User Adoption and Information Architecture Defined

The realm of Information Architecture is enormously complex mostly because it’s a mix of art and science and related systems that all must work and mix together with the ultimate goal to ensure a site's users and visitors can easily and intuitively use the site and find and access the information they are seeking efficiently, quickly and painlessly.

Every Consultant and Information Architect wants to hear the words “Now that was a really easy application to use", "what a great website”, "it was so easy to...", “What a treat to be able to find what I was looking for” sadly these are not the words spoken about most websites or applications.

So what then are the attributes of good information architecture leading to fast user adoption?

• Combinations of search, indexing, categorization and navigation
  
• Research based in science: search logs, web analytics, entry path analysis, key search terms, top downloads, top visits, top uses, user surveys
• Qualitative research: focus groups and interviews to determine user needs, preferences and dislikes; usability studies to watch how users interact with the tool and see where users stumble
  
• Reviews of best practice sites – there are good examples out there that have been well-researched and well-funded and the results are evident in the intuitive, easy access to information and knowledge
• Well optimized content, metadata and taxonomy strategies – optimized for users and optimized to return top results on search engines
• Content well designed with visual aids and using inverted pyramid style of writing – most important information up top – with highlights, links and paragraph headings and subheadings
• Other credible sites linking to yours which boost your search results
  
• Fluid integration and optimization of your site's supporting technologies: search, indexing, WCMS, RSS, web communications, databases, business systems and enterprise architecture
• Think like a user
  

Mix all these together and like a great recipe the results are something to savour: “What a treat,” “What a positively delicious experience to be able to do what I can here to do and find what I was looking for and so easily,” "Chef I must have your recipe,"“I’ll take two to go please...”

Blogging, collaboration, social networking and connectivity

Eight years ago I was VP of Marketing at a high tech company developing web collaboration applications. At the time it was a tough sell trying to promote and communicate project web sites, team sites and collaboration sites before there was much of a market let alone understanding that users could come together in a dedicated website or space on the web and trade, expand, create, store and retrieve new ideas, documents and strategies.

Fast forward 8 years and we have a whole generation collaborating, gaming, connecting among groups of people and all over the world. Kids when they move these days bring their entire student networks with them. Connectivity is so ubiquitous with this generation that they expect employers to also be offering the same kinds of connectivity, performance, productivity and ease to support their business relationships as they now have with their personal relationships and productivity.

A great example of business catching up with connectivity...I attended a recent IT event - Summit 2008, a session on Web 2.0 and social networking. The room was packed, about 300 people at the session, many grey heads, evidently a mix of managers, business, and senior IT people. The speaker talked about blogs and asked for a show of hands of who was blogging. I was the only one in the room who put up my hand. This surprised me. Not because I was the only one blogging but considering the interest and participation - other sessions were not standing room only - I would have figured that others would be trying out blogs and the new connectivity applications. Not so. Not the generation who are managing the IT budgets and making the business decisions.

For a quick overview of the fast approaching future, just look to your sons and daughters, nieces, nephews, or grandchildren. They're not likely to let you on their Facebooks but sneak a peak anyway because its all about connectivity and relationships. The future is fast on our heels.

IDC and Nortel released a great study today on the world-wide connectivity habits of employed workers (n 2400 globally) - it's worth the price of signup/contact info to download a copy to learn about the 16% hyperconnectivity segment (people using >7 devices and >9 applications); 36% increasingly connected (using between 4-7 devices, 6-9 web apps). And the 36% are moving fast into hyperconnectivity; so soon more than half of all workers will expect their employers to be offering them connectivity. Better to get thinking about this now. Download a copy at: http://www.nortel.com/promotions/idc_paper/index.html

Setting objectives for your web channel strategy

Your website objectives should be based on your business or organizational needs because identifying these needs will help determine content priorities, user tasks, even your information architecture/navigation.

Review the following list of objectives and check off those that apply or that will help your business or organization:

• provide general information?
• educate your clients?
• provide reference information and documents?
• support decision makers?
• handle transactions?
• interact with the broader community?
• have information that only specific audiences should be able to access?
• comply with disclosure and legal requirements?
• gain a competitive advantage?
• develop or improve consultation?
• provide a private work area or space for groups of employees?
• provide a private work space for internal project teams?
• provide a secure work space for external client or partner teams?
• manage information?
• provide institutional information?
• publish institutional information?
• promote the institution's image?
• integrate the wide range of information available across the institution?