The way you organize your web content changes the way users can find it, understand it, and act on it. Your content may already be organized logically (well done, you!), but what if it could do more? What if the structure itself could make your content more meaningful, more sustainable, and more powerful in helping users reach their goals?
This talk discusses how making small (but strategic) changes to the way you organize your content can empower your users. We’ll look at real-world examples of how categories, hierarchies, and labels impact information literacy, and you’ll walk away knowing:
-Key principles for organizing information
-Methods for applying those principles to the web
-Techniques for imposing order on chaos (aka how to build a better sitemap)
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We believe that a small, diverse group
of talented students—a Posse—carefully
selected and trained, can serve as a
catalyst for individual and community
development.
“
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Future state
• What are your content goals?
• What does your strategy say?
• What resources will you have to support
content creation and maintenance?
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Site structure
• Does your navigation reflect your strategy?
• Are your categories inclusive?
• Can users tell what content is available?
• Can they tell where they are in the system?
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Page structure
• Does the visual hierarchy match the information
hierarchy?
• Do users know how they got here?
• Are there clear connections between content?
• Are there clear calls to action?
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Text structure
• Are there hierarchical headings (with tags)?
• Is the content accessible?
• Does the text use plain, appropriate language?
• Is the content chunked, with breaks and white
space?
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Don’t get distracted by
deadlines and feature requests.
Think about the consequences
of what you’re building.
Caleb Thompson
•“
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Credits
• Cover photo by Anders Jilden on unsplash.com
• Walter Plecker on Encyclopedia Virginia
https://www.encyclopediavirginia.org/Plecker_Walter_Ashby_1861-1947
• Boardthing.com
• “Don’t Get Distracted” by Caleb Thompson
https://www.calebthompson.io/talks/dont-get-distracted/
• Thank you to Happy Cog, the Posse Foundation, and Gettysburg College