Organizing Content

How Should Your Content Be Ordered?

There are several ways to organize your website. Here are two:

Hierarchical Structure

Most sites have a hierarchical structure, which kind of looks like a family tree. Users start at a more broad topic and can narrow down to more specific content, or jump to other “branches” as they choose.

Sequential Structure

Some sites have a sequential structure, meaning users must go step-by-step, following a specific path through content. One example of this structure is the checkout process of an online store. You must go one step at a time to create an account, enter shipping info, credit card info, and so on.

Extra Resources

• Organization Structures - Usability.gov
• Measure Twice, Cut Once: Planning your content first can help you choose the right theme. - WordPress.com

Activity

Take the list of content you made and try to organize it in a way that seems helpful for users.

For example, draw something like one of these two diagrams:

---