Site Audit

Architecture Concepts Most sites have a hierarchical navigation system that enables users to browse topics of interest. While many sites use the "inverse L" page layout shown here to represent the hierarchy to users, other sites use dropdowns or other visual representations. We usually map an existing site architecture to show the levels of the site, as shown at bottom left. Sites usually highlight content or topics of interest in the body of the page. We call these highlight blocks "modules."

Logo

Utilities are tools or other links that are not part of the main navigation structure.

Level 1

Level 1 Level 2 Level 2 Level 3 Level 3 Level 3

Level 2 Level 2 Level 2 "Modules" are placed "Modules" are used to in the body of the highlight features or page to highlight content from each features or content section. Module from each section. headers often mirror Module headers often Level 1 or 2 navigation mirror Level 1 or 2 options, but they don't navigation options, but have to. they don't have to. Modules are usually dynamic — their layout is consistent, but the content is populated from a database.

Utility Link | Utility Link | Utility Link | Utility Link | Utility Link

Level 1

Level 1

Level 1

Level 1

Duis autem vel eum iriure dolor in hendrerit in vulputate velit esse molestie consequat, vel illum dolore eu feugiat nulla facilisis at vero eros et accumsan et iusto odio dignissim qui blandit praesent luptatum zzril delenit augue duis dolore te feugait nulla facilisi. Nam liber tempor cum soluta nobis eleifend. Global navigation categories ("Level 1") are frequently placed Module Header Contextual Contextual Information Balloonthe callout. Select shape and across top. Second and third Lorem ipsum dolorlevel sit amet start typing. Resize box to desired navigation categories (within dimensions. Movenonummy control handle Consectetuer adipiscing elit, sed category) diam nibh each global often go Euismod tincidunt ut laoreet dolore to aim pointer at speaker. along the left column. Magna aliquam erat volutpat ut wisi enim ad minim Quis nostrud exerci tation ullamcorper Suscipit lobortis nisl ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat Contextual information is related Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet Duis autem vel eum iriure dolor in hendrerit to the topic presented in the body In vulputate velit esse molestie consequat, vel illum of the page, but is not the focus of the user's attention. It is usually Module Header placed in the right column.

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Home

Level 1: Global Navigation Level 1

Level 1

Level 1

Level 1

Level 1

Level 2

Level 2

Level 2

Level 2

Level 2: Left Navigation Level 2

Level 3: Spill-open Navigation Level 3

Level 3

Level 3

Level 3

Level33 Level Level 3

Level 3

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Unique pages are represented by boxes. Stacked boxes represent a series of pages that run on the same template. Shaded bars represent logical levels in the hierarchy that are not pages. Horizontal bands are used to group pages within levels. Connectors represent primary hierarchical navigation relationships. Darker lines show current path and current page. Contextual navigation is not represented.

Link>> © Razorfish, Inc. McKinsey Audit.vsd April 23, 2001

Jupiter Homepage Jupiter's homepage shows a clean and consistent layout. A wide but shallow hierarchy enables Jupiter to place global navigation categories in the left column. The body of the page shows recent research and popular topics — which means that the homepage is updated regularly to show fresh content to users. The right column presents utilities (research tools) and highlights events of interest, consistent with web convention for using the right column to show contextual information. Research tools are also presented as verbs at the top of t he page.

Home

Level 1: Global Navigation Advertising & Marketing

Jupiter puts utility tools in tabs across the top and by expresses them as verbs.

Audience & Programming

Commerce & Transactions

Operations & Infrastructure

Technology & Platforms

European Research

Regi on s

Ind u stry Essentials

Jupiter selected eight top level categories to represent its view of the world. Web users generally prefer wider, shallower trees because it's easier to scan a list of links than to click repeatedly. My Toolbox actually repeats options found in the tabs, but highlights them as contextual options on the page.

It's important to make each category distinct and meaningful. There's overlap between European Research and Regions , which may confuse some users. Conversely, the category Audience and Programming seems like an uncomfortable pairing of two unrelated t opics.

Modules highlight recent research and most popular research Jupiter places Level 1 navigation options in the left column

Contextual information (here highlighting an upcoming event) goes in the right column.

© Razorfish, Inc. McKinsey Audit.vsd April 23, 2001

Jupiter Level 1 Landing Page Getting users to content quickly is of paramount importance. Many sites try t o limit the number of "clicks" to content — meaning that sites try to limit the number of unique pages that users have to navigate through before reaching the goal of finding content. Jupiter uses rollovers to present Level 2 options, which enables user access to 45 unique pages of content with only one click. This Level 1 Landing page has no content, underscoring that it is for navigation only. Home

Level 1: Global Navigation Advertising & Marketing

Jupiter uses rollovers Balloon callout. Select to speed access to shape and start Level 2 content. If the typing. Resize box to user clicks on a Level desired dimensions. 1 link, he is taken to a Move control handle landing page that to aim pointer at repeats the options speaker. shown in the rollover.





European Research

Re gions

In dustry Essentials

Level 2: Rollover Navigation B-to-B Infrastructure

Customer Relationship Mgmt

Online Supply Chain

Retail Infrastructure

Site Technology Performance

Web Enterprise Mgmt

Wireless Infrastructure

Jupiter's eight top level categories each have one level of depth, for a total of 45 unique topics. Although some sites allow a topic to "live in two places" in the hierarchy, each topic in Jupiter exists in only one location. Closer examination of the categories and subcategories reveals some overlap. For example, B-to-B appears in both Operations & Infrastructure and Technology & Platforms . Similarly, it's difficult to guess where to f ind information on Broadband Content .

Jupiter presents only links on this landing page — they don't distract users with content modules here.

Category selection can be tested with users to ensure that they can find what they're looking for. After the category structure is determined, care must be taken to select clear labels for links, buttons, headers, forms, and captions.


Jupiter Level 2 Topic Page Topic pages highlight recent research. Research is grouped into three branded categories: JupTakes , Vision Reports , and Concept Reports . While the distinction between the three isn't clear at first glance, it will become clear to frequent visitors. More articles within each category can be accessed through a link. There's no way to navigate to an article by a specific subtopic, but users will search for this information.

Home

Level 1: Global Navigation JupTakes are branded by analyst. The photo conveys that this is a personal, expert opinion.

Advertising & Marketing





European Research

Re gions




Online Supply Chain



Web Enterprise Mgmt


Level 3: Inpage Links JupTakes JupTakes JupTakes

Modules highlight JupTakes, Vision Reports, and Concept Reports Most sites highlight the current section, to aid users in developing a "sense of place."

Vision Vision Vision Reports Reports Reports

Concept Concept Concept Reports Reports Reports

Because third-level navigation is by Jupiter branded report names, it's difficult to find information on a particular subject. For example, it would be difficult to find Jupiter's perspective on call centers — users would have to hunt and peck or use the search engine. Page stacks represent a series of pages that run on the same template. Since these pages are all of the same type, it isn't necessary to specify each one individually.


Jupiter Level 3 Detail Page Detail pages list all articles by date. Users c lick next to see more pages of articles. Contextual information fills the left column, replacing the navigation bar.

Home

Level 1: Global Navigation Tabs enable users to navigate between two of the branded report categories — but not JupTakes.

Advertising & Marketing

The only way to scan through articles is to click next repeatedly.





European Research

Re gions




Online Supply Chain



Web Enterprise Mgmt


Level 3: Inpage Links The navigation bar disappears, making it difficult for users to navigate. It's replaced with contextual information that has little relevance to the current topic.

JupTakes JupTakes JupTakes

Vision Vision Vision Reports Reports Reports

Concept Concept Concept Reports Reports Reports


Jupiter Advanced Search Standard search engine provides freetext keyword search of entire document or titles only. Boolean operands are presented in dropdowns, which should be easier for users to understand. Sort and display options are as expected. Search filtering maps exactly to navigation system, indicating that the taxonomy is the same for search and browse navigation. Home

Standard search engine functionality.

My Workspace

Browse

Search

Int eract

Power Search

Research can be filtered by research category (first and second level navigation) and by content type (third level navigation.) Search filters exactly match navigation taxonomy.

Search Results

Data

Search Results

Checkboxes here are used to select checkboxes below. Unselect all is not directly specified. Radio buttons would have provided the proper affordance.

The navigation option Search in the top toolbar defaults to the Power Search option, although Search Data is also an option at the same level. Similarly, the navigation option Browse defaults to Browse Research , although Browse Data and Browse Events are options at the same level.


Jupiter Search Results Search engine returns results sorted by relevance (expressed as a percentage.) Relevance ranking is determined by a proprietary algorithm unique to the search engine. Search results s how title, author, and date but do not display the associated category (location in the taxonomy) or the branded report type.

Home

My Workspace

Browse

Search

Int eract

Power Search

Search Results

Search results do not show the category the article lives in or the type of report.

Data

Search Results


Jupiter Article Page Each article has an introduction page that highlights its contents and author. Links are available back to the topic category page, so users who reach this article via search can navigate back up to the category page. A variety of functionality is available on t his page, from saving the report to listening to an audio file.

A variety of research functionality is offered here.

Links enable users to navigate up to the category page.

Relevancy percentages are shown by section of the document. This helps busy users find the exact location they are looking for.

Home

Home

Search


Power Search


Search Results

Vision Reports

Article Page

Article Page

Vision Reports

Vision Reports

Via search, users can get to a particular article within three clicks. However, the Power Search input page requires typing and/or option selection, so the interaction is more complex. Via browse navigation, it would take a user five clicks to get to t he same article. The user would need to scan through three pages of Vision Reports to find that particular article. On the other hand, a user could access a recent article highlighted on a topic page within two clicks.


Jupiter Architecture Architecture

Research Topics: Left Navigation

Utility Tools: Top Navigation

Level 1: Left Navigation Advertising and Marketing

Audience and Programming

Commerce and Transactions

Operations and Infrastructure

Technology and Platforms

European Research

Regions

Indust ry Essentials

My Workspace

Browse

Search

Power Search

Int eract

Level 2: Rollover Navigation Marketing & Branding

Digital Content

Consumer Commerce

B-to-B Infrastructure

Broadband

European Access

Japan

Automotive

My Research Library

Research - coverage area - analyst

Marketing Operations Management

Regulation & Public Policy

B-to-B Commerce

Customer Relationship Management

Client Technologies

European B-to-B Mktg & Commerce

Australia

Banking & Lending

My Searches and Alerts

Data - core data - by category

Online Advertising

Digital Television

Payments & Transactions

Online Supply Chain

Wireless Applications

European Consumer Commerce

Canada

Brokerage & Wealth Management

My Profile

Events


European Media & Entertainment

France

Consumer Packaged Goods

Ask Jupiter

Site Technologies & Performance

European Mobile Internet

Germany

Entertainment & Media

Help

Web Enterprise Management

European Online Advertising & Mktg

Italy

Health

Logout


European Vendor Selection

Latin America

Music

Nordic

Retail

Spain

Travel

United Kingdom

Search Results

Data

Search Results


Forrester Homepage Forrester has a single URL for s ales/corporate information and login access to research, and these competing interests play out on the homepage. Forrester places utility links in the left c olumn, providing access to general corporate information. Global navigation to research topics is presented in a rollover in the body of the page. Modules highlighting Forrester research and services fill the rest of the page.

Home

Level 1 Industries

Utility links in the left column provide access to corporate information.

Regions

Skills/ Technologies

Consumer Segments

Forrester selected four top level categories to represent its view of the world. Each category is distinct. Access to Level 1 and Level 2 categories through unusual rollover navigation in the center of the page.

Modules highlight everything from recent research Balloontocallout. upcoming Select events. shapeThis andapproach start typing. enables Resize Forrester box to desired to showcase dimensions. a wide variety Move of offerings, control handle but may to aim result pointer in overload at speaker. for the user as it is difficult to prioritize.

This selection of categories is important because it reflects Forrester's way of organizing itself. Analysts' jobs are defined by t hese groupings, and so the navigation is also an aspect of their org chart.


Forrester Level 1 Landing Page Like Jupiter, Forrester has a Level 1 Landing Page that offers navigation only to its 28 subcategories. However, many users will bypass this page and go directly to the topic page via the homepage rollover navigation. Unlike Jupiter, Forrester's rollover changes its location — it moves f rom the body of the homepage to a t op navigation bar. This navigation bar only appears on lower level pages, not on the homepage. Home

Level 1 Categories in the rollover navigation map exactly to the categories presented on this Level 1 Landing Page.

Industries

Regions


Consumer Segments

Consumer Technology

C us us to to me me r S er er vi vi ce ce

D ig it al al M ar ar ke ke titi ng ng

Level 2 Applications & Services

Internet Economy

Net Policy & Regulation

Organization & Skills

I nf nf ra ra st st ru ru ct ct ur ur e

Site Technology

Web Design

The number of subcategories within each section is uneven. Skills/Technologies (above) is the largest section, with ten subcategories. On the other hand, Consumer Segments (below) has only two subcategories. This probably has no effect on whether users can find what they're looking for, but could reflect an imbalance in prioritization in the Level 1 navigation options. Moving the rollover navigation between the homepage and this page may hamper users' ability to find these navigation options or f orm a model of the structure.


Forrester Level 2 Topic Page Topic pages provide access to recent research, but most screen real estate is consumed by pitches for other Forrester products and services. Research reports are displayed in a lower-priority location, are not accompanied by introductory copy, and only the three most recent are shown. Users click to see t he full list of research within this topic. The large center module presents a high-level point of view on the topic. Users may or may not take the time to read this text, depending on their goals and mindset. Home

Level 1 Industries

Regions


Consumer Segments

Consumer Technology




Internet Economy




Site Technology

Web Design

Level 3: Inpage Links Contact Us

...but most of the screen real estate is taken up with modules offering other services from Forrester.

Paying customers are here for research...

VisionReports Reports Vision Strategy Research

ConceptReports Reports Concept Events

ConceptReports Reports Concept Assessment Tools

ConceptReports Reports Concept Advisory Services

From Forrester's perspective, the third level navigation options should represent a clear and balanced overview of their products and services. In the user's mind, relevance is key. All these options should directly relate to the topic of Customer Service . Information that's relevant will probably be perceived as valuable, while information that seems off-topic will probably be ignored — or seen as a distraction.


Forrester Level 3 Detail Page Detail pages list all articles by date. To see more pages of articles the user must first select a time period from a dropdown; there is noNext link. Articles are tagged as a Report , Brief , or Forecast . The left navigation bar changes to show a small number of utilities. The t op navigation bar changes to show filtering options. It 's unusual for a site to change its navigation scheme so frequently — it forces users to re-orient themselves on each page. Home

Top navigation changes to present filtering options. Top navigation still uses rollovers.

Level 1 Industries

Regions


Consumer Segments

Consumer Technology




To Balloon access callout. moreSelect pages shape of and research, start typing. users navigate Resize box by to desired year. Two dimensions. similar Move pulldowns control both handle to accomplish aim pointer this at function. speaker.

Internet Economy


Site Technology

Web Design

Level 3: Inpage Links Contact Us

Left navigation changes to show a different set of utilities.




ConceptReports Reports Concept Events

ConceptReports Reports Concept Assessment Tools

ConceptReports Reports Concept Advisory Services

Articles display title and date, but no introductory paragraph or information about author.


Forrester Advanced Search Forrester's search engine is quite simple. It provides keyword search of the articles, with minimal filtering options. There is no filtering by category, indicating that the search is not linked to a taxonomy.

Home

Advanced Search

Search Results

Go button could be larger or more prominent since it's the only call to action on the page.

Like Jupiter, Forrester uses checkboxes to select between owned research and all research. Since these options are exclusive, radio buttons should have been used.


Forrester Search Results Search results are sorted by relevance (expressed as a percentage.) Again, this ranking is proprietary to the search engine used. Search results show title, author, date, description, and branded report type. Search input and search filters are repeated at the top of the page, which pushes search results lower. There is no option to search within results.

Home

Advanced Search

Search Results

Search results do not show the category the article lives in, but they do have a brief introduction to the article.


Forrester Article Page Forrester Briefs are presented on a single page. The brief leads with a synopsis; the remainder of the brief fills several screens. Forrester Reports are longer and span several pages; the first page contains a synopsis and table of contents. Related information and links appear in a small popup window, which enables users to keep their focus on the article. Users cannot navigate up to the topic page from the article page, suggesting that the taxonomy is not being used as effectively as it could be.

Each article has a good, brief summary. These summaries could be used on topic pages and in search results.

Home

Home

Advanced Search

Skills/Technologies

Search Results

Customer Service

Article Page


Article Page

Another new navigation bar in the left column.

Related information is presented in a popup window. These popups present footnote-type notes and links to related articles.

Via search, users can get to a particular article within three clicks. However, the search input page requires typing and/or option selection, so the interaction is more complex. It would also take a user three clicks to get to the same article via browse navigation. However, the user would have to scan a dense list on the strategy research page to find this particular article. This article appears on the first page of articles listed — if it appeared on another page the user would need to select by date in order to find it.


Forrester Architecture

Research Topics: Top Rollover Navigation

Utility Tools: Left Navigation

Level 1 Industries

Regions


Consumer Segments

Products and Services

P re res s Re Res ou our ce ces

I nv nve st st or Information

T he Company

Sit e Map

Contact Us

Help

Search

Search Results

Level 2: Rollover Navigation Automotive

Canada

Applications & Services

Affluent Consumers

Business-ToBusiness

Europe

Consumer Technology

Young Consumers

Consumer Packaged Goods

France

Customer Service

Financial Services

Germany

Digital Marketing

Government

United Kingdom

Infrastructure

Healthcare

Internet Economy

Media


Retail


Telecommunicati ons

Site Technology

Travel

Web Design


Dow Jones Homepage Dow Jones takes a different approach to their taxonomy and navigation hierarchy. Users don't navigate by research topic, as with Jupiter and Forrester. Instead, Dow Jones branded research tools form the core of the navigation structure. The body of the homepage uses brief text and iconic v isual imagery to introduce users to each section of the site. These Level 1 navigation options are repeated at the top of the page; this positioning is consistent throughout the rest of the site. The left column on the homepage contains some utilities but it will be used for Level 2 Navigation on subsequent pages.

Utility tools are presented as a combination of icons and text. They are consistently placed at the top of the page.

Home

Level 1: Top Navigation Business Newsstand

Level 1 navigation options are highlighted with text and images in the body of the homepage. They are also consistently available as tabs across the top.

Publications Library

W eb eb Ce Ce nt er er

C us to to mC li ps

C om pa ny & Industry Center

Historical Market Data Center

Ask Dow Jones

WSJ.com

Dow Jones selected eight top level categories to reflect its view of the world. Each category represents a type of research or service that Dow Jones offers. Dow Jones does not offer a taxonomy of topics by which users can navigate the site. The categories selected each represent a distinct type of functionality. The labels chosen could be more explicit — there is s ome overlap, for example, between Business Newsstand and Publications Library . The descriptive text in the body of the page should help guide users to the right section.

Utilities presented in the left column on the homepage.

Search modules from Level 2 pages are surfaced on the homepage, to provide quick access to tools users are most likely to want.

Contextual information presented in the right column.


Dow Jones Level 2 Browse Page Dow Jones enables browse navigation by name of publication. A few top headlines from each newspaper are highlighted on this page. Options to browse the entire paper or to search the paper are presented at the module level, placing those options within the context of use.

Home

Tabs highlight the current section to give users a sense of place.




C us to to mC li ps



Ask Dow Jones

WSJ.com

Level 2: Left Navigation Top Newspapers

Business Magazines

News Highlights

Search Newsstand

Dow Jones bypasses a Level 1 page altogether. Instead, Dow Jones defaults to displaying one of several Level 2 pages. Here, f or example, there is no Level 1 page c alled Business Newsstand . Instead, clicking on Business Newsstand takes users directly to the Level 2 page, Top Newspapers .

Dow Jones defaults to a Level 2 page. There is no Level 1 page.

Even though this is the first page the user sees after clicking a global navigation option, it is still a Level 2 page. It occupies the same level of the hierarchy as the other Level 2 options shown in the left column.

Modules highlight recent articles from several large newspapers.

This approach to navigation gets users to relevant content quicker. However, there is a danger that users will overlook the other Level 2 options presented in the left column, assuming that the Top Newspapers content is all that exists for this section.

Related functionality is presented contextually


Dow Jones Level 2 Search Dow Jones offers a variety of search options, each represented on a different page. Keyword search is shown here, while options to search by company, industry, or person, can be accessed through the left navigation. Search is not mapped to a taxonomy of topics.

Home




C us to to mC li ps



Ask Dow Jones

WSJ.com

Level 2: Left Navigation Search by words

Search by company

Search by industry

Search by person

Search Results

Search interface enables user to filter by company, industry, or person. These options are presented on different pages.

Dow Jones' strength is its library of publications. Users can choose to search only a subset of publications.


Dow Jones Search Results Search engine returns results sorted by date, although frequent users can set preferences for how results s hould appear. Search interface is repeated at the top, t hough it isn't clear whether this spawns a new search or searches within results.

Home




C us to to mC li ps



Ask Dow Jones

WSJ.com

Level 2: Left Navigation Search by words

Search by company

Search by industry

Search by person

Search Results

Search results contain title, publication, date, word count, and brief introduction.

Users select More Headlines to navigate between pages of search results. This link could be placed in a more prominent location.


Dow Jones Article Page Articles from a wide variety of publications are reformatted to run within a Dow Jones article template. This maintains a consistent look-and-feel throughout the Dow Jones site.

Home

Business Newsstand

Search by words

Search Results

Via search, users can get to a particular article within two clicks. There is no comparable way to find the same article via browse navigation, since no taxonomy of topics underlies the navigation system.


Dow Jones Architecture Architecture

Research Sources

Utility Tools: Top Navigation



Web Ce Center

CustomClips

Company & Industry Center


Ask Dow Jones

WSJ. com

Help

Pricing

Email

Tools

Content s

Level 2: Left Navigation Top Newspapers

Search by words

Search websites

Set up folders

Company reports

Historical pricing

Business Magazines

Search by company

Directory of sites

Suggest a topic

Industry reports

Exchange rates

News Highlights

Search by industry

Web site reviews

Country reports

Search Newsstand

Search by person

My profile

Market research reports


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