In-Class Exercise #2 – Week 4

You should have completed the following activities by now:

• User research
• Competitive analysis
• User Groups
• User Tasks (target one user group)
• Interview Questions (target one user group)

Now, with your partner, conduct the following exercises for the user group you selected:

• Concept models – Draw 5 models (one per task) using pen/pencil and paper
• Site map – Submit in Word, Excel, or HTML
• Content inventory – Submit in Word or HTML

You learned about these during the lecture last week and through reading homework, but if you still have difficulty just ask me questions.

In-Class Exercise #1 – Week 4

With your partner, write up a one-page quick reference with the following information:

1. Client
   • Name
   • Web Site Address
   • Location/Contact Information
2. Users
   • 3 groups
3. Tasks
   • 5 tasks
4. Questions
   • 5 questions for target user group

When you are done, paste the information into a reply to this post and print out a copy for you and me.

Itinerary – Week 4

Today, we are going to:

1. Take a quiz
2. Discuss the reading homework (chapters 3 and 4)
3. Review restaurant research and discuss findings from visits
4. Discuss the S.W.O.T analysis homework (both blog replies and restaurant reviews)
5. Evaluate user groups, tasks, and interview questions
6. Conduct an in-class exercise (concept models, site map, and conduct inventory)
7. Review midterm
8. Assign homework (study for midterm, revisit restaurants to conduct user interviews)

Homework – Week 3

1. Create up to 3 user groups and 5 tasks (who goes there and why…for example, “college students for cheap drinks and live music”)
2. Conduct a S.W.O.T. analysis comparing each restaurant (focus on Web site, but consider physical restaurant as it is the customer’s ultimate destination)
3. Write at least 5 directional/prompting survey questions to ask customers during on-site interviews during class next week.

In-Class Exercise – Week 3

1. Research 3 local, non-chain restaurants that:
   • Are competitors (share the same target audience)
   • Have an existing Web site (the deeper, the better)
   • Are in walking distance of the Art Institute (plenty of choices on East Bay Street and Market Street)
2. Email restaurant choices to chris@chrisquinn.com
3. Visit each restaurant in order to learn who uses their Web site by:
   • Observe customers while taking notes (create as many categories as possible)
   • Interview employees (owner, manager, wait/host/bar/kitchen staff)
   • Collecting marketing materials (menu, business card, brochure, paper napkin/coaster, newspaper clippings, board with specials)
     • “Hi, my name is ______ and I am a student at the Art Institute of Charleston conducting a competitive analysis of local restaurants for my Information Architecture class. Who comes here and why?”