A section in the Razorfish FEED report we discussed a week ago addressed Web content's function - that to design answers and exploration for users.
No more pages, just smaller bits of information that can be consumed on the go.
So instead of building a site around an organization chart, which in many ways mirrors the company's hierarchy, we should build the context where the customer wants to take a seat.
Within that, as users, we can do the two most popular things we like to do online:
(1) search for answers
(2) tell stories
Answers and stories provide the framework - this is how the new site can map to the interactions the user wants to have. In the report, Tim Richard suggests that the new experience might be:
* a conversation
* a series of decisions made by the user
* an interactive storytelling session
The design revolves around what the customer needs. What the report proposes is a structured metadata systems that links content and applications together in a way that allows pages to "self assemble", based on user segmentation, process state or preference, wrapping the most pertinent content around the ruling context of the experience.
This plays quite well in the conversation around micro-media, which is fast becoming the personal communication tool of choice for the individuals you may want to reach - your customers, the analyst community, and reporters.
How
small
are
you
going
to
make
your
content
to
fit
with
you
customers'
life?