Web navigation design principles, part 5: May 14, 2001 issue of New Thinking

May 14, 2001 New Thinking:
Web navigation design principles, part 5

Website content management

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Gerry McGovern

Content Critical

Gaining competitive advantage through high-quality web content

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May 14, 2001

Web navigation design principles, part 5:
Support the reader, never mislead them

By Gerry McGovern

(Note: This is an excerpt from Chapter 8 of Content Critical.)

For large websites, no matter how good the navigation design, there will always be people who will get confused. A reader should never be more than one click away from being able to get help, either through contacting the organization, and/or through accessing a help section. A help section is of particular importance where a reader is asked to carry out a complex task, such as a purchase process or advanced search.

A way to support the reader is to help them avoid making obvious errors. For example, if a form is asking a reader what country they’re from, a country drop-down list is better than asking them to type in their country name. If the reader has made a mistake, support them in isolating that mistake. For example, if the reader has made a mistake in filling out a 30-field form, don’t have a response that says, “Some fields in your form were not filled out correctly.” Rather, say: “It seems that your email address has not been entered correctly.”

Remember, many readers are unfamiliar with the Web, and even those with experience can get reticent, particularly where they are asked to input credit card details, or where they are required to go through a process that is in any way long. Always strive to make the process as simple and foolproof as possible. Explain every single step of the way in a precise, straightforward and friendly manner. If they carry out an action, always give them feedback: “Thank you. Your order has been accepted.”

While it is essential to give as much feedback to the reader as possible, it is equally as important to encourage the reader to give feedback. The reader should be constantly encouraged to tell the organization what they think of their experience on the website. Other options here include allowing the reader to rate a particular piece of content they have just read by displaying for them a simple rating chart (1-10; Excellent, Good, Fair, Poor). Another option is to allow the reader to easily inform someone else of important content by providing an, ‘Email this story’ facility.

Never bring the reader down a particular navigation path only to lead them to something they do not expect. It is not uncommon, particularly with American websites, to go through a purchase process to find that the company only ships to the United States. If such a situation is the case, inform the reader as early as possible in the process in clear, visible and prominent language.

Avoid asking the reader to carry out a task that it is impossible or very difficult for them to do. A classic example here is forcing all readers to fill out a ‘Zip code’ regardless of whether Zip codes operate in that reader’s country. Avoid offering the reader contact details they can’t avail of. If you wish to deal with customers outside the United States, for example, don’t offer them ‘1-800’ numbers that they can’t ring.

Never underestimate the ability of an average intelligent person to make what often looks to a designer like the most obvious of mistakes. In life, it is often what is most obviously right that we avoid doing, and what is most obviously wrong that we can’t help but do. The motto is: ‘So simple, even an adult can understand it’.

Gerry McGovern

Next issue: Creating content collaboratively
Previous issue: Web navigation design principles, part 4
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Never underestimate the ability of an average intelligent person to make what often looks to a designer like the most obvious of mistakes.