on Information Architecture for the World Wide Web, ch. 7, 8, & 9

It seems common practice for websites to include multiple embedded navigation systems, (global, local, and contextual), and some form of supplemental navigation systems, (a site index, a guide, and/or search functions), as the best methods to enable easy movement within a site’s content. Possible impediments to easy, intuitive navigation within a site are, as Morville and Rosenfeld caution, customization and personalization of websites; while many sites (especially retail sites) allow some level of customization, the user’s investment of time and energy in customizing any site might be limited, especially if the site will not be frequented, (Morville & Rosenfeld, 2006, p. 141). We might think of incorporation of social navigation in a similar way – while some aspect of it may be helpful, (for instance, tagging, reviews, star ranking), which could encourage users to contribute in some fashion. As with customization and personalization of any web presence, though, so too with contributing to social navigation: users have a limited amount of time and will likely not interact with websites on this level unless they are frequent visitors and can see benefits for themselves. Speaking from experience, I know that I only post reviews or ratings on a couple of sites I use frequently, (ones where I find value in the reviews of others, like Amazon, Netflix, and Zappos), where I also look to the reviews and ratings of others as a guide for my own activities, (for instance, browsing other content because it is referenced as comparable in a review).

As far as elements of searching are concerned, this chapter gets at how remarkably complex elements of search can be, even by touching on the surface of design, indexing, and results organization. Further evidence for the complexity of search design and functionality is apparent enough in the entire book Morville authored on the subject, Search Patterns: Design for Discovery. This chapter’s overview of areas accessed by a search, algorithms that drive searching, and organization/display of results will definitely be a go-to resource if I’m tasked with developing any new website, or overhauling an existing site. I expect my first stop will be evaluating the content of the site to make the determination if search functionality is even appropriate, just as Morville and Rosenfeld (2006) recommend, (pp. 145-148). Similarly, the chapter on metadata, controlled vocabularies, and thesauri is effective as both a quick reference tool and brief overview. Just as information architects must be concerned with ease of navigation and access to all a site’s content in determining the need for a search function, so too with the need for a thesaurus—or even use of any controlled vocabulary—in aiding finding actions.

References

Morville, P. & Rosenfeld, L. (2006). Information Architecture for the World Wide Web (3rd ed.). Sebastopol, CA: O’Reilly.