Buzz Feed site but I do however follow them on Twitter. Whenever I see them tweeting a link to a story or video on their site, most of the time I will visit it. I think this is what most people on social media do now and as it becomes more and more popular so will this method.