Building a website is like building a house, a solid foundation and infrastructure are crucial, although brilliant elements (for example, kitchens and bathrooms, decor) attract all attention.
What is site architecture?
Let's start with the definition. A website's architecture is a way of organizing content and creating navigation controls that allow site visitors to receive information of the greatest value to them. More briefly, the site architecture includes the site structure, interface design, usability and user experience.
However, the real question for us, marketers, is how we think about the architecture of a website from a layman’s point of view and how we implement it on our own websites?
Perspective
First of all, make sure that you think in terms of your potential customers. This is perhaps the most important factor in creating a website that attracts your audience and encourages them to perform the desired action.
Organize the site so that it responds to the problems of the audience and uses the terminology that they use themselves. Create centers for your key audience segments. These can be different industries, different types of organizations in the industry, even different roles in organizations with which you seek to do business. Speak in their language as specifically as possible, and you will attract their attention.
Balance. Easy access with content density
You are an expert in what you do. You have a lot of experience. Naturally, you have something to say about everything you do. The problem is that no one wants to hear all this until he himself sets out on this path.
This means that you should be aware of the desires of your audience to receive operational, general information in fast, easily digestible texts, which allow you to further dig deeper.
Thus, on the main page you need to place a "thin cutting" of all that is of interest and tells what will happen if you delve into the study of 6-8 clicks.
Ideally, you should create your website with convenient overview pages that will lead to pages dedicated to one of the aspects of your proposed solution. An additional level can (and often should) be available for those who want to delve into such things as basic research that determine their decision.
The site architecture should be based on the nature and structure of conversations with potential customers. Do you want to allow them to easily navigate your website just as they want to continue talking with you about purchasing?
Think for customers
"Do not make me think" - this is often meant by customers who are looking for something on the site. Ultimately, usability is probably the main factor when considering the success of a website's architecture.
The bottom line is that you want to surprise and please your target audience with your ideas and experience, not with the navigation and structure of your site. It should be simple and natural. Here is an example: if your audience is not super hippie, you probably want to call your contact page “Contacts” rather than “Click here, dude”.
If you are consistent from section to section in terms of content and ease of usability, you will increase your chances of seeing a positive return on investment in your site.
Futureinapps company creates websites that are adaptive for any devices and requests of any customers!
