Information architecture refers to the visual functional level of a site. However it’s very subtle.
It is the art of leading the user through a site, using successful navigation and well arranged content.
Remember to add a contact button to every page – specially in your online portfolio. It should be the easiest thing to contact you via email. The navigation should be consistent easy to understand.

Always title your pages. The title of a page is helpful for search engines to find and list your site.

think about:
how and where to display information on your site
how to navigate through the site

 

Structural Design

It’s a good idea to set up the navigation and create the site map before you start to design your site. Especially when you work in teams naming files and folders is essential. Here is a generic example of a file structure I would recommend to apply to any online project:

 

"myweb" is the rootfolder of this project. All files are contained in this folder with the exception of externally linked files, which are part of other web sites. All files are filed into folders with the exception of "index.htm". This file is located directly in the rootfolder to keep the URL simple and short. In this case the URL would be: www.myweb.com. All browsers are configured to recognize the name "index" as the homepage of a web site and display it without it being mentioned if they can detect it in a folder. Links within the rootfolder of a web site are relative. To link the file "aboutme.htm" to "index.htm" the pathname looks like this: <a href="html/aboutme.htm"> Links to other sites are called absolute. Absolute links look lie this: http://www.yoursite.com.

 

Defining your audience

(adapted from “Flash5 Studio”)

The definition of a target audience is an important part of creating a web site, both in terms of usability and graphic design. As the purpose of a site is to communicate information to a group of people, it’s important to know exactly what group of people you’re going to be addressing.

 

As in all other kinds of communication, a web site uses a distinctive language. Before doing anything else, find out who you’re talking to. If you don’t know who they are, there’s a fair chance you’l end up speaking a language that this particular group doesn't’t identify with.

 

Narrowing down your audience improves the impact of your messages. The better targeted the user, the more relevant the message is to that particular kind of user. In other words, you should not attempt to guess who your target audience is. Instead, you should choose who your target audience is going to be. Having chosen the main target group, you can explore the demographics of that group in order to get to know them better.

 

Ask yourself and the client questions about your potential audience, such as

Who do I want to sell the product to? Who will want this information?

• How old are they?
  
  
• Gender?

• What are their interests?

• Where do they spend their money?

• What are they used to?
  
  
• What do they expect as a minimum?

• What are their quality standards?

• What impresses them?

• How long have they been on the net?

• What platform are they?

• What browser do they use?
  
  
• What is their bandwidth (modem or broadband)?

• From where will they connect?

• Which country are they from?