Information Architecture

Information architecture is the science of figuring out what you want your site to do and then constructing a skeleton before you dive into the low level details. The model that we employ is based on the five elements as proposed by Jesse James Garrett. The Web design process has the following five "planes":

• Strategy (site objectives and user needs)
• Scope (functional specifications and content requirements)
• Structure (interaction design and information architecture)
• Skeleton (interface design, interaction design, and information design)
• Surface (visual design)

Our design process is based on a top-down approach, we start by looking at the website vision, mission, strategy and objectives. We then derive and gather the site scope as well as the site stakeholders. This is based on research and evaluation of existing systems. The process combines analytical and empirical techniques according to resources, fitness for purpose, and goals.

Once we define what we want to achieve and why, we proceed to the definition of how. At this stage we design the structure of the site as a whole and map the links and relationships between the various entities and sub-systems. The structure could be based on tasks, time based, user type (e.g. business, home, expert), geography, topic or any other structure that is suitable. It may also be a combination of structures. At this stage we also define the navigation systems that will underline the target system. The next step involves the design of templates, layouts, and interaction style that will be used across pages in the system. This step focuses on specific pages and functions. We also employ modular design methodologies to ensure that any common functions, forms, data structures are created once and being reused.

The final step involves the visual design of pages. This involves the creation and design of CSS stylesheets and graphic.