Navigation and the Anxious Clicker
Part III. The Stream of Anticipation
When we use the web, we enter a stream of anticipation.
This is the state we enter whenever we are confident in performing any action. Walking down the street. Driving a car. Hitting a tennis ball. Even drinking a glass of water.
Think of it as trust in motion, a moment-by-moment confidence that we know how to perform the action physically and that we can anticipate and handle anything that might arise.
We need to enter streams of anticipation to adequately function in the world. It's living on the forward edge of the moment. With confidence. And we do it through most moments of our lives.
The world
The stream of anticipation is more than just physical ability.
Any action we perform, such as driving a car or hitting a tennis ball, occurs in its own "world" that we need to experience and learn about.
Walking down the street, for example. It involves much more than the physical act of moving upright in a gravity field. Think traffic laws. The sounds that we accept as normal such as cars braking, people shouting, doors slamming, birds singing. Local customs about personal space. All these issues, and many more besides, come into play.
So how does this all apply to using the web? Well, navigating the web is an action like any other. But with one unique difference: it occurs in a world that is totally man-made.
Expectation
Since a web designer in effect creates this world, it would be easy to think that we are the ones who determine the world that the user experiences.
Of course that's true. But we are bound by certain expectations. And those expectations fall in line with the user's stream of anticipation.
It was once wrongly assumed, for example, that the user wanted flashing lights and all manner of movement. In this way the web was envisioned as a slightly more user-controlled form of television.
But the web is radically different to television. Or radio. Or newspapers. Even cinema. Why? Because it is not a passive medium. The user is in control. And since this forms an ongoing action, the user enters a particular stream of anticipation.
The clicker
What is this stream of anticipation for a webuser?
As mentioned above, the user is in control. They are in navigation mode. They are nobody's captive.
And they are generally flying, clicking from page to page in order to find what they want.
Their stream of anticipation is based upon the ability to click and to move. They are on the lookout for reliable, interesting information and they want it quickly and easily.
It's the promise of information that is the key here. The user has an endless field to click through. As they move, navigational options and support become central to their experience.
Breaking the stream
Web designers create the terrain that the web user moves through. Our first and most basic task is to keep the webuser in their stream of anticipation.
Why? Because when the stream is broken, anxiety must follow. Trust is lost in the understanding of the how the world works. And that's disorienting.
In the real world, that loss of trust needs to be instantly sorted out in some way. But the webuser knows the web is man-made. They don't have to sort it out. They can simply go somewhere else.
And they will. To a site that supports their stream of anticipation.
Rule Number 1
So the basic rule to keeping the user in their stream of anticipation is: Don't get in their way.
They are flying and you cannot control them. There's certainly a temptation to lay a bear trap or two to keep them in the site.
Resist that temptation at all costs. If the site is not worthy on its own merits then trying to keep the user captive will only irritate them. Not only will they leave, they'll never come back.
Simply provide a clear and logical navigational system and then step back.
Rule Number 2
The second rule is: Provide depth.
A site that has only one page or seems to be just a series of bland pages actually takes the user from their stream of anticipation.
Why? Because the user wants information and they want to be able to move. When they see there's not much on offer it rings a small alarm bell.
They have left the highway and entered your suburb only to find that it's just one or two boring streets. And worse, they might get stuck there.
The secret is not to pad. That's easily seen through. Nor is it to fill up pages with information that is irrelevant to the purpose of your site.
The answer lies in finding your site's true heart. The result might only be five pages. But if the information is highly relevant and interesting to the user then that fear won't take hold.
Rule Number 3
The third rule is: Don't deceive them.
In the search for reliable information, the key is reliability. The user needs to know that the world they are flying through will support their expectations.
The obvious way to deceive the user is through the information itself. From overselling to outright lies. But the user will also lose trust in the site if they feel deceived by the logic of the site's structure.
That's one reason why a solid, consistent navigational structure is so important. It quickly suggests an openness and reliability on the part of the site itself. This keeps them in their stream of anticipation.
Rule Number 4
The fourth rule is: Talk to them personally.
This rule is more about the user's sense of navigation. Any sense that a site is preaching to them is seen by the user as a way of holding them back.
Why? Because not only is the user in charge but the web has no real hierarchy. The user will decide what has value.
But a site that talks one-to-one with the user and engages them on an equal level slots right in with the stream of anticipation.
The user will connect emotionally and above all, they will respond with trust.
This is the final article in the Navigation and the Anxious Clicker series.
In the earlier articles we saw that navigation is more important to a website than most web designers realise.
Now in this final article where we have stepped into the user's stream of anticipation, we see that navigation is actually central to their web experience.
That's not to say that we should forego all other design considerations in order to simply provide a good navigational system.
But pay more attention to it? That seems the least we can do.
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