introduction to information architecture & design - 6/20/15

Introduction to Information Architecture & DesignSchool of Visual Arts | June 20, 2015 Robert Stribley

Today’s presentation will be available on SlideShare following the workshop:

www.slideshare.net/stribs

http://www.slideshare.net/stribs

Butterfly on the New York City Highline

Pattern Recognition:

In cognitive psychology, the ability to identify familiar forms within a complex arrangement of sensory stimuli

Butterflies Labeled by Species

Intro

Robert Stribley@stribs

• I’m an Associate Experience Director at Razorfish

• I like literature, cinema, music, photography, cycling

• I drink coffee

Introduction

My clients have included:

• Bank of America, PNC, Wachovia• JPMorgan, Morgan Stanley,

Oppenheimer Funds, PNC, Prudential, Smith Barney, T. Rowe Price

• Boston Scientific, Nasonex• Choice Hotels, RCI,

Reaology/Sotheby’s International• Computer Associates, EMC• Ford, Lincoln• FreshDirect• AT&T, Nextel• Day One, Red Cross• Pearson, Travel Channel, Women’s

Wear Daily

Intro

About You

•What’s your name?•What do you do for work?•What do you do for fun?•Coffee, tea or bottled water?

Introduction

Intro

Goals of this workshop

•Understand the basic concepts of information architecture

•Experience the general process and techniques used on a design project

•Review the basic deliverables an information architect develops within a project

Introduction

Agenda

Agenda

Morning• Background• Design Process• Our Project• User Research• Competitive Review• Personas

• Lunch

Agenda

Agenda

Afternoon• Card Sorting• Site Maps• Page Types• Navigation• Sketching• Wireframes• Q&A

Agenda

Background

Background: History

A Brief History of IA

1975 • Richard Saul Wurman coined the term “information

architecture” to describe the field now more often described as “information design”

1994• Argus Associates founded in Ann Arbor, MI, the

first firm devoted to IA

1998• First edition of Peter Morville and Lou Rosenfeld’s

Information Architecture for the World Wide Web, affectionately known as “The Polar Bear” book

2000• First IA Summit, Boston, MA – Defining

Information Architecture

Partially adapted from: “A brief history of information architecture” by Peter Morville and Information Architecture: Designing information environments for purpose, edited by Alan Gilchrist and Barry Mahon

A Brief History of IA

2002• Boxes & Arrows, online journal for information

architects goes live• 3 new books on IA published, including Jesse James

Garrett’s The Elements of User Experience

2014• Capital One purchases Garrett’s UX-consulting firm

Adaptive Path

2015• 15th Annual IA Summit held in Minneapolis, MN, April

22-26

Background: History

Background

in•for•ma•tion ar•chi•tec•ture n.

Background: Defining IA

• The combination of organization, labeling, and navigation schemes within an information system.

• The structural design of an information space to facilitate task completion and intuitive access to content.

• The art and science of structuring and classifying web sites and intranets to help people find and manage information.

• An emerging discipline and community of practice focused on bringing principles of design and architecture to the digital landscape.

Information Architecture for the World Wide Web (1st Edition), p. 4, Rosenfeld and Morville

Navigation

Interaction

Art/Science

Discipline/ Community

Background

“It's hard to say who really is an information architect. In some sense, we all are.”

— Alex Wright, Glut


userscontent

context

IA


Interface(skin)

information architecture(skeleton)


Design Process

metaphor: architectural plans

Flickr.com: Cornell University Library

Flickr.com: Cornell University Library


UXinformation architecture

Background: User Experience

interaction design

content strategy

usability testing

user research

user experience

Design Process

Project phases by Harold Kerzner

Design Process

Discovery Definition Design Development

Design Process

Design Process


• Stakeholder Interviews• Business Requirements• Competitive/Comparative Audit• User Research• Site Inventory• Site Map

Design Process

Design Process


•Personas•Content Audit•Card Sorts•Use Cases•Sketching•Site Map•User Journeys•Conceptual Wires/Design•Creative Brief•UX Brief

Design Process

Design Process


• Site Map• Content Matrix• Task Flows• Sketching• Wireframes• Stakeholder Reviews• Visual Design• Prototype• Usability Testing• Functional Specifications

Design Process

Design Process


• Site Development• User Acceptance

Testing (UAT)• Quality Assurance (QA)• Usability Testing

Design Process

Background

IA Deliverables

site map

features/functionality inventory

comparative/competitive review

requirements document

personas

sketches

use cases

user flows

prototype

wireframes

discover design

experience brief

Deliverables

user journeys

Our Project

Our Project

Events.com wants to revamp its website to become the go-to online resource for people wanting to attend or promote events across the United States.

Our Project

Discovery

User Research

User Research in Copenhagen’s Elderly Homes

User Research

“Through research, we aim to learn enough about the business goals, the users, and the information ecology to develop a solid strategy.”

– Louis Rosenfeld & Peter Morville

Discovery: User Research

User Research

Goals• Identify patterns and trends in user behavior,

tasks, preferences, obstacles.

Methodology• Focus Groups• Surveys• Interviews


User Research

Class Exercise: Survey Questions• How do you learn about events in NYC? • What type of events are you interested in?• What’s more important to you:

– Price – Type of Event– Location– Date

• Do you ever need to promote an event?• Do you ever invite people to an event?


Competitive Review

image by brandon schauer

Discovery: Competitive Audit

“This type of assessment helps set an industry ‘marker’ by looking at what the competition is up to, what features and functionalities are standard, and how others have solved the same problems you might be tasked with.”– Dorelle Rabinowitz

Discovery: Competitive Review

Competitive Review

Heuristic Evaluation

… involves evaluators examining the interface and judging its compliance with recognized usability principles (the ‘heuristics’)

- Wikipedia


Self StudyFor a more detailed explanation of heuristic evaluation, see Jakob Nielsen’s Ten Usability Heuristics.

http://www.useit.com/papers/heuristic/heuristic_list.html

Competitive Review

Sample Usability Criteria

These examples aren’t comprehensive. Appropriate criteria will depend on the project to be completed.

Home Page• Elements are appropriately weighted and distributed• Information is clustered in meaningful ways

Navigation• Navigation structure is concise and consistent• Paths to important information are intuitive and unobstructed

Content• Content is content chunked appropriately• Headings and titles are scannable• Content is current. There are visible indications of content freshness.• Content is properly adapted for the Web. Tone of voice is consistent throughout.

Design• Colors are appropriate for the Web. White space is used appropriately. Text is readable.

Search• Search results are relevant and cleanly presented

Functionality• Functionality and forms are efficiently designed

Messaging• Errors messages are presented in clear language. Help readily available contextually to users• Appropriate channels are provided for user feedback


Competitive Review

Methodology

•Review and analyze competitor sites according to particular criteria

•Draw key findings, which can influence and guide IA through the design phase

•Include a scorecard for high-level comparison of points across all sites

Also: Comparative Reviews


Competitive Review

Competitors


Competitive Review

Key Findings

• Search is fairly prominent on each site

• Filtering on events is valuable, but not always easily available

• Calendars are helpful, but not always prominent

• Profiles and social features common, but handled with varying degrees of detail

• Free events are often highlighted

• Event detail pages may have maps, RSVP, sharing, rating, commenting functionality

• Displaying other venues and restaurants adds utility

• Option to add or promote an event isn’t always prominent


Competitive Review

What else have we learned?

• Who are the audiences of these sites?• What are the strengths of these sites?• What are their weaknesses?• How might another event site differentiate

itself from these sites?


Definition

Personas

Created at personas.media.mit.edu

Personas is a component of the Metropath(ologies) exhibit, recently on display at the MIT Museum by the Sociable Media Group from the MIT Media Lab. It uses sophisticated natural language processing and the Internet to create a data portrait of one's aggregated online identity. In short, Personas shows you how the Internet sees you.

Personas

“Personas summarize user research findings and bring that research to life in such a way that everyone can make decisions based on these personas, not based on themselves.” – Steve Mulder, The User Is Always Right

Definition: PersonasDefinition: Personas

Personas

Methodology• Cluster Analysis

Goals• Create a narrative

based on real data to illustrate user behavior, motivations, goals


Small Budget

Big Budget

PlannerPromoter

Personas

Characteristics of Effective Personas

• Varied and distinct• Detailed• Not weighed down with minutiae• Tied into business-specific goals• Backed by data



SabrinaJenny DonnyJerry

Sabrina, 27The party plannerLocation: Gramercy ParkAttitude: Organized, outgoingFinancial Perspective: Generous, bit of spendthriftOnline Habits: Avid user of social networking sites,

Twitter, Facebook, etcEvents: Wine tastings, gallery openingsQuote: “I love getting bunches of friends together

to attend all these NYC events. There’s so much great stuff to do in this city!”

Small Budget

Big Budget

PlannerPromoter

PersonasDefinition: PersonasDefinition: Personas

Jerry, 44The out-of-townerLocation:Cincinnati, OHAttitude: Casual, yet adventurousFinancial Perspective: Moderate spenderOnline Habits: Utilitarian use of the Web to research

trips, read about the arts and pay bills

Events: Museums, visiting landmarks, toursQuote: “I’m visiting the Big Apple with my wife

and we want to check out some art-related events.”

Small Budget

Big Budget

PlannerPromoter


Personas

Donny, 38The local comedianLocation: East VillageAttitude: Laidback, loosely organizedFinancial Perspective: Frugal, paycheck to paycheckOnline Habits: Spends time networking, promoting his act

online, haunts comedy sitesEvents: Comedy slams, variety showsQuote: “I land a few comedy gigs around the city

and I want to promote them better.”

Small Budget

Big Budget

PlannedPromoter


Jenny, 33The professional promoterLocation: WilliamsburgAttitude: Busy, disciplined, professionalFinancial Perspective: Healthy budget for promotions andadvertisingOnline Habits: Heavy use of social networking sites both

professionally and personally, shops online

Events: Small gigs, big concerts, DJ setsQuote:“I manage a few bands and DJs and I have

to ensure they’re listed in the right, targeted places.”

Personas

Small Budget

Big Budget

PlannedPromoter


Class Exercise: Personas


• What tasks might each persona attempt to complete on Events.com?

• What features can you imagine each persona might like on such a site?

• What obstacles or pain points might they encounter?

SabrinaJenny DonnyJerry

Self Study”Personas and the Role of Design Documentation" by Andrew Hinton, Boxes and Arrows, 2008/02/27

Lunch Break

Agenda

Afternoon

• Card Sorting• Site Maps• Page Types• Navigation• Sketching• Wireframes• Q&A

AgendaAgenda

Card Sorting

Card Sorting

“There are often better ways to organize data than the traditional ones that first occur to us. Each organization of the same set of data expresses different attributes and messages. It is also important to experiment, reflect, and choose which organization best communicates our messages.” – Nathan Shedroff, Experience Strategist

Definition: Card SortingDefinition: Card Sorting

Methodology• Grouping and labeling with index cards, post it notes• Two types:

Open – Participants sort cards with no pre-established categories. Useful for new architecturesClosed – Participants sort cards into predetermined, provided groups. Useful for fitting content into existing architectures

• Online card sorts–WebSort, OptimalSort, Socratic

Goals• Organize content more efficiently• Find names for categories based on users’ perspectives


Self Study"Card sorting: a definitive guide" by Donna Spencer and Todd Warfel, Boxes and Arrows, 2004/04/07

http://www.boxesandarrows.com/view/card_sorting_a_definitive_guide

Case Studies:

• Wachovia Wealth Management Group• American Red Cross• Mercedes Benz


Class Exercise:

As individuals:

• Take 5 minutes to think of all the events a person could attend

• Write each event you come up with on a Post-It note


Class Exercise:

Now, as a group:

• Take a few minutes to organize your events into categories (group & label them)

• Then we’ll share some categories


Characteristics & Findings:

• Looking for redundancies • Lumping and splitting• Outliers and miscellaneous items• Placing items in multiple categories• Categories versus filters

–E.g. Free, Family, Outdoors

• Unique but intuitive labels–E.g. Geeks


Next Steps:

With the results of a card sort we then can:

• Build consensus• Refine terminology• Create a site map• Help define navigation


Post-It Plus

This new app from 3M allows you to scan your Post-It Notes, organize and share them.

InfoDefinition: Card Sort ToolsDefinition: Card Sort Tools

Design

Site Maps

Conceptual DesignDesign: Site MapsDesign: Site Maps

“A site map is a high level diagram showing the hierarchy of a system. Site maps reflect the information structure, but are not necessarily indicative of the navigation structure.”

- Step Two Designs


Site Map Tools:

• Omnigraffle (Mac)

• Microsoft Visio

• InDesign

Page Types & Templates

The Mercator Atlas of EuropeFrom The British Library

http://www.bl.uk/onlinegallery/ttp/mercator/accessible/pages1and2.html

Conceptual Design

Home Page Category Page Details Page

Design: Page Types & Templates Design: Page Types & Templates

Examples:

Navigation

Navigation Bridge, USS Enterprise by Serendigity, Flickr

http://www.flickr.com/photos/maleny_steve/

Grids

Types of Navigation

• Site Structure – major nav

• Hierarchical – product families

• Function – sitemap privacy

• Direct – banner ad/shortcut

• Reference – related links

• Dynamic – search results

• Breadcrumb – location

• Step Navigation – sequence through forms/results

• Faceted Navigation – filters results

Design: NavigationDesign: Navigation

Self Study

Adapted from Atsushi Hasegagwa’s The 7 Navigation Types of Web Sites

http://www.slideshare.net/atsushi/the-7-navigation-types-of-web-site



GridsDesign: NavigationDesign: Navigation

Areas of Navigation

• Global – universal header/footer

• Local – left nav/right nav

• Local content – text links, buttons

Styles of Navigation

• Rollover

• Dropdown

• Flyout

• Tabs

• Accordion

Self Study

Adapted from Atsushi Hasegagwa’s The 7 Navigation Types of Web Sites




Grids

Mega Dropdowns


Grids

Power Footers


Sketching

Aerial Screw by Leonardo da Vinci, 1485-1487

Sketching

Can you guess what this is a sketch of?

Design: SketchingDesign: Sketching

“twttr sketch” Twitter.com

Sketching

Twitter[This sketch] has very special significance – it's hanging in the office somewhere with one other page.

Whenever I'm thinking about something, I really like to take out the yellow notepad and get it down. – Jack Dorsey, Twitter


Sketching

“There are techniques and processes whereby we can put experience front and center in design. My belief is that the basis for doing so lies in extending the traditional practice of sketching. ”

- Bill Buxton


Bill BuxtonSketching User Experiences

Bill BuxtonSketching User Experiences

Sketching

Attributes of a Sketch

•Quick

•Timely

• Inexpensive

•Disposable

•Plentiful

•Clear vocabulary

•Distinct gesture

•Minimal detail

•Appropriate degree of refinement

•Suggest & explore rather than confirm

•Ambiguity


Sketching

Goals• To communicate your ideas effectively by

visualizing them• To benefit from the participation of your

colleagues• To quickly generate ideas and refine through

iterations


Sketching

Process

1. Discuss

2. Sketch

3. Share

4. Iterate


• Discuss the purpose of the experience you’re sketching

• What’s its purpose?• What features are necessary?• How would you prioritize them?• Who’s the audience?

• You’re not discussing layout or design• Just the problem you’re trying to solve• You’re not sketching yet


Discuss

Sketch

• Sketch silently• Limit your time – 5,10 minutes• Sketch as much as possible, as many different

ideas as possible• Don’t worry about mistakes or style• Emphasis is on the quantity of ideas, not the

quality of the sketches


SketchingDesign: SketchingDesign: Sketching

Share

• Review your work with your team• Keep it short – 60 seconds each • You offer your feedback to others

• What you like • Questions about what didn’t work for you• You’re not grilling your colleagues and this

isn’t a competition


Iterate

• Now sketch again if you need to • Or collaborate on a high-level wireframe (e.g.

via whiteboard)• Then begin your wireframe with a more

informed view, with more and better ideas• Iterate on your design


Design: Sketching

Class Exercise: Collaborative Sketching

In teams, sketch your ideas.

Event Detail Page1. Take 15 minutes first to discuss what features

belong here


Design: Sketching




belong here

2. Time for silent sketching


Design: Sketching




belong here

2. Time for silent sketching

3. Time for sharing your sketches


Sketching Tools:

The following apps are all for the iPad:

• Adobe Ideas (Free)

• Bamboo Paper (Free)

• Muji Notebook ($3.99)

• Penultimate (Free)

• SketchBook (Free)

• Paper (Free)

• Adonit Forge (Free)

InfoDesign: Sketching ToolsDesign: Sketching Tools

Wireframes

photo & sculpture by polly verity

Wireframes

“Web site wireframes are blue prints that define a Web page’s content and functionality. They do not convey design – e.g. colors, graphics, or fonts.”- FatPurple

Design: WireframesDesign: Wireframes

Wireframing/Prototyping Tools:

• Adobe InDesign

• Axure

• Omnigraffle (Mac)

• Microsoft Visio

• Sketch/Invision

• Mockingbird (online, free)

Also:

• Balsamiq

• iPlotz

• iMockups (iPad)

• Omnigraffle (iPad)

InfoDesign: Wireframing ToolsDesign: Wireframing Tools

Self Study

Smashing Magazine: 35 Excellent Wireframing Resources

http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2009/09/01/35-excellent-wireframing-resources/



Responsive Design

Design: Sketching

Responsive Web Design

“Rather than tailoring disconnected designs to each of an ever-increasing number of web devices, we can treat them as facets of the same experience. We can design for an optimal viewing experience, but embed standards-based technologies into our designs to make them not only more flexible, but more adaptive to the media that renders them. In short, we need to practice responsive web design.” – Ethan Marcotte, Responsive Web Design, A List Apart

Design: Responsive DesignDesign: Responsive Design

Self Study

Ethan Marcotte: Responsive Web Design

http://alistapart.com/article/responsive-web-design

Design: SketchingDesign: Responsive DesignDesign: Responsive Design

Design: SketchingDesign: Responsive DesignDesign: Responsive Design

Desktop Tablet Mobile

Design: Sketching

Responsive Design Characteristics

• Think “mobile first”• The goal: Maintain content and features across devices• Responsive designs adjust at different “break points” corresponding

to the dimensions of various devices, typically desktop, tablet and mobile

• Navigation may be repositioned• Modules may be repositioned but hierarchies are maintained• Images scale down in size or may be cropped• Text size is maintained where possible, though headings may be

reduced in size• Filters may be moved into a dropdown• Occasionally, content or features are dropped to save screen real

estate or if they’re not device appropriate

Design: Responsive DesignDesign: Responsive Design

Design: Sketching

Design a Responsive Home PageIn your teams, create your final deliverable, a responsive home page for Events.com

1) Discuss features needed for a homepage

2) Sketch your ideas for a homepage individually

3) Discuss your sketches again with your team

Design: Final ExerciseDesign: Final Exercise

Design: Final ExerciseDesign: Final Exercise

Home Page CollaborationIn your teams, create your final deliverable, a responsive home page for Events.com

1) Collaborate as a team on a final responsive version of the home page

2) Include a high-level sketch of how the mobile version would display

Development

Additional ResourcesAdditional Resources

Books:

• Information Architecture for the World Wide Web – Louis Rosenfeld, Peter Morville

• Information Architecture: Blueprints for the Web – Christina Wodtke, Austin Govella

• The Elements of User Experience – Jesse James Garrett

• Designing Web Navigation: Optimizing the User Experience – James Kalbach, Aaron Gustafson

• Design of Everyday Things – Donald Norman

• Responsive Web Design – Ethan Marcotte

Local Events:

• IA Meetup

• Brooklyn UX

• Content Strategy Meetup

Web Sites:

• Alertbox

• A List Apart

• Boxes & Arrows

• wireframes.tumblr.com

Organizations:

• Human Computer Interactions (HCI)

• Interaction Designers Association (IxDA)

• Usability Professionals Association (UPA)

Further Studies:

• School of Visual Arts

• Continuing Ed classes

• MFA in Interaction Design

• Pratt – Course in Information Design

• Rosenfeld Media

• General Assembly

• Skillshare

• Adaptive Path

• The Information Architecture Institute

• The IA Summit

• Nielsen Norman Group

• User Interface Engineering

Video:

The Right Way to Wireframe by Russ Unger (YouTube)

http://www.alistapart.com/

http://www.alistapart.com/

http://www.boxesandarrows.com/

http://wireframes.tumblr.com/

Slideshare address:


My article on how to find an IA job:http://blog.onwardsearch.com/2012/08/information-architecture-a-guerilla-guide-to-breaking-in/

@stribs


http://blog.onwardsearch.com/2012/08/information-architecture-a-guerilla-guide-to-breaking-in/

introduction to information architecture & design - 6/20/15

Documents

information design

term information architecture

information architects

information space

information environments

information system

brief history of ia

design project