What is Information Architecture?

The goal of Information Architecture (IA), as we have been informed by the dinosaurs, is to allow internet users to interact (interface) with a web site as easily and comfortably as possible. A local Colorado company, Usability First, defines IA as "the work that goes into creating intuitive navigation schemes for software."  That a user will be able to navigate a website intuitively, without having to track down information like a hunter  following the footprints of her prey, is the information architects primary concern. Rather than relying on often ambiguous language, the information architect tries to infuse the website scheme with an information scent that will guide users naturally to the information they desire.

So, how do information architects conceive of these schemes and when does their work become the domain of website designers? When we think of architecture we generally think of buildings and everything that goes in to building them from function to aesthetics. However, IA is more concerned with function than with the way a website will look - that is the work of a website designer. The WIRED website explains that IA "is the science of figuring out what you want your site to do and then constructing a blueprint before you dive in and put the thing together." Thinking of the components of a navigation scheme for your website as building materials for a skyscraper (or a quaint cottage, depending on the size of your site) is a good metaphor to begin to understand how an information architect begins to create her site blueprint. Before one can build a building, they must first consider who they are building it for, what purpose it will serve, and how  the structure will be supported while providing the correct amount of space, air circulation, and light to make moving  around in the space comfortable. This means the architect must consider how many windows, doors, and  rooms she will need to incorporate in her building and what materials will be most effective and supply the best support for it. WIRED has a wiki tutorial that guides one through the phases of IA, breaking it down into five easy to follow lessons. The lessons include:

Lesson 1:   

• Define the Site’s Goals
• Ask Questions
• Filter the Answers
• Design Document – Site Goals                                                            

 Lesson 2:

• Define the Audience
• Create Scenarios
• Competitive Analysis
• Design Document:Audience, Scenarios, and Competitive Analysis

Lesson 3:

• Identify Content and Functional Requirements
• Group and Label Content
• Design Document – Content and Functions        

Lesson 4:  

• Metaphor Exploration
• Set It in Stone
• Define Navigation
• Design Document

Lesson 5:

• Layout Grids
• Design Sketches and Page Mock-ups
• Design Document

By the time the information architect reaches the phases in the fifth lesson she will probably already have been consulting with a website designer, however it is essential that she work closely with a designer in the last phases of implementation.