Both
interface design and navigational schemes address the challenge
of how the human animal is going to interact with your website
or software application. Although this may sound like an elementary
concept, its actually quite complicated.
In
the case of navigating a website, the very nature of the "pull
medium", where net surfers choose at whim what information
to access unlike the television where commercials are thrust in
the viewers face, users have a unique sense of independence, control
and freedom. In most cases your visitors should be able to roam
freely on your website and find intuitively the information they
seek. The very nature of the web makes everything non-linear,
quite the opposite of traditional publications and older methods
of gathering information.
Your
navigational scheme, easily as critical as your content, should
never be difficult for your users. Here are a few basic guidelines:
Logical
Navigation should be logical not only to the primary project group,
but to folks who have never seen the content before. When you
hear the term "intuitive" used to describe navigation,
we think that translates to "makes sense" and this would
come under the umbrella of "logical". Inevitably this
is our left brain talking.
Intuitive
Navigation should be intuitive not only to the primary project
group, but to folks who have never seen the content before. When
you hear the term "intuitive" used to describe navigation,
our creative department would argue that simply being logical
is not enough. The flow should be natural, with lots of visual
cues and creative options. The point here is that your visitors
will often be of both the right and left brain variety so a balance
of the "intuitive" and the "logical" is often
your best bet.
Inside
& Out
Each page should contain links to all major "sections"
in your site's hierarchy This might be called "site wide"
navigation. All relevant pages within each section should be accessible
anywhere within that section as well. This might be called "section"
navigation. Both types should be included on each page in some
form.
Text
Links
All pages should include text only hyperlinks somewhere on the
page. These links serve disabled visitors as well as anyone who
may have "display graphics" turned off. Its a very small
addition that can dramatically enhance your accessibility. This
detail is strongly recommended.
Site
Map
A sitemap is a general outline or listing of all the pages within
your website Its a simple addition which can offer your visitors
the simplest possible method for finding the exact information
they want...in a mere moment.
Your
navigational elements should answer the following questions succinctly:
- Where
am I?
- Where
have I been?
- Where
can I go next?
