Findability and SharePoint - Part I - Bill English Blog

10/16/2008
Findability and SharePoint - Part I

The more I learn about findability, the more convinced I am that this concept needs to be an organizing principle of any SharePoint Server 2007 deployment. In this post, I'll explain what findability is in generic terms and then apply these concepts to a SharePoint Server 2007 deployment. I'll also wade into a the difficult area of explaining why Google's current promise of "plug it in, turn it on and find it" is not enough for implementing a full findability solution in your organization.

What is Findability?
Succinctly stated, findability is the quality of being found or the ability to locate objects. Methods of findability includes commonly known technologies such as navigation menus or search/indexing applications. Obviously, we'll want to implement findability tools that are easy to use and integrate seamlessly into our current end-user experience.

Truths about Findability
In his book, Ambient Findability, Peter Moreville outlines several truths that I'll repeat here for sake of our discussion:

You can't use what you can't find
Information that can't be found is worthless
Our customer's can't purchase what they can't find
Information that is hard to find is hardly used
Authority, trust and findability are interwoven
Key to success when working with information is findability
The first truth to focus on is the most important: You can't use what you can't find. It doesn't really matter what the current technology platform is: SharePoint, Autonomy, Websphere, Vingnette, SAP, Oracle, Plumtree or any other portal or collaboration platform. If you can't find the information that has been placed inside it or if the search technology doesn't return relevant search results, then you might as well not have the information at all. The costs of producing that information will have been wasted if you're unable to find the information that you need, when you need it.

If you're running an e-commerce web site, then you should take note that your customers can't purchase what they can't find. If the findability tools on your web site are not good, then it doesn't do you any good to have your products for sale on your web site. Giving your customers the ability to find what they want, evaluate it and then make decisions on your products - all without talking to your sales staff - is the current state of e-commerce. In times past, marketing was mainly a push mechanism - the seller sends out flyers or makes phone calls or invites prospects to their seminars. Today, customers call the shots when it comes to marketing. They can find you on the web, look at your products, read evaluations about your products and services on the web, compare your products features and prices, inform themselves about you and your company and formulate their purchasing decisions without ever talking to your sales team. Why do I emphasize this twice in the same paragraph? Because the customer of today expects to see this information on your e-commerce web site and if you don't have a good web site, you're products and services won't be included in their evaluation process and you'll lose from the start. In a very real sense, the customer's experience on your web site is the experience of your brand. Put another way, the concept of a brand has been expanded to include not just a marketing position + tagline + logo + color scheme, but it now also includes the customer's experience on your web site and how easily it is for them to find that for which they're looking.

Being able to find information is one thing, but the information also needs to be trustworthy and have authority in the mind of the reader. For example, information that is found via the internet can be suspect in terms of authenticity and accuracy. Companies often claim to be "#1" or offer "high quality" products. What company is going to claim that they offer "low quality" products? Doesn't everyone want to be #1? Certain claims just lack authenticity, no matter who makes the claim. The fact that these claims are made on your web site doesn't mean that they are more trustworthy. However, when users do find information for which they are looking, they will necessarily make a value judgment on its' trustworthiness - can we trust this information to be authentic and useful?

One experience for me illustrates this point well. Around the year 2001 (roughly), I was speaking at Comdex in Las Vegas and was following an instructor who was discussing the pros and features of Windows 2000 Server. I came into the room late in his presentation. Since he was a friend of mine, I thought I'd catch up on what he was talking about in his presentations. In the last 10 minutes, he outlined how Windows 2000 Server was a "secure server platform". As soon as he said those three words - secure server platform - the room erupted in spontaneous laughter. The message from the attendees was clear: no one (at that time) thought that any Microsoft platform was secure, let alone this new Windows 2000 Server platform. My friend had to cut short his comments on Window's security system because he knew the audience wasn't going to buy it. They simply didn't find the information credible or trustworthy.

These truths about findability can be ignored, but just like economic markets will behave in a certain way whether or not you believe in capitalism, these truths will play out in your environment whether or not you choose to pay attention to them. Take them to heart and you're on your way to building a great Findability solution in your environment. Ignore them and you'll do so at your own peril.

In my coming posts, I'll explain why search applications by themselves - as illustrated by Google's marketing messages - cannot form a full findability solution. I'll also explain how to conceptualize and build out a Findability architecture for your environment and will then illustrate how a number of tools across Microsoft's platforms can work together to formulate a full findability solution.

Stay tuned.

Bill English, MVP



Findability and SharePoint - Part I - Bill English Blog

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P. Erol GIRAUDY
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