Presentation on best practices in Information Architecture with a case study on the Romanian market of web shops. This is a translated version of the presentation from WIAD 2014 in Bucharest. DISCLAIMER All the websites analysed here were used only for presenting a method/technique, not to grade (truly analyse) the websites. As these were chosen randomly and we do not know the business objectives that drives these websites we can not evaluate objectively the UX of the presented pages, but we can use them to present testing methods for UX.

1. A ROUGH GUIDE TO INFORMATION ARCHITECTURE (IA)
bad No IA vs Good IA

2. 1. About me
2. Information Architecture (IA)
3. Case study
4. IA Costs and Best practice
5. Questions
bad No IA vs Good IA

3.  15 years IT experience (UX designer, Project Manager, etc)
 MSc in UX at the IT University of Copenhagen
 Projects in e-learning, health care and e-commerce
 UE work experience
 Other interests: tango, biking, design and photography
1 Adrian Iacomi

4. INTRO. UX & IA. THE IA EXPERT.
2 Information Architecture (IA)

6. Hospital sign: “Entrance at the bodyguard”
Parking sign: “Stop. Don’t park. I cut wheels. (car number)”

7. Street sign: pay the parking by text message.

8.  Usability – how easy can a website be used, and how easy can the
user remember the actions necessary to accomplish simple tasks.
 Interaction Design (IxD) – it refers to the interaction methods with
the software and the received feedback. In day to day practice it
overlaps with IA and UX.
 Information Architecture (IA) – is the art and science that applies
brick & mortar architecture principles in organizing information,
creating navigation and search systems for a software product.
 User Experience Design (UX) – fully encompasses traditional HCI
design, and extends it by addressing all aspects of a product or
service as perceived by users [Wikipedia]. It can cover IA, Visual
Design, IxD and Usability testing.
IA, UxD, IxD, Us, etc – the plain word version

9.  Organizes information in logical systems
 Labeling systems
 Navigation systems
 Site maps
 Search systems
 Creates personas
 User tests
 Creates storyboards and scenarios, etc.
The IA expert

10. METHOD. EXAMPLE. NO IA. GOOD IA.
3 Case study

11. Method
 Description: testing the usability
and findability of hardware
products on Romanian web shops
 Goal: search sound card
 Method: user testing
 Analyze: finding IA problems and
proposing solutions

12. 1. Search in the navigation menu
2. Search by using the autosuggest
3. Results obtained by using the autosuggest
4. The compare products function
5. Display product
6. Contact web shop from the product page
7. Feedback shopping basket
8. Recommendations from the product page
9. Recommendations after sale
Analyze Web shops

13. 0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
eMag EvoMag PC Garage Cel DC Shop Flanco Media Galaxy AvStore
Websites analyzed
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
! The test is made only to showcase UX methods, it is not a precise benchmark

14. SEARCHING FOR A SOUND CARD
Scenario

21. MOST IMPORTANT FINDINGS/EXAMPLES
No IA

22. 0. Website identity
! update – both websites have the same owner

23. • Card sorting
• Eye tracking
• Measuring time for finding
elements in the menu
1. Menu organization

24. • User tests
• Card sorting
• Keywords for relevant
searches
2. Autosuggest and categories

25. • Way too many options?
• Testing – how many wrong
links does the user click on
3. Search with autosuggest

26. • Measure the time necessary
to find elements in the page
• Test versions with adds
and without
• Test variants with only the
shopping cart button
colorful
4. The importance of page elements

27. • Measure the time necessary
to find elements in the page
• Using eye tracking on the
page – how easy is to find
information in the page ?
• Supporting the website
objective – selling
products?
5. Product page layout

28. • User test – how many
buy/view any of the
recommended products
6. Irrelevant recommendations

29. Good IA

30. • Good product list layout
• Products can easily being
compared
1. Product list layout

31. • Connecting product
categories (sound card and
speakers)
2. Relevant recommendations

32. • Clear messages – the user
receives feedback after
every important action.
• The product compare area
is clearly displayed.
3. Adding to the shopping cart

33. • Clear messages – the user
receives feedback after every
important action.
• Easy to navigate layout
4. Website Feedback

34. 5. Layout clarity

35. IS IT WORTH INVESTING IN IA ?
4 IA Cost and Best practice

36. Disadvantages:
 Money, time and personnel
 Ego problems 
Advantages:
 Reducing costs later
 Verifying design proposals
 Creating the right products for the client in need, at the right
time
IA cost

37. 1. Test before release any product or idea
2. Instinct and experience are important, but without user tests
nothing can be sure
3. All layouts must be created by following the main goal of the page
4. Keep consistency in navigation and design
5. Use autosuggest with relevant results
6. Make IA/UX an important part of the software project creation
Best practice

38. AND ANSWERS 
5 Questions

39.  Books: Information Architecture for the World Wide Web (Morville),
Smashing UX Design (Allen), A Project Guide to UX Design (Unger),
Sketching User Experiences (Buxton), Don't Make Me Think! (Krug),
Designing for interaction (Saffer), The design of everyday things
(Norman), The elements of User Experience (Garrett), etc
 Websites: www.uxbooth.com, www.iainstitute.org, uxmag.com,
www.smashingmagazine.com, www.interaction-design.org
 Conferences: WIAD, 2014.iasummit.org, www.ux-lx.com,
www.euroia.org.
IA resources