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Web Site Design – The Importance of Planning

Are you thinking about designing (or re-designing) a Web site for your library, but not sure where to start? This is the first in a series of articles about Web site design and deals with planning. A future article will deal with interface design, navigation, and usability issues. The guidelines outlined below can be scaled down to meet the specific needs of your Web development project, including staff size limitations.

Proper planning helps ensure the success of your Web project. Planning includes:

• Forming a Web Site Development Team
• Identifying the Goals of the Site
• Obtaining Input on Content and User Expectations
• Evaluation
• Specifying User Requirements

Useful Links lists some sites that can help you with the planning process. There is also information about other aspects of Web site design, such as design considerations (e.g. consistency, use of color, page layout, etc.), usability, navigation, and accessibility.

Regardless of the size of the project, it is important to obtain input from users on their needs (e.g. content, priorities, interface, etc.), and feedback on the library's existing site, if there is one. This does not need to be a formal process. You can meet one-on-one with certain key individuals or send an email requesting input. In addition, obtaining support from your Administration on the project, including the goals and objectives, may help get some extra funding for content!

Forming a Web Site Development Team

Even if you are going to perform all of the site development yourself, identifying a group of people willing and able to provide input and feedback is very important. Ideally, this should include people from the various user groups the Web site serves—physicians, nurses, medical students, physical therapists, administration, patients, etc. Depending on the scope of your project, this group can either function as an informal resource, or meet formally throughout the development process. (Or, a combination of the two.)

One useful activity is for people to identify two or three of their favorite sites, and some of their least favorite sites, and explain what they like and dislike. This can either be done as a group or through individual meetings. This is a great way to get ideas for the user interface design. In addition, people may be more open about criticizing problems with a "third-party" site, rather than saying too many negative things about your current site. (And they may not even realize that is what they are doing!)

Identifying the Goals of the Site

One of the first tasks is to establish the goals for the site. It is best to identify two or three high level goals and include quantitative measurements for success. For example, if your project is to update your library’s Intranet site, you could establish goals such as:

• Increase by 50% the use of the library’s Web resources by physicians, nurses, medical students, and other health professionals.
• Disseminate reliable and up-to-date information to the members of the XYZ Hospital Community through regular (at least weekly) updates to the content on the Intranet.

It may be necessary to do some work before finalizing your goals. For example, some of the issues you should address are:

• What is the purpose of the site—e.g. educate and inform rather than entertain and sell products?
• Who will use the Web site? (e.g. health professionals, consumers, senior citizens, students—high school, college, medical school, graduate school, etc.) This will have an impact on content, including how to organize the information.
• Is the site available to the public or part of an Intranet for staff use?
• What is the users’ experience with the Web? Novice users, power users, or all levels?
• What information is currently available about current Web site usage, such as the number of visitors, which pages they are viewing, etc.

Obtaining Input on Content and User Expectations

As part of planning, it may be helpful to develop several scenarios of people looking for information. Return to these scenarios throughout the Web site development process to verify that the site is meeting the needs of your users.

Examples of some scenarios include:

• Perform research on a disease, condition, or procedure—healthcare professional
• Learn about a disease or condition—either for personal use or for a family member
• Access the resources available through the library—e.g. print and online journals, online textbooks, clinical information systems, etc.
• Learn about resources through Internet links to other sites.

Another important area to focus your attention is with the actual content of the site. It may be helpful to perform a content inventory, listing existing and desired content. Don't forget to include costs with the inventory. It will help to have the cost information readily available when you need to start making those inevitable trade-offs.

It is important to obtain input and feedback from the user community on content requirements. Colleagues can also be an invaluable resource with ideas on how to get the most for your money.

Evaluation

Remember those goals and objectives? Now you need to figure out how to measure success.

In a perfect world, it would be great to be able to perform extensive usability testing on a site before and after the design. However, that is not really practical, or necessary. As stated previously, it is advisable to obtain feedback from users on your current site, and have them provide input on updates during the re-design. But this can be done in a less formal way.

It is also important to obtain quantitative information on the use of your Web site. For example, if you established a goal of increasing the use of the library's Intranet site by 50%, you need to determine (or estimate) current usage, and then track usage after the re-design.

Check with your Information Services (IS) department to determine the type of statistics currently available for your site. Typical information includes the number of unique visitors, number of pages requested for viewing, the path visitors take through the site, the amount of time visitors spend on each page, and where visitors enter and leave your site. Most IS departments have site analysis reporting tools that present this information in a relatively easy to understand format.

Specifying User Requirements

Specifying the user requirements can be the most difficult, and time-consuming part of the planning process. However, having a document to refer back to is critical in keeping the project on-track and meeting your goals and objectives. Sections of the specification should include the following information:

1. Organization’s Background/Mission
2. Goals and Objectives of Site
3. Audience
4. Content
5. Budget
6. Schedule for Completion
7. Technical Aspects—e.g. hardware and software requirements
8. Site Marketing Plan
9. Evaluation—How to measure success
10. Ongoing Maintenance

This does not have to be a detailed document. Bullet points sometimes work better than long narrative sections.

Conclusion

If one of your New Year's resolution is to update your library's Web site, hopefully this information will get you started in the right direction. Below are some links for additional reading.

Useful Links

http://usability.gov/
National Cancer Institute.

http://usability.gov/guidelines/index.html
Research-Based Web Design & Usability Guidelines National Cancer Institute.

http://www.upassoc.org/html/resources.html
Usability Professionals Association Resources.

http://useit.com/
Useit.com: Jakob Nielson's Web Site.

http://www.webpagesthatsuck.com
Web Pages that Suck: Learn Usability and Good Design by Looking at Bad Design.

http://www.webstyleguide.com
Web Style Guide (2nd Edition)