What goes where? How to get the structure of your website right

The structure of a website is crucial to the user experience. Information architecture (IA) workshops are typically conducted when starting a new web design project or during a website redesign. They usually take place after an initial discovery workshop and are a key feature of the UX design process. 

The workshop is a process that helps to define a website's structure and how users will interact with it. We focus on how users experience and engage with a website with the end goal being to create a user-centric site that's easy to navigate and use. 

The IA stage is critical, because it determines whether or not users are successful in finding desired information and completing tasks. It is the foundation and blueprint of UX design – it’s a bit like an architect drawing up plans for building a house!

• Set clear objectives: Whether it be creating an information architecture from scratch, reviewing an existing architecture to optimise it, or honing in specifically on a section(s) which needs improvement. This will dictate how you approach the workshop.
• Identify the correct stakeholders: Who are the right people to be in the room? Is it a team close to the project only, or should it include a wider team? Ideally, someone who can represent or understands the needs of key users should be present.
• Identify and analyse what data is currently available: There are many tools to help identify and analyse the data available to the workshop team. These include analytics, heat maps, personas, content audits and user journeys will all help to make decisions and should be reviewed beforehand and made available for reference during the workshop. For example, for a redesign project, looking at most popular pages plus frequent search terms in the analytics will provide a lot of information about what users are most interested in and the terminology they are using.
• Research the competition: Find websites that share the same function and target audience. Study their structures and take notice of what they do right, and wrong.
• Prepare and plan: Depending on all of the above, the workshop may need to be planned (we like to break it up according to website sections) to get the key people in the room at the appropriate time. Similarly, it might need multiple workshops, and to bring in different people for specific areas.

• Explain and set the purpose: Introduce the idea of the sitemap or IA to those who may be unfamiliar (we sometimes use the analogy of an IA being like a building plan with different floors and rooms). Ensure all attendees understand the exact purpose of the workshop – which is creating a website structure by organising and classifying content to create a layout that's understandable, accessible, intuitive and predictable. Setting the purpose helps to avoid getting sidetracked with other less appropriate things that some attendees may feel strongly about. Many people are keen to jump ahead to the more exciting aspects of UI design and what the homepage is going to look like (don’t worry, we’ll get to the decor, furniture and doors later).
• Focus on users: Most organisations start with the focus on “what do we want to say?”. However, to ensure the end result is user-centric, we should instead start with the question “what do users want to know?” This emphasis makes a huge difference to site architecture and content. The majority of users only care about a small subset of information. However, they often find it hard to locate that content because they are distracted by other information. To avoid this problem, we need to identify the top user tasks. Refer to any useful data analysis and research from your earlier preparation.
• Encourage participation and seek consensus: Make sure everyone knows that their opinions are needed, and that there are no wrong answers. It's important that the loudest voices don't become the answer. Ensure when decisions are made that everyone is happy that the decision is the correct one. If not, why not?
• Reassure: It's easy for participants to get caught up in making the exact right decision, and this can lead to them not making a decision at all. Reassure them that this should be an iterative process which continues long after the workshop. Be 80% sure it's 80% right. 
• Document: Ensure all information is captured, and shared after the workshop. It may seem obvious but the documentation will be crucial down the line, when the design and content processes are under way – especially if people who weren’t involved in the workshop are working on these tasks.

• Validate, if possible: Test the proposed architecture with real users and make sure the decisions were appropriate. This process can identify issues related to navigation, design, and overall user experience and is a valuable step before development starts. 
  
  There are a few approaches to user testing. A really effective method is usability testing, where participants complete tasks while observers analyse their behaviour. Another approach is A/B testing, where different versions of a page are compared to determine which performs better. 
  
  The feedback from actual users is incredibly valuable, as they represent the people who the website is being created for. The ultimate goal is to create a website that is intuitive, engaging, and aligned with user expectations. 
  
  Don't be afraid to reiterate if the user testing indicates that some of the architecture decisions may not have hit the nail on the head. The whole point of this step is to ensure that the website is functional, user-friendly, and meets the needs of its audience. 
• Plan follow-up workshops if necessary: Based on the results of the validation process, is another workshop needed? Don’t be put off by the reiteration process – refining the site map is an important part of the process, and it’s important to get this foundation right. 
• Final consensus: Make sure everyone is generally happy with the final outcome, as it will affect decisions moving forward. We’ve found that getting buy-in from stakeholders helps with momentum. Generally things move more smoothly once everyone is on the same page. 

Nailing the site’s structure is an important part of the process. After all, this will be used as a blueprint for the entire project. The structure of a website will define how the users interact with it, and it is what the content team will use as they plan and map out the content of the website. 

It’s important to take the time that is necessary to get it right. It might not happen on the first attempt. That’s normal. Budget for extra time, involve as many stakeholders as possible, and ensure that the key element of the project – the user – is always at the core of the infrastructure architecture.