Minutia Can Be a Big Problem
In one time or another in my life, I have made a big deal out of something fairly insignificant. I’ve made bad decisions based on this error in judgement. I’ve even delayed the bigger picture based on this error. I am here to tell you that I am stopping this behavior.
I know that I’m not alone in this. I’ve helped many colleges and universities develop the structure of their site. I’ve sat through meetings to discuss what users want out of a Web site. At some point in a lot of these meetings, we run a list of every activity and piece of information audiences are expecting when they come to the site.
The reason we go through these steps is to get in the mind of our visitors. Why do people come to the Web site? The problem is that all tasks, when listed out, are all equal. Applying is just as important as getting a parking pass. Some tasks are significant, some are minute. Why do we choose to treat them as equals.
What happens from there is an architectural nightmare. Avoid this with these steps:
- After you outline tasks, prioritize them. This will determine which are the key actions and which may be 4 or 5 or 6 clicks in. I don’t need to get a parking pass unless I am visiting campus. Put that task only on the “Visiting Campus” page.
- Understand the difference between tasks and information. Apply is an action. The biology department is information. Group these appropriately in your navigation sets to avoid long lists. Again, see Evergreen State’s admission page.
- Watch people using your site. A usability test is not as complex as you think. A Web cam, tracking software, and 10 visitors will give you an afternoon worth of invaluable site structure recommendations. Easily more than your committee sitting in a room for a couple hours staring at the long list of information and tasks. Ask site visitors what information they look for, then have them show you. You now know what is important to an audience member and how they complete the task. AMAZING.
- Always keep the visitor in mind. When the Director of Facilities says that his page needs to be a link from the home page, ask him who benefits. When the Director of Admission says that her page needs to be a link from the home page, ask her who benefits. Every link should be driving visitors to information or a task. If your link doesn’t move the ball forward, make room for those links that do.
I have to say it one more time…test your site structure with actual visitors. Get feedback. Don’t build your site in a vacuum. Nobody can identify minutia better than your visitors. Bubble the important stuff to the surface and don’t fight over the less significant.
