Intranet, not Internet

When approaching the design and build of an Intranet, one tends to encounter a multitude of opinions on the underlying approach employed, especially when involving (as one should) stakeholders from diverse areas of the business.

Among the most common misconceptions is the assumption that an Intranet is another "Web site" for the business, and should thus be approached in the same way that an external-facing site would be, with the same set of rules around structure, interface, interaction points and general usability. Although there are many valuable nuggets of insight to be gained from experience in serving information to external consumers, not all nuggets fit...

Quite simply put, an Intranet is not used in the same way as an Internet site, and cannot be designed or built in the same way, says Martin Hattingh, delivery director at bSOLVe.

Here is why:

* Context already exists

When someone visits a page on an Intranet, they usually do so with a high degree of awareness of their goal(s), of the page's intended purpose, and of the organisation's structure and rules. An Intranet page very seldom needs to be "sold" by way of explanation from the ground up. Its visitors will, in the majority of cases, have enough background information and context to get to its core purpose quickly and with little confusion. Even in cases where a new initiative or functionality is launched, users will have enough context to make sense of it substantially quicker than a member of the public who needs to be educated from scratch.

* Read-once does not apply

Intranet content is not just viewed once. It is, in many instances, used on a regular basis, and thus needs to be structured and function to serve this purpose. Many Intranet pages enable repetitive tasks to be performed more efficiently, which leads to the next point...

* Interaction efficiency is more important than being wowed

A typical Internet facing page needs (because context is lacking) to "wow" its visitors in order to interest and retain them. Most methods employed to "wow" are not conducive to efficient subsequent interaction, and are not needed when dealing with a captive audience. Large call-to-action banners, rich media, and minimalistic padding are all important components of the "sell" stage, but they most likely annoy someone visiting for the 34th time to perform an interaction-intensive task like selecting the sort order of a column.

* Management delegation benefits outweigh editorial oversight

The promotional goals of most Internet-facing sites dictate that tight editorial control be exercised to ensure that each and every message is brought across strictly within branding and communications guidelines. Without context, even just slightly off-PR tone of voice on a page can influence the visitor's fragile perception and scare them away.

With context, an Intranet is largely immune to this, so the importance of editorial oversight pales in comparison to the benefits to be gained from delegating content and structural management to dozens (or more) of dispersed users. These users likely do not understand or care much about layout intricacies and branding as the Internet editor would, and it's fine that they don't. Because the content volume and structural complexity of an Intranet usually dwarfs that of an Internet site, the benefits associated to delegation make it a clear winner.

* Content is only one part of the puzzle

Intranets don't only contain published, informational pages. They are platforms for functionality varying in richness from basic calendars and announcements, to highly interactive and robust document management, to integrated profiles powering the social engine, to rich records management, business intelligence and business process management. Just because your Intranet starts out as a few informational pages doesn't mean that a year or two down the line it will still just be that. Not planning for expanded structure and functionality is foolish.

Interestingly, Jakob Nielsen (the original User Experience guru) published an article 13 years ago echoing many of the sentiments above. Although some of his points have been rendered less relevant with technology evolution, most of his arguments still hold. Read the original article here:
http://www.nngroup.com/articles/the-difference-between-intranet-and-internet-design/.

So, what's the conclusion? Intranets are applications, not just information publications. The selection of a platform, as well as the design, development, maintenance and promotion of an Intranet needs to constantly bear this in mind. Without application-minded thinking, it's all too easy for an Intranet to become a brochure, when it has so much more potential.