The team at thesun.ie have worked hard this past year to put the reader experience at the centre of everything they do.

Through new technology, a constantly evolving approach to content and a clever desktop and responsive mobile design, they’ve created Ireland's freshest, fastest growing, most versatile news website, which loyally reflects the news values and sense of fun of The Irish Sun print edition.

The result is a platform which showcases The Irish Sun’s award-winning journalism and gives reporters a chance to tell stories in new, engaging and imaginative ways.

Throughout the awards entry period, thesun.ie excelled in its coverage of breaking stories, from Storm Brendan to Covid-19 to the loss of Irish icons, refined its engagement experience for readers, and published major exclusives in news, crime, showbiz and sport - bringing about further growth in both Irish and global users.

Thesun.ie team has continued to work hard to deliver engaging content that our readers respond to - which has resulted in further growth over the past 12 months.

Monthly Irish Users have increased from 2.7m in June 2019 to 3.4m in June 2020.

There has been a similar leap in audience globally, with monthly users rising from 4m in June 2019 to 6.4m in June 2020.

Over the same period, monthly Page Views have increased from 18m to 25.6m globally. Design, User Experience & Engagement

Thesun.ie has stepped away from conventional website design to knit elements and principles traditionally seen in print - and making them work in a digital environment on desktop and mobile.

Kickers/straps, cross heads and subdecks - all of which allow the team to add context to tell the story better without sacrificing SEO quality.

Photography - Thesun.ie’s homepage and article layout allows it to showcase the best photography on the planet or give prominence Homepage Hero to important features through the use of Homepage Hero picture ‘BRENDAN HOWLIN’’ - A ‘kicker’ on thesun.ie slots.

Homepage and article navigation rails - Promote reader engagement by serving up the most read or interesting content - easy to navigate and continuously updated.

Pushly alerts: thesun.ie delivers push notifications with highly targeted content to readers via their desktop browsers and mobile Homepage Navigation Rail devices.

Pushly alert Coverage of major events and use of live blogs

Thesun.ie team has taken pride in its coverage of major Irish news events this past year - particularly during the Covid-19 pandemic.

We developed a plan to cover February’s General Election in a way that would be engaging and relevant to our readers. A live blog capturing the count on February 9 ran until February 21 as talks continued - and was visited over 240,000 times.

And in March, a live blog following Prince William and Kate Middleton’s three-day royal visit to Ireland had similar success, gaining 200,000 page views.

As Covid-19 cases grew, we began live blog coverage of the coronavirus outbreak in Ireland - which has continued for several months. These live blogs have had over 2 million page views. Coronavirus in Ireland

As well as live blogging throughout Ireland’s fight against Covid-19, the team at thesun.ie has brought readers the most up-to-date details with breaking news and been first to report on important exclusives during the pandemic.

Exclusives have covered crime and health, as emergency garda powers came into effect nationwide. We broke details of the first arrests for breaking lockdown travel restrictions, and spoke to the parents of one of the country’s youngest patients to test positive for Covid-19 at the beginning of the pandemic.

As well as all of the latest statistics, with each step of lockdown and the phases of easing out of it, we’ve kept readers posted on the latest measures with informative explainers.

Banners on the site reminded readers of current recommendations in place to curb the spread of the virus.

March 2020 saw 4.5 million users in Ireland alone visit the site for the latest Covid-19 news.

Banner with Covid-19 public health recommendations Exclusives..

Throughout the year, thesun.ie broke important stories online.

We reported comprehensively on the Drogheda feud and the death of teen Keane Mulready Woods in January.

And we revealed how innocent Kinahan cartel victims’ families were furious as Daniel Kinahan was praised for his role in organising a potential fight between Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua. We reported on how the crime boss claimed he was under “concerted attack” from the Irish media and how he was forced back into the shadows after being dumped by Fury.

News that ’s widow Morah had found love again almost ten years after his death was first revealed on thesun.ie.

and Breaking News

Our online team is also geared towards bringing readers the most up-to-date details on developing stories.

The deaths of RTE icons and resonated with thesun.ie readers, as well as the loss of Keelin Shanley, Brendan Grace and .

Thesun.ie extensively covered the tragic disappearance of Nora Quoirin in Malaysia in August 2019, bringing readers the latest updates on the search.

Best for Showbiz

Dickie Rock told the Irish Sun how he’d give Johnny Logan ‘a f***ing box’ after the Eurovision winner claimed the showband star lived in a ‘fantasy world’. Our chat prompted Logan to issue an apology through RTE’s .

From celebrity babies to celebrity weddings, readers got it all first on thesun.ie.

From popular RTE star ’ nuptials to taking readers inside the homes of some of our best loved famous faces, we covered it all.

And when it comes to content around top TV shows from Cristiano’s domestic abuse hell on , Lottie Ryan taking the Glitterball on to Paul Mescal’s breakout role on Normal People and all the latest from the Operation Transformation team, we were streets ahead. https://www.thesun.ie/topic/dancing-with-the-stars/ https://www.thesun.ie/topic/operation-transformation/ https://www.thesun.ie/topic/normal-people/ https://www.thesun.ie/topic/fair-city/ No 1 for Sport, home and away

We reported exclusive details on Conor McGregor’s clash with a man in the Marble Arch boozer in , and our live blog of his much-anticipated UFC comeback in a bout against Donald Cerrone racked up over 100,000 page views.

The Irish Sun Sport’s online football coverage is as comprehensive as it gets, with the latest Premier League and Champions League action, live blogs, transfer news, world football and dedicated League of Ireland section, all in one place.

We followed every goal and point as Dublin charged to a famous five Sam Maguires in a row - while we also had extensive coverage as Liverpool FC ended their 30 year wait for an English Premier League title.

And on top of that, Shane Lowry’s incredible Open win at Royal Portrush gave sports fans some of the most memorable scenes we’ve witnessed in years.

https://www.thesun.ie/sport/football/

https://www.thesun.ie/sport/football/league-of-ireland/

https://www.thesun.ie/sport/gaa-football/ Good News Edition

The Irish Sun print edition created a Good News Edition on September 9, 2019.

Working with charities and shining a light on some feel-good tales from across the country, the initiative also carried across to the website, where we gave prominence to some brilliant stories, created across the news and digital desks for this special edition.

From miracle quadruplets, a little Dublin boy who received hundreds of birthday cards after an appeal on thesun.ie, RTE Late Late Show host Ryan ’s formula for happier times, a chemist who saved a customer’s life in a Dublin pharmacy, amazing community initiatives and Paschal Donohoe’s plans for a Budget spending spree, both the paper and website were jam-packed with great news.