1. Navigation Elements On Library Websites: What Works Best? Lesley Moyo Gateway Librarian Penn State University Libraries USA

2. Background Of Study Related study –Use of jargon on library Websites Study objectives –Identify preferred navigation elements –Determine whether different navigation options affect: Time taken to conduct search Success rate in getting required results –Identify other factors influencing navigation

3. Methodology 20 academic library Websites used in earlier study Sample of targeted users Observation of users performing real tasks Questionnaire responses and discussion Analysis of results

4. Search Tasks Finding a specific book Finding a subject research guide Getting help online Information on student job openings

5. Findings Highest success rate… Economy of time… Some popular navigation elements… Some unpopular navigation elements… Some problematic elements… Other factors playing into the search experience

6. A Few Examples Examples don’t show ranking of sites but focus on use of some specific navigation elements

7. Organization Comes Into Play

8. Consistency Matters

9. Drop-down Menus Unpopular

10. Simplicity Yields Economy Of Time

11. Search Box Popular On This Site

12. Pop-up Menus Used Minimally

13. Some Conclusions Navigation elements do impact the user search experience Interplay among various usability factors: –Navigation elements –Site organization

14. Discussion Questions?