A website’s information architecture (IA) and navigation profoundly impacts user experience. If users can’t find what they need quickly, engagement falls.
This comprehensive guide explores proven IA and navigation design principles and best practices. We’ll cover topics like organizational schemes, navigation patterns, hierarchy, labeling, search, and mobile IA.
Let’s ensure your site architecture intuitively guides users to fulfilling their needs!
On complex websites, unclear IA turns discovery into frustration, hurting outcomes:
- Users can’t easily complete desired tasks
- Key content stays buried and hard to find
- Critical conversion paths like checkout get abandoned
- Poor mental model fit means confusion and uncertainty
- Weak “scent of information” provides limited directional cues
Strong IA and navigation prevents these issues through:
- Organizing content matched to user mental models
- Offering clear navigational cues and assistance
- Establishing site-wide hierarchy and relationships
- Writing descriptive, meaningful labels
- Optimizing findability with metadata and SEO
- Ensuring critical paths are clear and prioritized
Keep IA and navigation centered on serving user goals and the rest follows.
Developing an IA Strategy
A structured approach ensures IA evolves strategically:
Set Key Goals
Identify the core tasks and content types you want to optimize for findability. What must users access easily?
Understand User Mental Models
Research existing mental models and language around your content domains through card sorts and surveys. Discover natural associations.
Content Audit
Catalog all existing site content to assess level of organization and determine relationships. Identify unnecessary pages diluting architecture.
Group Content Priority
Map content to user goals and ordering based on importance. Hierarchy emphasizes critical subsets.
Define Taxonomy and Categories
Develop an organizational framework with category relationships and terminology based on mental models.
Create IA Sitemap
Visually diagram content groups and navigation in hierarchical tree structures. Iterate based on usability.
Match IA to proven mental models through periodic tuning as content and users evolve.
Organization Schemes and Relationships
Various schemes exist for logically grouping content:
By Topic/Theme
Related topics under broader themes like “Health & Wellness” simplifies similar content discovery.
Lifecycle-Based
Group key stages like “Considering Divorce” and “Going Through Divorce”. Progress visitors through journeys.
Task-Oriented
Structure around common user goals and tasks like “Making a Doctor’s Appointment”. Facilitate completion.
Location-Based
For local sites, categorize by geographic regions then offerings within each area.
Alphabetical
Alphabetical listings work for certain uniform collections like product catalogs.
Chronological
Rank content by date like press releases or blog archives.
Structure schemes around dominant user tasks and perspectives. Hybrid combined models are common.
Navigation patterns provide multi-dimensional access matching varying user needs:
Major persistent top nav with core sections provides consistent high-level orientation.
Category or section-specific secondary navs add flexibility accessing deeper content within topics.
Unrelated but useful sidebars like account management links aid related tasks while consuming content.
Secondary utility-focused footer nav boosts discoverability for copyright, policies, contact, etc.
Breadcrumbs
Breadcrumb trails like Home >> Electronics >> Televisions show location in site hierarchy.
Search
Site-wide search allows lookup by specific keywords when users know their target.
Layered top, contextual, and supplemental access caters navigation to distinct circumstances. Give choices.
Reference the established IA when structuring navigation:
Order Top Level by Importance
Prioritize the most critical, frequently accessed entry points in top navigation.
Be Selective About Main Items
Avoid overload by keeping top nav focused on core sections only. Secondary navs house peripherals.
Nest submenus only when essential. More than 2 levels causes confusion and hides content.
Show Sibling vs. Child Relationships
Group peer categories visually together and separate through space or dividers from children cutting visual height.
Sort Items Logically
Alphabetize non-priority lists but group related subsections. Random order perplexes users.
Highlight the associated top nav item for the current page visited to provide reinforcement.
Organization, prioritization, and relationships make or break navigation usability.
Descriptive, consistent, scannable labels clarify navigation:
Speak User Language
Use terminology users naturally employ based on research like card sorting. Avoid company jargon.
Label Based on Page Goal
Use action-oriented headings indicating what users achieve on the page like “Find a Doctor.”
Be ultra Specific
Vague headers like “Services” tell users little. Add clarity like “Legal Services.”
Write Concise yet Informative Headers
Balance brevity with details that communicate section scope.
Adopt Parallel Structure
Use consistent grammar and format across labels for continuity once patterns established.
Consider Scanning
Optimized for quick visual skimming by capitalizing logical keywords for each section.
Maintain Consistency
Once labels chosen, use exact same phraseology consistently across all platforms.
Words make navigation systems hum. Ensure terminology precisely guides users.
Best Practices for High-Findability IA
Beyond core structures, details boost discoverability:
Include Sitemaps
Provide an all-pages sitemap to facilitate deep-dive content hunting.
Link Related Content
Use “Related Articles” modules to connect complementary content throughout the site.
Enable Effective Site Search
Optimize on-site search with synonyms, custom indexing, and predictive results.
Descriptive Page Titles
Make each page’s title in search results compelling through keywords.
Include Strong Metadata
Thorough metadata improves SEO and helps search engines understand page content.
Link to Related Internal Pages
Include in-content contextual links to direct users deeper based on detected interests.
Provide Shortcut Link Directories
List commonly desired utility destinations like contact and support in footers to shortcut navigation.
Findability touches ease frustration and direct specific goals. Audit for enhancements.
Mobile and App IA Best Practices
On mobile, simplified navigation is key:
Simplify Menu Options
Condense complex desktop menus to only most critical tasks. Hide advanced options under “More”.
Use Dropdowns Over Mega Menus
Dropdown submenus hide options until tapped to focus menu real estate.
Position Menu for Thumb Access
Ensure menus positioned reachable by thumb to prevent hand strain.
Make Buttons Large and Spaced
Increase touch target size and space between nav options for easy tapping without precision.
Keep Menus Sticky if Possible
Persistent sticky menus while scrolling provide constant access without needing to jump to the top.
Include Category Images
On ecommerce category pages, add visual product type examples that quickly orient mobile shoppers.
Let lateral swiping navigate app screens and workflows.
Keep mobile navigation focused on enabling fast access to primary destinations. Hidden advanced options reduce clutter.
IA Testing and Iteration
Evolve IA based on observed usage:
Card Sorting
Test IA early by having users group content and suggest their own organizations. Identify mismatches.
First-Click Testing
See where users initially go from homepage without guidance to assess intuitiveness.
Tree Testing
Observe users navigating full site structures to pinpoint confusing areas.
A/B Testing
Try reorganizations, different menus, varied labeling. Let data guide changes.
Analytics Review
Analyze on-site search queries, highly trafficked pages, and exit points. Target problem areas.
IA requires ongoing refinement as user needs change. Let real data guide enhancements over opinions.
Here are best practices for maximizing site usability through architecture and navigation:
- Audit content to developIA catering to key user goals and mental models based on research
- Organize predominantly by user tasks and topics. Supplement with secondary schemes like alphabetical as needed.
- Design clear hierarchy prioritizing important pages and sections in top navigation.
- Use concise but descriptive labels optimized for rapid scanning.
- Include supplemental elements like sitemaps and contextual linksto enhance discoverability.
- Simplify menu options and structure for mobile to only most critical destinations.
- Continuously test IA and navigation with techniques like card sorting and tree testing.
- Use behavioral data to identify underperforming areas of site architecture needing redesign.
Getting IA right means matching customers’ perspectives, not company conventions. But continuous testing and iteration based on observed usage patterns keeps structures highly usable as needs evolve.
By truly understanding your audience, you can architect intuitive navigation that effectively guides visitors to accomplish their goals each visit. Reduce their effort so you see the rewards in engagement, loyalty and growth.
1. Why does information architecture (IA) and navigation matter for a website?
Information architecture and navigation are crucial for user experience as they directly impact how easily users can find what they need on a website. Clear IA and navigation enhance engagement, prevent frustration, and facilitate task completion.
2. How do you develop an IA strategy for a website?
Developing an IA strategy involves setting key goals, understanding user mental models through research, conducting a content audit, grouping content based on user goals and importance, defining taxonomy and categories, creating an IA sitemap, and periodically tuning the IA to match evolving content and user needs.
3. What are some common organization schemes for IA?
Common organization schemes for IA include organizing content by topic/theme, lifecycle-based stages, task-oriented goals, location-based categories, alphabetical listings, and chronological order. The choice of scheme depends on the nature of the content and user preferences.
4. What are some best practices for designing navigation hierarchy?
Best practices for designing navigation hierarchy include prioritizing top-level items by importance, being selective about main items to avoid overload, limiting submenu depth to avoid confusion, showing sibling vs. child relationships visually, sorting items logically, and aligning navigation to page content.
5. How do you write effective navigation labels?
To write effective navigation labels, use user language based on research, label based on page goals, be ultra-specific and concise, adopt parallel structure for consistency, consider scanning by capitalizing logical keywords, maintain consistency across platforms, and use the exact same phraseology consistently.
6. What are some best practices for high-findability IA?
Best practices for high-findability IA include including sitemaps for all-pages, linking related content throughout the site, enabling effective site search with synonyms and predictive results, using descriptive page titles and strong metadata for SEO, linking to related internal pages, and providing shortcut link directories for commonly desired utility destinations.
7. What are some mobile and app IA best practices?
Mobile and app IA best practices include simplifying menu options, using dropdowns over mega menus, positioning menu for thumb access, making buttons large and spaced for easy tapping, keeping menus sticky if possible, including category images for visual orientation, and leveraging swipe navigation for lateral movement.
8. How do you test and iterate on IA?
Testing and iterating on IA involves techniques such as card sorting, first-click testing, tree testing, A/B testing different IA configurations, and analyzing analytics data to identify underperforming areas that need redesign. Continuous refinement based on observed usage patterns ensures IA remains highly usable as user needs evolve.
Contents
- 1 Information Architecture and Navigation Design Principles
- 2 Why IA and Navigation Matter
- 3 Developing an IA Strategy
- 4 Organization Schemes and Relationships
- 5 Common Website Navigation Patterns
- 6 Designing Clear Navigation Hierarchy
- 7 Writing Great Navigation Labels
- 8 Best Practices for High-Findability IA
- 9 Mobile and App IA Best Practices
- 10 IA Testing and Iteration
- 11 Key Takeaways for Strong IA and Navigation
- 12 FAQ: Information Architecture and Navigation Design Principles