Field Notes Inside an Integrated Communications Agency

At the Web Content 08 [WC08] last week, I had a syntactical epiphany: the noun is making a comeback. For decades now, verbs were the darling of writers — think more action! — while nouns have been dismissed as stodgy and murky, the equivalent of sludge in a conversation’s engine. Who needs ’em?

Well, turns out we all do. Jerome Nadel, Chief Experience Officer of Human Factors International, pointed out that Web sites often err in putting verbs first, pushing visitors to act before they can even choose the object of their visit. He says that users need to find a starting place. They’re looking for the product they want to buy, the topic they’re researching, or the person they want to learn about. But they have to find that before they can buy, research or learn.

Even before they reach a site, they’re usually thinking nouns when they search on Google or scan tags on del.icio.us [with a few verbs and adjectives thrown in too]. It's like the Dewey decimal system on steroids.

So what? It signals the way we’re categorizing the world. Whenever we choose search terms or tags, we try to make sense of our thoughts and the thought process of others. When we create site navigation or keywords, we succeed only when we make it easier and more intuitive to find our sites and our information. And getting into users’ heads, into the way they’re classifying and interacting with their world – usability – should be the foundation of every Web project.

Nadel claims that businesses don’t have to relinquish control of their brands – not if they understand their audience and craft social Web experiences that deliver unique value and build relationships. That’s how sites can truly engage visitors and deliver greater ROI.

The next time a user experience designer presses to interview more stakeholders or a copywriter questions a keyword, just consider it time well spent. And show a noun some appreciation.