Information Architecture
With more than ten years of experience creating
interactive projects, we’ve had plenty of time to perfect our development process.
We’ve determined a project is only as strong as the planning that goes in to it.
That’s why we’ve designed our development process to make sure your project reaches
its maximum potential through effective information architecture.
Information architecture (IA) is the science of organizing Web sites and other interactive
media to maximize results. With a focus on optimizing the project’s usability, our
staff goes beyond basic content organization by creating an intuitive navigational
structure and highly effective user interface design that is tailored to your target
audience.
The cornerstone of this process is the master blueprint document we author. While
the sales proposal and statement of work (SOW) talk about what you’re project will
do, the blueprint details exactly what will go on behind the scenes to make that
happen. The blueprint is developed through collaboration between your staff and
our development team and serves as a reference throughout development. Several elements
make up this document, including:
The sitemap is exactly what it sounds like; a map outlining all the pages of your
Web site. It lists each page and shows how they will link to one another. The sitemap
ensures the most important information and calls to action are linked throughout
the prominent areas of your Web site.
Design preferences give us a starting point for the style of the project. We review
your current website (if applicable), as well as any of your competitor sites, to
determine a consistent theme for the project.
Wireframes are like a rough draft of the Web site including portions of the site’s
functionality. Wireframes are similar to a sitemap, but actually allow you to click
through and interact with the pages. This provides a better feel for the flow and
functionality of the final product before development begins.
Many sites require integration with third-party components. This may include anything
from credit card processors to CRM systems. We use the process flow document to
outline how our code will interact with these components.
Milestones allow us to group project functionality in to logical stages for smooth
rollout down the road. This allows us to test each stage independent of ongoing
work. With larger scale projects we can even launch full feature milestones to a
production server.
As functionality is established during the planning and development stage, the component
checklist serves as a reference to the base functionality that is required for each
element to work. When the project goes to our Quality Assurance Review (QAR) phase,
this document will be used to make certain all required functionality is in place.
Our Technical Architect will design and deploy the project’s database structure
during the planning phases based on the functionality established in the Statement
of Work. This allows us to maintain a consistent database design across all of our
projects based on industry standards. Creating this standard facilitates consistent
future development by anyone on our programming team.
We establish a hosting configuration tailored to the project specifications before
development begins. That way if functionality or goals evolve during the development
process we have a record. That helps us ensure that our development environment
matches the production environment before launch of the project, reducing the risk
of costly setbacks.
At the conclusion of the development process, not only will you have a great product,
but you will also have this comprehensive blueprint document to use as a basis for
future product expansion. We believe in doing things right the first time, and we
know that proper planning is the only way to ensure that will happen. We appreciate
the opportunity to prove to you that Success Starts with Strategy!