First

We have conducted a card sorting exercise using Optimal Sort and downloaded a spreadsheet of results. We applied standardized labels and attempted to create categories. However, the categories most people created were quite similar to the ones that already exist. We decided to adjust our strategy and try again.

Second

We created a second set of cards, and this time, we did not represent every section of the site. We know we're going to include Library Policies, for example, and that it likely belongs in the footer navigation, so there was no real need for us to test how a user might categorize it.

While this card sort did not point us toward exact labels, it did provide the following insights:

• There was no consensus on whether to divide books and media by audience age, format, or some other method.

• A "local" section began to seem like a great idea.

• So did a "how to/make" section.