Atlantic Business Technologies, Inc.

Category: Information Architecture

  • How to Balance Data Security and Accessibility

    In a fast-evolving world, data is essential to good decision making. This makes accessibility paramount AND the utmost security is the universal expectation. What a paradox we’ve created.

    Data is valuable because of the insights we can derive from it. But, we must also make sure data stays secure to protect privacy. A flexible governance approach maximizes data across an organization.

    What does this approach look like? It’s the incorporation of proper user access control and/or role-based access to data. Vital to this data access is its classification.

    Being an agency, ABT employees have access to many sources of data. We work with all types of clients and industries. Once we have access, we are usually held accountable for what happens to this data while it’s in our possession.

    In our case, data is only accessible by the relevant department. For instance, the passwords for client WordPress sites are only given to developers and marketers. This isn’t the case for all data in our organization. Data with a high risk potential is more strictly guarded. Our data governance process is one that is reliable and effective.

    Defining Data Governance

    Data governance is not a ‘one size fits all’ system. Your organization will need its own unique strategy. Small organizations can afford to grant data access to users faster, due to size. Bigger organizations should follow a more rigid process.

    The Data Governance Framework laid out by the Data Governance Institute is a good place to start. They describe this framework as a “logical structure” for data organization and activities. This is especially true with regards to “making decisions and taking action on…data.”

    Applying this framework assigns rigorous accountability. It also provides a clear process for making decisions. But, it does have a drawback. This kind of strict governance leaves little room for flexibility.

    Unfortunately, rigidity slows down decision making. Strict processes can have a monetary impact on an organization in the short term.

    Better Governance through Data Classification

    To strike the right balance, consider the classification of your data. Not all data is equal, so not all data needs to adhere to the strictest of controls. How do you know the difference? What data needs high levels of governance vs standard governance?

    At Atlantic BT, we refer to the Federal Information Processing Standards. This document covers the categorization of information. It also covers information systems as seen in this chart: 

    An informal governance framework will be best for data that is low risk. The odds of it compromising confidentiality and integrity are small. This kind of data does not need to follow strict governance for user access. Stakeholders can then access this data with ease. As a result, faster and better decisions can occur with minimal risk.

    Who has access to what data?

    A subset of governance is security through user access controls. User access controls are like role-based access. There are restrictions to data with regards to who actually needs to use/see it. For example: marketer 1 works for client A but not client B, so she has access to analytics data for A’s campaign but not B’s. Likewise, marketer 2 works for client B but not A and so he doesn’t have access to client A’s data.

    One way to achieve this level of security is through a data access policy engine. These tools allow you to give users access to the exact data needed to do a specific job and nothing else. You can grant access to more information as projects get transferred or the team adds a new member. Even better, you can do all this faster. Granting access can be as informal as sending an instant message to a data steward. There is a caveat. The data steward has a tough spot to fill. They must have a general understanding of every employee’s role. It’s the only way they can determine if an employee needs the information to complete a job.

    A more specific aspect of user access controls are role-based access controls. These are specific to an employee of an organization where access to data is dependent on a combination of department, location, and job title. Just like with user access controls, you can govern these through an informal structure to decrease the steps someone might have to go through to access data. Again, this should only be applied to data that has a low potential impact for an organization in case that data is compromised.

    Finding the Right Governance Fit

    In conclusion, a minor sacrifice in governance (not security) can help resolve the tension of having your data be as secure as possible while also maximizing the accessibility of that data.

    However, this fix can’t work for everyone. Larger organizations might have trouble incorporating a system like this, since a data administrator or data steward does not work closely with everybody, making it difficult to have a general understanding of every employee’s role. Additionally, multinational organizations might have to adhere to country-specific requirements that impede them from sharing data across offices or countries.

    Start a conversation with us. We can answer any questions you may have on data governance or access.

  • Win With This Proven Path to Successful Information Architecture

    In my last post, I wrote about common information architecture problems we see on government websites. Government sites have special challenges, but I’m happy to tell you that there are ways to work out the kinks.

    These are some of the approaches we use to clear up information architecture problems. With that said, any problem will have its own specificities that make it hard to present one-size-fits-all solutions.

    Techniques: Content Inventory and Content Audit

    These two techniques are all about getting a handle on the content on your current site. Information Architect Abby Covert calls this “Identify[ing] the mess.”

    Content inventories help you understand where your content stands from a high level perspective. You can grasp how much content you have, what kind of content it is, and where that content exists.

    Content audits are much more detailed. They require you to go into the weeds. During a content audit, you have to make decisions about which content you want to keep on a new site and which content can hit the recycle bin. This brings me to something I can’t stress enough: this will be easier if you’re prepared to let go of old things. Bloated content is causing information overload for your users. Leaner content makes it easier to create effective information architecture.

    But here’s a warning: you don’t want to go into a content audit without more specific goals. You want to have some ideas about the future of your site so you can make decisions based on those.

    Techniques: Card Sorting and Tree Testing

    One of the most visible parts of your information architecture is your navigation. Unfortunately, good navigation requires a lot of work. Card sorting and tree testing are important tools for planning navigation. They also help you see how users understand the topics and information on your site.

    Card sorting is an exercise to find out the topic groupings that you can create from your content. These groupings are very valuable when you’re setting up your navigation.

    Tree testing is the reverse. You won’t ask people to create groupings. Instead, you’ll see if people understand groupings that you have already created. . This is similar to asking people if they can navigate through your site. There’s one key difference, though. Users click through your labels to find where they think certain types of information belong. There is no design or context to help them so they have to navigate based on labels alone. This is a good first step to understanding if users will know how to navigate through your site. Of course on your real site, users will have visual cues to help them. But, the tree test is a check to make sure that the labels and groupings make sense.

    Government information architecture problems tend to come from years of growth on a site. Your web presence will always be changing and growing more sophisticated. It’s natural to have to regroup and realign. These techniques can help.

    With that in mind, each project is different. The bottom line is to make sure that any website redesign is supported by good information architecture. In turn, that information architecture must be supported by thoughtful, deliberate publishing practices and by understanding the ways that users see your content.

  • Why You Need Strong Governmental Information Architecture

    Government agencies have a special obligation to create usable websites. Usability is the digital extension of good public service. There is one significant usability problem that we encounter most often. Government sites can struggle with poor information architecture (IA).

    What is IA? It’s an underlying system of organization. Sites rely on IA to help make their content easy to find and use. IA also encompasses other parts of the site structure. The layout of the site, how the navigation works, and the pages and labels seen, are all examples. It’s also the metadata and taxonomies that you may not notice at first glance.
    So, what are government websites getting wrong?

    Problem #1: Information Overload

    It can be tempting to put as much information as possible on your website. This is partially driven by the desire to inform the public. Unfortunately, putting too much information on a site or a page is detrimental. It will actually hurt your site’s ability to impart information to users.

    Your website is an opportunity to answer common questions before the user has to pick up a phone or send an email. By not providing important content, everyone’s jobs can become more difficult. You’re either burdening your own staff or missing an opportunity to serve the public. But, if you’re putting that content online in a way that makes it too difficult to find? Well, you’re probably going to wind up getting calls anyway.

    Problem #2: Silo Mentality

    Government sites should not need users to know anything about the structure of an agency. Organizing information into little fiefdoms on your website will hurt findability. Instead, organize content based on users’ needs. This strategy is at the heart of effective information architecture.

    One of the biggest silo mentality problems we see are forms, reports, and other documents buried on program or department pages. Usually, they are simple file attachments. When you do that, you are making it harder for people to find your documents. Their only option is to navigate through your content to find what they need. This leaves out the part of your audience Googling your information. It can also hurt those using your own site search. Even for users who want to use your navigation, you’re requiring them to find the exact right page. Then they have to read through the content to find what they need. Think of your users!

    Problem #3: Confusing Labeling

    Again, you can’t expect users to understand the in-and-outs of an agency. They aren’t going to know what to do with jargon or technicalterminology. Using plain language is extremely important. You can’t just look at labels individually, though. It’s necessary to look at sets of labels together to make sure they work cohesively. After all, users are going to need to look at a group of labels and make the right choices.
     
    The good news is that there are plenty of techniques for attacking these problems. The first step is always user research. Understanding your users better allows you to create an informed strategy. You can compare user needs to your business objectives and make strong decisions. Knowing who you’re organizing information for and why makes choices about information architecture easier.

  • The Best Content Strategy for Time and Space

    Does Your Website Need Time-Sensitive Content?

    The web design and online marketing communities have been debating an interesting issue. Is time-sensitive content necessary for websites?

    Some developers and experts will argue that it’s more important than ever. Addressing hot topics can lead to immediate search and social visibility. It takes advantage of the fact that current events are already on the minds of users. Yet, there are others who will tell you that you should strive to generate “evergreen” content. These kinds of articles and videos can keep drawing traffic, views, and leads for years to come. They will always be relevant. It only makes sense to get as much mileage from them as you can. Especially given the time and expense involved in fleshing out your new ideas.

     

    How does your choice of content affect your brand as well? Many brand prognosticators believe that companies must make statements on current issues in order to stay relevant. They also believe that brands choosing to stay out of cultural conversations reduces the amount of trust consumers have in them. If a company will not state what their thoughts are, consumers will create those thoughts for them. Then they will associate that with the brand, most likely causing damage. Equally damaging? The odds of isolating potential consumers who disagree with what you have to say. Is it worth the risk?

    So, which viewpoint is the correct one? Does your website or blog actually need time-sensitive content? In our experience, there isn’t a single answer to these questions. Instead, there are a set of simple guidelines you might want to follow.

    Find a Blend of Hot and Lasting Topics

    You must establish your website as a source of information on new topics and evergreen tips. For example, our blog will feature articles about voice-assisted search technology one week. The next week, we will feature a piece about general design and development ideas.

    We jumped right into events as they were happening, posting about the Equifax Data Breach within the week of it occurring. We also anticipated events that would potentially influence our users. We were ready to go and shared our thoughts on the expiration of Amazon One Click the day it happened.

    But we also want our users to know that they can count on us to be consistent. We care about the work we do everyday and we know what we’re doing. Being a resource of fundamental knowledge is equally important. We provide our eCommerce customers with payment information. Anyone wondering about how we approach designing a new website can easily find out. And we’re happy to share the unique things that inspire our team and set us apart from the competition.

    Your users and prospects most likely want to know about what is happening in your industry. But, they also need some general strategies they can use week after week. Consider the most important piece of advice on the topic. Give them a good mixture to choose from.

    Work From an Editorial Calendar

    Establish an editorial calendar. It’s much easier to balance your content strategy with this kind of tool. It allows you to even out the publication of newand older ideas. It also gives you room to actually create articles and videos that can fit right into the ideal schedule. A calendar will let you know what kinds of themes, events, and milestones are on the horizon. You’ll also be able to see if you tend to gravitate to one kind of content over another. That kind of reference point will help you see if you lean to far towards one end of the content spectrum.

    When you have a written plan and schedule in place, content marketing gets easier. An editorial calendar lets you organize your campaigns. It also ensures that your message comes through consistently.

    Here at Atlantic BT, our marketing team relies on the content calendar for many reasons. It keeps us all on the same page. Everyone knows what topics are on deck and what we can look forward to down the road. It also allows us some flexibility should time sensitive content come into play. Do we have new information we need to communicate quickly? Do we have a piece that we can’t publish just yet? Our calendar lets us adjust for that easily.  Again, it also communicates that adjustment to the entire team.

    Don’t Forget to Update Your Content

    Posting on current events or trends will show users that you’re always living in modern times. Remember, then, that it’s important to return to your content once in a while and update your ideas. That could mean a few different things. You may have to write new posts or follow up on case studies. You might even have to delete old material that is no longer relevant. Don’t forget to redirect your pages if you do.

    Consider the quality of the work as well. Are your thoughts being communicated clearly? Is the idea compelling? Can your audience connect with the stories you have to tell? This is relevant to both ‘evergreen’ and current event topics. It’s ok to scrap pieces because they’re simply no good. Content quantity is important. It’s no substitute, though, for making real connections with your users. You always want to give your consumers the very best. That belief should be clear in the quality of your content.

    Revising or pruning different pieces of content helps your users. This is a great way to keep your website fresh. Your prospects and customers are never getting information that is out of date. Also, a website that is consistently up to date reflects a company that is always moving forward.

    Need Help Putting Together a Solid Content Strategy?

    At Atlantic BT in North Carolina, we know what it takes to build a great website and make the most of it. Are you looking for ways to make design, development, apps, and content all work together? Especially in a way that moves you towards your bottom line revenue goals? Contact us today for a free consultation.

     

  • Taxonomies: A Trilogy – Your Hard Won Victory

    This blog is part 3 of a 3-part series on Taxonomies. Read part 1 on an Introduction to Taxonomies or part 2 on Common Taxonomy Mistakes if you want to catch up.

    The development or revising of a website taxonomy requires constant check ins. Aren’t you curious to know the results of all your love and labor? Then these check ins should be common sense. In this, the thrilling conclusion to the Taxonomy Trilogy, we will focus on evaluation. I will review basic taxonomy guidelines and techniques. Designing an efficient categorical system can be daunting. These techniques will be sure to help build your team’s confidence as they do so.

    Signs Your Taxonomy Needs Improvement

    First, let’s see what kind of shape your taxonomy is in. Review these warning signs that your taxonomy still needs work:

    • Your content publishers struggle to apply your site’s taxonomies in a uniform manner. Agreement is clarity. If your content team disagrees over which terms to use in which section, your users will end up confused.
    • Users are struggling to find the right content. It can be difficult to tell when users struggle. This is especially true of sites that aren’t tied to marketing success metrics. But, if you have user data that points to findability issues, use it. Data from customer service or social media feedback can help. You can zero in on the areas of the site that need improvement.
    • Multiple classifications in a taxonomy overlap. Similar terms in more than one classification option can cause confusion. Content publishers will struggle to identify which one to use.
    • Perceived hierarchy or mixed usage within a category. Is this an issue? Meet with the content strategist and talk about the needs of the website. Discuss the development of the terms. Try to get rid of the subcategories of your terms. If need be, create new categories.
    Ineffective website taxonomies can cause confusion throughout a team of content creators.
    Ineffective website taxonomies can cause confusion throughout a team of content creators.

    How to Test Taxonomy at Any Stage in Web Design

    You may identify problems early on or while the taxonomy is live. Here is a brief guideline of measures you can take throughout the process. From creation to post-implementation, these will see you through every step.

    Stage 1: Creating Taxonomies

    During the development and testing stage, keep multiple roles involved. This will ensure that eyes are on all aspects of the taxonomy system. These roles will be crucial to gathering valuable feedback. Below are some team roles that will be useful cohorts in this journey.

    Developers:  They will be aware of the possibilities and limitations of your taxonomy system. In essence, they are your experts on taxonomy as a tool.

    Information Architects: This is the person who will likely take the lead in creating your taxonomy. They will focus on efficient and representative organization of terms.

    Content Strategists: This role will keep an eye on how the taxonomy will affect the structure of the site’s content. They will be able to recommend what categories the project does or does not need.

    UX/Interaction Designers: Keep the designers in the loop for updates. If you are finalizing the taxonomy along with the page designs, this is important.

    Researchers: They will identify the best timing and methods for testing your taxonomy. This will be data and insight based. They are likely to be very smart and fun to be around (in my unbiased opinion)

    While you develop your system with these roles, keep a couple of things in mind. Be sure to establish consensus on which page views your taxonomy will generate. Also focus on the overall business goals of the website. Document what aspects will rely on your taxonomy and the purpose it will serve. Then bring the taxonomy draft to team sessions for review.

    As you focus on these aspects, it will be useful to run a few card sorts with end -users. This will help your team understand the benefit to end-users. It will also ensure you are meeting their expectations.

    Stage 2: Revising and Testing Taxonomies

    It’s difficult to predict exactly how everything will work out once a website is live. Test your taxonomy with both the content owners and the direct team. This test will also be a card sort, but this time we will be working in the reverse direction, adding terms to content.
     
    You may want to adjust the standard card sort protocol to get the right results. Remember, this type of testing is about replicating the proposed environment. Prepare to alter testing methods for more representative results.
     
    Be sure to pay attention to the comments and actions of the content owner. As you test, these clues should help make their understanding of the terms clear. And the end of your sessions you should have a good idea of problems that are likely to occur. When possible, solve these problems by adjusting the taxonomy and terms. Any term or category that must exist but is not understandable will need clarity. Make sure you create documentation that clearly explains its purpose.

    Stage 3: Revising Taxonomies After Implementation

    Please note that the most difficult time to get buy-in for research is going to be after the content is live. This is for good reason. There will be a daunting amount of work, picking through all your content. And then creating new terms. Keep this in mind as you redesign or design a taxonomy. Do everything in your power to refine and test a taxonomy while the system is being designed.
     
    But, if you think your live taxonomy isn’t up to snuff, here are things you can do:

    Review terms and categories

    If you find changes in the taxonomy or additions made over time, you might want to consider some revision. Establish the problem space. Then you will be able to relabel taxonomy terms and categories. Always test any changes you make to ensure that you are moving in the direction of improvement.

    Define, develop, and deploy staff training

    You don’t have many options for taxonomic revisions? The problems occurring are severe? Consider assessing how the current system could be best employed. Introduce a new training guide. This will put the bulk of the burden on the content managers. Provide them with as much support and documentation as you can.

    Burn the website and start over from scratch.

    Alright, so this is a little dramatic. But, it’s worth pointing out that this is a viable option. Particularly if the site relies on a system that isn’t working.

    Don’t discount the liberating feeling of destroying a taxonomy that doesn’t work.
    Don’t discount the liberating feeling of destroying a taxonomy that doesn’t work.

    How to Test Taxonomy at Any Point in the Process

    Building a taxonomy is a great exercise in team communication. It’s also an excellent place for researchers to assist in discovering user understanding. Your taxonomy may take a day to build and work fine for a simple website. Its development could also take months for a more complex project. Above all, there are three principles to follow in your journey.

    1. Regularly gather feedback. Communicate with your design and development teams. Test with internal and end users
    2. Be flexible in revisions. The taxonomy will need to support the content needs of the website, so don’t get attached to a single idea. It may not work out in practice.
    3. Research other systems and guidelines related to your framework. Both WordPress and Drupal have excellent resources available. They can help with using and building taxonomies within their frameworks. If you aren’t the developer, you will want to review these.

    Thanks for reading and happy categorizing!

  • Taxonomies: A Trilogy – Mistakes and How to Survive

    This blog is part 2 of a 3-part series on Taxonomies. To read part 1 on an Introduction to Taxonomies, click here. To read part 3 on How to Evaluate and Test Taxonomies, click here.

    As you have already learned, the word taxonomy can have different connotations. Ernesto’s post pointed out that taxonomy has its roots in scientific classification. But, web designers and marketers now use the concept to structure websites. This evolution has led to the improvement of the user experience. With such a range of meanings, it’s easy to understand why the term taxonomy can create confusion. Especially for anyone trying to understand how to apply it.

    To add to this confusion, many of us learn about taxonomy concepts in bits and pieces. Me? I first learned about taxonomies in a library science class. We discussed the topic in a very conceptual way. What were the best ways to use taxonomies in the academic setting? How could they be best used to organize huge amounts of academic information? Then I entered the web development world. I learned here that we aren’t always trying to classify everything on a site. Instead, we use smaller, flat taxonomies to support specific site functions.

    Using taxonomy shouldn’t be scary or overwhelming. But, it’s easy to see how one might get confused about how to classify content on a site. We’ll now discuss come common confusions about taxonomies. Most importantly, we’ll make sure you don’t fall into any traps.

    Common Taxonomy Confusions and Clarifications

    1. Taxonomies Are Keywords

    When you add keywords to a piece of content using free text, you associate metadata with that content. This can be a very useful tool. Keywords can describe a document with a lot of precision. They also mean you don’t have to choose a best fit for your taxonomy.

    Taxonomy is effectively a series of keywords.
    Taxonomy is effectively a series of keywords—carefully organized with users in mind.

    Yet, this free-form approach cannot provide the structure that taxonomies can. Developers can design systems that rely on taxonomic terms to dynamically generate pages. Imagine trying to do this with a system based on free-text, chosen by a content publisher, keywords. The page would miss terms created ad-hoc by content publishers. Things would be harder to find. Also, you wouldn’t be able to make complex associations. Such an unprepared system wouldn’t be able to handle variations.

    How to Fix It

    Avoiding this confusion is pretty easy. Structure content publishing in your content management system. Also, don’t forget to provide training for your content team. Have content publishers associate a taxonomic term with a piece of content. Then teach them what consequences that association will have.

    Also, don’t rely on trendy keywords to populate your drop-down filters. Use your research to choose more precise terms for your taxonomy. The inherent differences between these specific, chosen terms will enhance the site’s UX. They will guide users to choose the correct option for the information they needed.

     2. Your Top Level Navigation Should be a Taxonomy

    A map of your site structure will look a lot like a taxonomy. Why? Because the organization of the pages are hierarchical. Furthermore, you could take that structure and directly translate into a navigation system. In that system, you would have to drill down from the largest categories to find content.

    Yet, your top navigation system doesn’t have to perfectly represent your site structure. Keep in mind, translating a taxonomic site structure into a navigation system can be hard. It will likely limit your designers’ abilities to enhance certain parts of the UX. Highlighting/lowlighting parts of the site that will better meet user needs are not as easy. Also, there’s no rule against crosslinking. That allows the linking of a page in one section to that of a page in another section. This action could also be useful to users. Yet, it does not follow the ‘perfect’ taxonomy philosophy of organization.

    How to Fix It

    Your navigation system must match user needs. It also must reflect the key functions of your website above all else. For example, sections like Terms of Service. That more than likely occupies a high level in a site structure. Yet, you don’t want to put a link to that section in your top-navigation. Why? Because it won’t be a section that many users need to access. Since needs will differ for any site, be sure to use user research. (This includes testing and Laura will cover that in our thrilling conclusion.) Also use business objectives to help you choose what to focus on.

     3. Taxonomies Must Have Multiple Levels of Classification.

    Remember, the classic example of a taxonomy is the scientific classification of species. This hierarchical taxonomy illustrates the informational power of hierarchy. You can infer things about a species based on the chain of broader classes that it belongs to.

    How to Fix It

    Hierarchical structure is great for scientific classification. It may also be appropriate on your website. But, there’s nothing wrong with a single level, or “flat” taxonomy. In this taxonomy structure, there is no nested term under any other. In fact it’s often the most common we interact with on the web. Many drop-down filters are actually flat taxonomies. For example, consider the body style taxonomy on a used car website. As you can see from the screenshot, the taxonomy includes no hierarchy, but places each care into a class.

    Of course, viewing an organizational system as a flat taxonomy is a matter of perspective. There is usually some way to add hierarchy if you want. For example, it would be easy to create a second level of classification from the used cars list. All you would have to do is group all the pickup trucks in a pickup class, all the vans in a van class, and so on. Whether you need to do that or not is the question you need to address as the organizer. The next post in this trilogy will address how to test taxonomies with your users. This will allow you to find the right one for your needs.

    A Great Taxonomy Takes the Right Team

    After reading this far, you may be ready to jump into taxonomical work without hesitation. But, if you’re feeling like you need some help, you’re not wrong. Producing a good taxonomy requires a lot of work. This would include research, design, and testing. The right team can make sure you get taxonomy right the first time to avoid having to clean up a content mess later.

    There’s good news! There are professionals who spend a lot of their time tuning taxonomy. They are willing to help. Here at Atlantic BT, we have plenty of perspectives to bring to the table. Our Information Architect, User Researcher, Content Strategists, and developers are on board. They are all able to create powerful and well-planned taxonomies. Feel free to contact us if you have questions.

    The final part of our trilogy will be gripping. It will tell you everything you need to know about testing and validating a taxonomy. Revisit our exciting plot episode if you can’t get enough.