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Home > articles > usability & information architecture > Information scent: helping people find the content they want
AUGUST 2005
Information scent: helping people find the content they want
Written by Iain Barker, published August 2nd, 2005
Categorised under: articles, usability & information architecture
Enabling people to find the specific information they require amongst the hundreds and thousands of other pieces of content available on a site can be a difficult task.
Most research into the way users navigate a site reveals that people follow one path and then, when that doesn’t provide the information they require, they retrace their steps using the back button, until they find another suitable path to follow. Users can find this process frustrating and after following a couple of unsuccessful attempts, give up on a site.
How can organisations make it easier for users to step through a site and find the information they are looking for?
Much is made of the importance of clear navigation headings and adherence to the three-click rule, but there is another largely under-employed, cheap and simple technique that has a more positive impact on the usability of a site.
This article introduces the concept of information scent and explains how creating strong information scents enables users to confidently step through a site and find the information they require.
What is information scent?
Information scent is a term used to describe how people evaluate the options they have when they are looking for information on a site. When presented with a list of options users will choose the option that gives them the clearest indication (or strongest scent) that it will step them closer to the information they requir
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05 Apr 11
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people follow one path and then, when that doesn’t provide the information they require, they retrace their steps using the back button, until they find another suitable path to follow.
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clear navigation headings
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creating strong information scents enables users to confidently step through a site and find the information they require.
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users will choose the option that gives them the clearest indication
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that it will step them closer to the information they require.
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cause users to spend longer evaluating the options they have and increase the chance that they will select the wrong option, forcing the user to employ the back button.
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users are likely to select the wrong option, get frustrated at not finding the information they require and either back-track or leave the site thinking it didn’t contain the information they wanted.
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listing content in multiple places.
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Navigation headings alone don’t provide a strong enough scent
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Navigation headings offer surprisingly weak information scent.
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often isn’t enough to clearly distinguish one heading from another and give a clear indication of the content offered in that section of the site
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one or two words
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providing users with more context
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homepage and section pages
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Identify the content within the section that users are most interested in
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content or section titles that are representative of the content area as a whole.
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few content examples
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Unfortunately the content examples aren’t links. This could be frustrating for some users.
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Presenting too much information on a page can make the page appear cluttered and decrease the chance a users will actually read the information at all.
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31 Mar 11
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Information scent is a term used to describe how people evaluate the options they have when they are looking for information on a site. When presented with a list of options users will choose the option that gives them the clearest indication (or strongest scent) that it will step them closer to the information they require.
Sites with strong information scents are good at guiding users to content. Conversely, sites with weak information scents cause users to spend longer evaluating the options they have and increase the chance that they will select the wrong option, forcing the user to employ the back button.
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31 Jan 11
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13 Aug 10
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11 May 10
James Otto"Much is made of the importance of clear navigation headings and adherence to the three-click rule, but there is another largely under-employed, cheap and simple technique that has a more positive impact on the usability of a site ... the concept of infor
webdesign usability information scent informationscent findability web design navigation
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22 May 09
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09 May 09
lilian ricaudInformation scent is a term used to describe how people evaluate the options they have when they are looking for information on a site. When presented with a list of options users will choose the option that gives them the clearest indication (or stronges
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29 Jan 07
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04 Dec 06
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22 Jul 06
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16 Jan 06
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09 Jan 06
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27 Oct 05
Heinz Wittenbrink"Enabling people to find the specific information they require amongst the hundreds and thousands of other pieces of content available on a site can be a difficult task."
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04 Sep 05
Are HallandGrei intro til informasjonsteft. (Iain Barker - StepTwo)
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16 Aug 05
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07 Aug 05
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