Project Overview
Client: Boston Public Library (BPL) website - https://www.bpl.org
Targeted User: Students
Task Being Performed: Online Research
Project Goals:
1. Create an intuitive way for users to search for data available in our online research databases.
2. Allow for users to perform broad searches by predefined categories as well as narrow searches for specific data.
3. Make it easier for visitors starting on the homepage to find the online research section of the site.
4. Add consistent breadcrumbs throughout the site.
User Scenario
A student has come to the BPL website to find reputable sources of information for a paper on the history of the U.S. government.
The student must be able to find resources available online, as they are researching off hours when the library is not open.
Current State
Review of the current website information architecture, including desktop and mobile views:
Future State
A new site map was created prior to creating wireframes in order to assess a user's navigation through the site. The site map was created with the assistance of a card sorting exercise with 10 participants.
Objectives:
Simplified Primary Menu with clear titles.
Separate drop down menus for Books & Digital and Research.
Simplified footer - reducing the duplication of top level navigation items.
Minimized content overload - better highlighted the new book arrivals, and reorganized the events and resource spotlight to highlight current happenings.
Circling back to the user scenario stated earlier where a student must be able to find resources online, the Research menu (image 4 below) is easier for the user to identify in the primary navigation - the shortened list of options in this menu makes for quick identification of the Online Resources menu item.
Future State - Online Resources
Image 1:
The user enters the Online Resource page and can view all subjects, formats, and age groups the library has chosen to group resources by.
The search bar is added functionality if the user has a specific item in mind.
The A to Z resources list, previously a button linking to another page, will now be listed on the main page.
Image 2:
The user, searching for Government research sources, selects the “Government and Law” link from the Subjects list and sees the page shown.
Image 3:
Expanding menus allow for the user to see all options upon entering the page, eliminating the need to continuously scroll down to see all available information.
The Search and Browse Resources options are available on all pages as well as consistent breadcrumbs at the top of the page.
Future State - Mobile
The new mobile format includes a more visible hamburger menu, and combines the utility navigation and top level navigation into one menu to reduce visual clutter.
Expandable menus and a search bar allow for users to choose how to find resources, and allows for showing all available subjects, formats, and age group topics.