Quite possibly beneath every site map or content plan we’ve ever done lives a piece of information that doesn’t belong where it is. We obviously did not do this on purpose.

We set out, of course, to put things in their place and without any bias other than their content requirements. How is it, then, that content or links end up in a random place? Is it because it was overlooked? Probably, it’s a case of the “parent trap”. The parent trap occurs when a piece of information is lacking enough substance to make it either on its own or fit better into a higher level category. In some cases, it may even be that this rogue information belongs as not its own section, but within another page or piece of functionality.

It would be easier to lump things into categories and let users drill down and find it, but that is clearly not our job. Our job is to stop a potential parent trap.

Create Methods to the Madness

As you facilitate a session with your client to dig deep into foreign content, make sure that you’re asking the right questions:

• Are you going to match this content to a function?
• Will the content be used for cross-promotion? If so, where in the application or site will it need to link?
• What is the relative nature of this content to its parent tree?
• Can this content be misconstrued to another meaning when found by a new customer/user?

Often times, by digging deeper in your content or navigation schema meetings, you’ll get to the bottom of the placement for new or uncategorized information types.

And, if you get stuck, make sure that you do a review before you hit the construction phase of your engagement in an effort to cut down on the cycles and revisions.