For our readings this week, we were required to read chapters 17 and 18 of the Morville & Rosenfeld text. These chapters were great to read because I do have some understanding of the topics that were discussed. Chapter 17 dealt with the importance of marketing Information Architecture to the world. I know how important marketing is as I once did a paper on marketing and its significance to public libraries. Through my research, I discovered just how imperative it is for librarians to market themselves and their programs or else they will not be able to survive. The patrons and the public must be made aware of why a certain library should be patronized and how the services that they offer will impact those who use the library. It was most illuminating.
In the case of Information Architecture, the architect must be equipped to sell themselves and what they do. They must be prepared to encounter negative thinking and have ways to convince their colleges and clients on why IA is important and why they should use it. The authors call attention to two groups of business people. One is the “by the numbers” group and the other is the “gut reactionary” group. According to Morville & Rosenfeld (2007), “The by the numbers people require data to help them make their decisions. They need to see figures. They rationally consider return on investment (ROI) as the basis for business decisions. Gut reactionaries do what feels right. They trust their instincts and often have plenty of good experience to draw on. They consider the intangibles when they make decisions. And they are often suspicious of numbers and how well they predict the real world” (p. 366).
When one is making a case for IA to clients, there are several methods to consider. The ones the authors mention are: User sensitivity “boot camp” sessions which involve getting decision makers who are not exactly proficient on the web introduced to the use of a web browser, Expert site evaluations which involves using an IA expert to help evaluate major problems within web sites and rectify them quickly, Strategy sessions which allow opinion leaders and decision leaders to meet and discuss IA and their goals and strategies, Competitive analyses which is a strong mode of psychological manipulation that allows architects and clients to compare a site’s IA issues against its opponents, Comparative analysis which involves judging your site against similar sites, Ride the application salesman’s wake which can involve partnering with vendors in IA-related software application and latching on to them in a project, and lastly, Be aggressive and be early which is important as the authors point out it is a good idea to advance the use of IA in a project as near to the beginning as possible to allow for the development of the services it provides and the marketing. Morville & Rosenfeld (2007), close the chapter by stated that, “Whichever points and approaches you use to make your case for Information Architecture, keep in mind how difficult this challenge is. After all, you’re promoting something that’s abstract, intangible and new and each situation demands a unique solution” (p. 377). Of course this is absolutely understandable because different businesses will have variable goals that they want to achieve with IA and as such, architects must be on their toes. Additionally, because the field is growing and changing, they must also adapt and keep up if they are going to knowledgably and effectively market IA.
Chapter 18 was about Business Strategy which I believe everyone has some knowledge and understanding of as it is used in some way in everyday life. According to Morville & Rosenfeld (2007), “In practice, information architecture and business strategy should have a symbiotic relationship. It’s obvious that the structure of a web site should align with the goals and strategy of the business. So business strategy (often called business rules) drives information architecture” (p. 378). It is important that IA activities are in alignment with the strategies that a business is engaging in. One way of doing this is to conduct stakeholder interviews to discuss things with managers so that that you can get a better idea of the larger goals and stratagies of the establishment. One of the jobs of an IA architect is to expose gaps in the business strategy and to find and solve problems. Often the issues that are encountered are able to be fixed, but there are other times when they are indication of other problems. Often, the managers may not be aware of any problems so the architect must call attention to it and work with the clients to fix the issues. Another method of forming a strategy is to do a SWOT analysis. According to Morville & Rosenfeld (2007), “SWOT stands for the analysis of internal Strengths and Weaknesses of the organization informed by the Opportunities and Threats posed by the external environment” (p. 385). SWOT is an excellent tool and is used often by a veriety of businesses and organizations because it can be adapted to nearly any business situation. The authors close the chapter by stressing the importance of understanding how deep IA can be and a lack of understanding can result in the failure of the project.
These chapters were really great to read and I most enjoyed revisiting the importance of the SWOT analysis. I once had to do my own for a project last semester in my Introduction to Library Administration class and while it was challenging, it was also very illuminating and I can understand how they help to form ideas and lay out a plan.
References
Morville, Peter & Rosenfeld, Louis. (2007). Information Architecture for the World Wide Web. Sebastopol, CA. O’Reilly Media, Inc.