This document discusses information architecture (IA) and its importance for websites. It defines IA as how content on a website is organized. Good IA leads to increased usage, findability, and conversion rates through improved search engine optimization, navigation, and user experience. The document outlines the benefits of IA and provides a case study of redesigning the IA of the website si.lds.org. It concludes with recommendations for implementing IA, such as using usability testing and card sorting to inform decisions and future-proofing the IA.

2. What is Information Architecture and How Can It Help My Website? SORT 2011 Jimmy Smith PM for Seminary and Institute Websites

3. Good Information ArchitectureLeads to… Increased usage of site Greater findability From external search engines And internal search and navigation Improved conversation rates Better overall site performance Microsoft clipart

4. Agenda What is Information Architecture (IA)? Why is IA Important? IA’s impact on Findability and SEO Case Study: The Educator (si.lds.org) Recommendations for the Road Microsoft Clipart What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

5. Information Architecture Defined Information architecture (IA), as it applies to the Internet, is the way in which content on a website is organized. The term “information architecture” is attributed to Richard Saul Wurman who called it “the creating of systemic, structural, and orderly principles to make something work–the thoughtful making of either artifact, or idea, or policy that informs because it is clear.” What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

6. Information Architecture Illustrated What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

7. Think of Information Architecture as the Blueprint for your Website Photo by Will Scullin What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

8. IA = Blueprint:Everything (now/future) has a place Kitchen Stove Refrigerator Sink Bedroom Bed Dresser Living Room Couch TV Bathroom Shower Sink Toilet Microsoft clipart What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

9. You Wouldn’t Start ConstructionWithout a Blueprint “One of the biggest and most common mistakes made when building websites is when graphic designers go straight to [a] graphics program and start designing. This is like a construction company starting to construct a building without a blueprint…Bad information architecture will cripple your [website].” When Search Meets Web Usability, by Shari Thurow and Nick Musica, p. 137 What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

10. Job of the Information Architect To get users to the information, tool, or feature Usually in the most direct and simple way IA helps users find information through… Site navigation/menus Information display (headlines, links, buttons, etc.) Knowing where they are on a site Knowing options of where they can go In absence of true Info Architect, who does it? Product manager or others can take on IA role Microsoft clipart What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

11. Agenda What is Information Architecture (IA)? Why is IA Important? IA’s impact on Findability and SEO Case Study: The Educator (si.lds.org) Recommendations Microsoft Clipart What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

12. IA Is Vital to Usability, Findability Prerequisite to website success = audience finding content, features, and other info. IA contributes to usability through: Findability Organizing content so users can easily find it Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Site navigation/menus We’ll discuss in the case study Microsoft clipart What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

13. Other Benefits of IA:Clarity, Order, Accountability Enables clear communications Helps get your house/website in order “Behold, mine house is a house of order, saith the Lord God, and not a house of confusion.” Doctrine and Covenants 132:8 Provides sound footing for performance accountability What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

14. Order and Accountability:Seminary Site Example A colleague once mentioned that the Seminary site only has about a dozen pages Google thinks the Seminary site has 2,620 pages Need to work out this discrepancy for clear communication and accountability What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

15. Consequences of Poor IA Makes information hard to understand Slows down users Prevents users from achieving objectives Reduces search engine visibility Increases site abandonment Reduces access to information “do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel” (Matt 5: 15) Microsoft clipart What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

16. IA Problems Documented to Cause Half of All Usability Issues “Bad IA is now the greatest cause of task failures because it’s the stumbling block for getting anywhere on a site. Users try to find their way around a site, and if they’re particularly motivated, they might even try again if they fail. But if users are repeatedly led in circles or dumped into no-man’s land by weak search, they give up and leave for another site. That’s why deficiencies in your IA are costing you a lot.” see Jakob Nielsen, IA Task Failures Remain Costly: http://www.useit.com/alertbox/ia-failures.html Microsoft clipart What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

17. Agenda What is Information Architecture (IA)? Why is IA Important? IA’s impact on Findability and SEO Case Study: The Educator (si.lds.org) Recommendations Microsoft Clipart What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

18. Findability: Information Foraging Theory and Information Scent Photo by Brenda Anderson What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

19. Information Scent Analogy is a reference to animals seeking food Comparison to how humans seek information online Refers to the extent to which users can predict what’s ahead (in a link or in an article) In titles and links helps visitors find what they are looking for Users will feel duped if they don’t get sufficient payoff from going down a path Read more on Information Scent http://nowmediamarketing.com/usability/information-scent/ What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

20. Information Scent Says:You’re Getting Closer Helps visitors know that your site is fertile hunting grounds for the things they are looking for. Closer they get, stronger the information scent Deception, intentional or not, leads to abandonment What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

21. IA Impacts Search Engines’View of Your Site Search engines index (scan) your site hierarchically Pages higher in the hierarchy are given more weight SEs also make note of silos of info and relationships Well architected site makes information more findable Most Weight Least Weight What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

22. IA Impacts Search Engines: e.g. Ranking ‘Mormon’ and Derivatives Good IA will help you rank for… Head (frequent, short, generic) keywords Tail (long, specific) keyword phrases ~95% of search keywords The head and the tail compliment each other Head Keywords Tail Keywords What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

23. Sitemaps: Communicate Hierarchy, Weight, and What’s Available XML Submit to search engines Vital for search engines to understand your site HTML For real users (SEs crawls them too) Vital for you and users to understand your site What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

24. Site Navand Menus that Reflect IA Lead to Greater Findability Helps visitors know what’s available and find what they are looking for. Tells visitors where they are within the site Tells visitors how to use the siteby quickly communicating features Gives visitors a reference point Orientation and way to others areas of site Site nav and menus communicate IA to SEs Microsoft Clipart What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

25. Agenda What is Information Architecture (IA)? Why is IA Important? IA’s impact on Findability and SEO Case Study: The Educator (si.lds.org) Recommendations Microsoft Clipart What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

26. Original Information Architecture What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

27. Original IA/Menus in The Educator What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

28. Decided to Conduct Usability Tests Concerns with old IA, but needed data “Testing reminds you that not everyone thinks the way you do, knows what you know, uses the Web the way you do.” (Krug p. 134) Usability tests not as hard as you might think Discount Usability Tests http://nowmediamarketing.com/usability/discount-usability-tests/ What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

29. Usability Test Findings:Pattern of Poor IA/Poor Info Scent Check all main menu items. Click item that seems closest fit. Dead end. Use site search. Search unproductive. Rinse. Repeat. What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

30. Positive Findings from Educator Usability Tests Good info scent, and good findability for… “Prepare a Lesson” “Talks for Teachers” Found “Charted Course” talk quickly and easily “Potential Student Tracking” “Attendance Report for Units” “Newsroom” In menu and on home page What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

31. Creating a New IA Usability tests were compelling Started with a card sort We started with good old fashioned Post-it notes Could use card sorting software Card sort inputs: Major tasks gleaned from Keyword research Popular pages (from web analytics reports) Business priority features Microsoft Clipart

32. Photo by Jimmy Smith What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

33. Photo by Jimmy Smith What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

34. Card Sort Implications onTop Level Site Navigation Tried to limit lists to 5 – 7 “Seven, Plus or Minus Two” rule of thumb cognitive psychologist George A. Miller Labels for the categories were key Short (one or two words) Enough, and accurate, information scent What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

35. Next Step: Survey Real UsersQualtrics (lds.qualtrics.com) What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

36. Survey results confirmed some decisions, caused us to rethink others What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

37. New and Improved IA What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

38. What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

39. What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

40. What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

41. What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

42. What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

43. Results of New IA on Educator More user friendly navigation/menus Increased findability Get what you need quickly and easily Improved home page A place for featured content Not a replica of the menu with long lists Improved site performance Not perfect. Still testing, measuring, improving. Microsoft Clipart What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

44. User Comments onNew IA for The Educator “Everything is so accessible, no layers to find what you're looking for... It is quick and easy to use and I love it!” “Outstanding... easy to find the material.” “This is really a wonderful new format and makes one alert and attentive to all that is offered by CES.” “The newest S&I Website is so user friendly--everything important is easily accessed…I am so happy with it!” Microsoft Clipart What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

45. User Comments onNew IA for The Educator “Great site! I find it easy to use and a helpful resource.” “This new site is amazing. It takes all the different places I use to have to go to and puts them all in one place. I now have it as my home page.” “I love how everything is under this site... I don't have to have a tab for CSTAR, a tab for paymentnet, a tab for PST, etc... It's all there... Thank you.” “The changes to the SI site make things much easier to find. Thanks.” Microsoft Clipart What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

46. Agenda What is Information Architecture (IA)? Why is IA Important? IA’s impact on Findability and SEO Case Study: The Educator (si.lds.org) Recommendations Microsoft Clipart What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

47. 1. Every Website Should Architect Their Information Studies show only 25% of websites employ a information architect So what do the other 75% of us do? At the Church, I recommend that the website product manager take on the role of IA with input from the business, IxD, Web analytics, SEO team, and other usability specialists Given a little training in IA principles, teams can learn the basics and achieve great results What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

48. 2. Base IA Decisions in Data Avoid Arbitrary IA decisions Use data from Research and Revelation Web analytics SEO Usability Guesses, even educated guesses, have proven to be a 50/50 shot at best. A little data goes a long way Microsoft Clipart What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

49. 3. Use Free Tools Qualtrics Web Surveys Church has unlimited account (lds.qualtrics.com) Post-it Notes Not exactly free, but pretty close OptimalSort (card sort software) Church has account Omniture Test and Target A/B and multivariate testing Usability test early and often Silverback is good and cheap Microsoft Clipart What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

50. 4. Future Proof Your IA Try to envision future site changes and make the IA resilient Will help site remain stable despite new content, new features, new strategic direction, or simply growth over time House blueprint analogy: anything you may get in the future will need a home. Studies show task-based IA works best for long-term longevity See Intranet Information Architecture by NN/g, http://www.nngroup.com/reports/intranet/ia Microsoft Clipart What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

51. 5. Use Words Rich in Information Scent Headlines, hyperlinks, nav/menus… Keep it short Avoid buzz words and made up words Understandable out of context Predictable So users know what’s on the other side Front load keywords “videos for classrooms” not “classroom videos” “reimbursement policy” not "understanding the reimbursement policy" What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

52. 6. IA “Before the DesignerTouches the Canvas” “Information architecture requires a significant amount of hours of research and discovery long before the designer touches the canvas with their interactive tools. Eliminating this step will create a website that is not targeted to any research or your audience, a site that’s not user-friendly and lacks strategy.” See Jeff Roberts from Moiré Marketing Blog, Information Architecture: The most important part of a website: http://www.moiremarketing.com/blog/information-architecture-most-important-part-website Microsoft clipart What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

53. 7. IA should be reflected in navigation and URL structure Navigation reflects IA Doesn’t necessarily have to perfectly align, but get as close as possible URL structure reflects IA Mysite.com = highest level IA Mysite.com/level1 = main menu level of IA Mysite.com/level1/level2 = second level of IA Sometimes an item is so popular, even though it is a level or two down in the IA, you may want to put it as a top level nav choice. What is IA? | Why IA is Important | Impact on SEO | Educator Case Study | Recommendations

54. The End Questions? Contact me, Jimmy Smith smithjr@ldschurch.org 801-240-4264 I’ll post these slides on my website www.NowMediaMarketing.com