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NJ State Parks
Information Architecture Redesign
Finding information on the NJ State Park Service website shouldn’t be an adventure of its own.
This project focused on restructuring the site’s information architecture to help users quickly find park hours, maps, activities, and essential details without getting lost in cluttered navigation.
Project Overview
TL;DR Edition
Team: Group project
Duration: 12 weeks
This project focused on redesigning the information architecture of the New Jersey State Parks website to improve findability, navigation clarity, and overall usability for a wide range of park visitors.
The NJ State Parks website contains a large amount of valuable content. Still, unclear navigation labels and dense menus make it difficult for users to find park details, activities, and planning resources quickly.
UX Designer (Information Architecture)
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Conducted information architecture research and testing
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Led card sorting, tree testing, and navigation evaluations
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Translated usability findings into clear, actionable IA recommendations
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Competitive and heuristic analysis
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Card sorting and tree testing
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Navigation and label testing
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Synthesis of insights and IA recommendations
Developed a more transparent, more intuitive navigation structure that improves content discoverability and reduces cognitive load, particularly for first-time and non-technical users.
This project reinforced how small changes in labeling and structure can significantly impact usability, and strengthened my ability to use research-backed IA methods to inform confident design decisions.
Now... To make a short story long
Project Overview
The New Jersey State Parks website serves a wide range of visitors from first-time park goers to experienced outdoor enthusiasts, but finding essential information isn’t always intuitive. This project focused on improving the site’s information architecture to help users more easily navigate, understand, and access key park details.
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Through research-driven testing and analysis, I addressed challenges caused by unclear navigation labels, dense content, and inconsistent structure, making it difficult for users to find activities, park details, and trip-planning resources quickly.
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This project blends information architecture, UX research, and usability testing to create a clearer, more intuitive navigation system that reduces cognitive load and improves findability across a large, content-heavy website.
The Problem
Finding information on the NJ State Park Service website shouldn’t feel like navigating a maze. Users often struggle to locate basic details, such as park hours, maps, activities, or accessibility information, due to unclear labels, overcrowded menus, and inconsistent navigation paths.
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The challenge was to simplify a complex content ecosystem without removing critical information, creating a structure that felt intuitive, predictable, and aligned with how visitors naturally search for park information.
My Role
Collaborated with a small team to conduct information architecture research and usability testing for a large, content-heavy government website.
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Planned and facilitated card sorting and tree testing to evaluate navigation structures and labeling
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Analyzed task success rates, error patterns, and user behavior to uncover key usability pain points
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Helped develop research-backed IA recommendations, including revised labels, categories, and hierarchy
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Synthesized findings into clear documentation, translating research insights into actionable design decisions
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Iterated on IA solutions collaboratively, refining recommendations based on testing results
Tools Used
Used throughout ideation, design, development, testing, and iteration.
Miro
Lyssna
UXtweak
Figma
Google Forms
The Process
Here’s how we approached understanding the website’s challenges and redesigning its structure.
Understanding Our Users
We started by learning who actually uses the New Jersey State Parks website and what they need most when planning outdoor trips. Through surveys and persona development, we identified three core user groups: nature enthusiasts, educators, and casual explorers, all seeking quick, precise, and mobile-friendly information.
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Across these groups, users shared common goals: finding park details efficiently, comparing activities, and planning visits without getting overwhelmed by dense content or unclear navigation.
Analyzing the Current Landscape
We examined comparable public-facing platforms, including New York State Parks and VisitNJ, to understand how similar websites organize large volumes of content. This review helped identify patterns in navigation, labeling, and filtering, as well as common pain points that affect findability.​
Across these sites, we identified opportunities for more transparent labels, stronger filtering options, and more intuitive navigation, particularly for users seeking to locate activities, park details, and planning resources quickly​
We also reviewed the existing New Jersey State Parks site through an accessibility and structural lens to better understand navigation density, hierarchy, and overall clarity.​
These insights helped establish a baseline for what worked, what didn’t, and where the New Jersey State Parks website could improve clarity and usability.
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Mapping the Existing Content
To understand the site’s complexity, we created a complete sitemap of all pages and drop-down menus. This exercise made problem areas immediately apparent, especially the overwhelming 40–50-item mega menus under Parks & Forests and Historic Sites, which contributed to cognitive overload and poor findability.
Reimagining the Site Structure Through Wireframes
Before proposing any redesigns, we created low-fidelity wireframes of the existing New Jersey State Park Service website. These diagnostic wireframes allowed us to focus on structure, hierarchy, and content placement, without the distraction of color or visual styling.
By mapping out the existing layouts, we were able to see clearly:
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The navigation occupies a significant amount of space and contains multiple layers of links
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Mega menus attempt to display too much information at once, making them difficult to scan
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Pages contain valuable content, but a lack of visual hierarchy makes it hard to identify what’s essential
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Related programs, featured highlights, and informational content blend without clear separation
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Social links and footer sections are functional but visually underemphasized and lack personality
Evaluating the Site Through First-Click Testing
To understand how intuitively users could find essential information, we conducted a First-Click Test using the Lyssna platform. Participants completed common planning tasks, such as finding fishing spots, locating hiking trails, or booking a tour, while we measured where they clicked first, how long it took, and how confident they felt.
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Across most tasks, users struggled to identify the correct starting point, often navigating to unrelated sections or external links. Activity-based tasks (like hiking, boating, or golfing) were especially challenging, with many users relying on trial and error rather than clear labels. These results confirmed that the site lacked intuitive labeling and needed simplification of its structure.
Key Findings
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Activity-based tasks were the most confusing: 60–80% of users clicked the wrong section first
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Labels didn’t match user expectations: Sections like Historic Sites, Programs & Events, and Parks & Forests caused hesitation
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Tasks took longer than expected: Many exceeded 1 minute, indicating uncertainty
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Icons improved confidence: When visual cues were present, users gravitated toward them
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Only simple tasks felt intuitive: Searching by zip code or finding the mailing address were the few quick wins​
Overall insight: Users weren’t sure where information lived. While the site contained valuable content, its structure and labeling made it difficult to find, directly informing our navigation and labeling recommendations.
Testing Navigation Clarity Through a Stress Test
To understand how clearly users could interpret the website’s layout at a glance, we ran a Navigation Stress Test. Participants were asked to mark up a screenshot of a park subpage, identifying the page title, site name, major sections, subpages, off-site links, and the path back to the homepage.
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This method allowed us to evaluate how intuitive the site’s hierarchy felt without clicking or exploring, revealing where structure was clear and where it broke down.
Key Findings
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Users easily identified high-level content such as the page title and site name, confirming that the top-level hierarchy is visually clear.
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Navigation labels were generally understood, but users struggled to identify which “level” a page belonged to.
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Moving “up one level” was confusing; some relied on breadcrumbs while others returned to the main menu, revealing inconsistency in how hierarchy is communicated.
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Internal vs. external links were not always obvious, causing hesitation and misinterpretation.
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Homepage navigation was straightforward, reinforcing that top-level navigation is strong, while mid-level navigation needs improvement.
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Annotated stress test showing how users interpreted page hierarchy, navigation levels, and link types at a glance.
Evaluating the Interface Through Heuristic Analysis
To evaluate how well the New Jersey State Parks website supports intuitive, user-friendly interactions, we conducted a Heuristic Evaluation using Nielsen & Molich’s 10 usability heuristics.
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Four evaluators independently reviewed the site and rated each heuristic on a 0–4 severity scale, noting patterns that felt clear, confusing, or inconsistent. This method helped us identify usability issues that weren’t always surfaced through task-based testing alone.
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Overall, the site performed well in clarity and language, but several patterns revealed opportunities to improve hierarchy, grouping, and user control, particularly in content-dense areas.
Key Findings
What's Working
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Clear breadcrumbs and strong system-status cues helped users stay oriented.
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Language felt natural and human, aligning well with real-world terminology.
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Consistency across pages and labels made the site predictable and easier to learn.
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Recognition over recall worked well, with options visible rather than hidden.
Minor Issues
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Error prevention was limited, with few prompts or guardrails.
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Large lists (e.g., parks by region) felt overwhelming and reduced efficiency.
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Visual density varied: some pages felt clean, others overloaded.
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Help & documentation lacked modern support features (search, FAQs, chatbot).
Needs Attention
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User Control & Freedom was inconsistent, especially when navigating out of deep pages (e.g., Camping Reservations).
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Error recovery was unclear when issues occurred.
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Support content felt unreliable due to limited guidance and occasional broken links.
Overall Insights
The Heuristic Evaluation revealed that the site is clean, friendly, and generally well-structured, but offers clear opportunities to improve user control, content organization, and support systems.
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These findings helped us prioritize redesign efforts to simplify dense content areas, improve navigation exits, strengthen hierarchy, and better support users when they feel lost or uncertain.
Understanding How Users Group Content
To evaluate whether the website’s current labels matched users’ mental models, we ran a closed Card Sort using Optimal Workshop. Participants sorted 33 cards, each representing a piece of site content, into six existing categories from the NJ State Park Service navigation menu (Home, Parks & Forests, Historic Sites, Marinas, Programs & Events, Get Involved).
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We tested with 6 participants, each completing the sort asynchronously on their own devices.
Results
Only 8 out of 33 cards (24%) were consistently sorted the same way by all participants.
This means 76% of content did not match user expectations, revealing significant misalignment between the site's labels and how people naturally categorize park information.
Common issues included:​
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Activity-related cards caused confusion
(e.g., Hunting & Fishing, Bird Watching, Picnicking, Golf Courses)
Users weren’t sure if these belonged under Parks & Forests, Programs & Events, Marinas, or Home.
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Cards related to communication or updates floated between categories
(e.g., Facebook, News Releases, Reminders from NJ State Park Police)
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Users wanted new categories
Many suggested adding Activities, Recreation, or a Social Media grouping.
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A few cards didn’t fit anywhere well
(e.g., Golf Courses, Private Events, List of Marinas)
Key
Bolded category: The majority of participants sorted the card into (excluding ties).
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Green row: All 6 participants sorted the card into the same category.
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Yellow row: 5 out of 6 participants sorted the card into the same category.
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White row: 4 or fewer participants sorted the card into the same category.
Insights That Stood Out
Participants had the most alignment on:
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FAQs
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Volunteer
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List of NJ State Parks
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Lists of historical locations
(These consistently fell where expected.)
Participants struggled most with:
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Activities like camping, hiking, fishing
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Content with overlapping themes
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Items that could logically belong to 2+ places
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Items tied to subpages rather than categories
Recommendations
Move Camping Reservations under Parks & Forests
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5 out of 6 participants sorted it there
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Users consistently viewed camping as a park activity, not a standalone category.
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Rename “Get Involved” to “Contact Us”
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Participants often confused Get Involved with general contact information
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A clearer Contact Us category could include:
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Volunteer
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Employment
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Contact information
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General inquiries
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Add an “Activities” category
This was the most common user request.
It would group:
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Hiking
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Boating
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Camping
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Fishing
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Picnicking
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Bird watching
This reduces overlap across multiple menus and aligns with how users naturally browse.
Reorganize Fishing and Hunting
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Place Hunting under Parks & Forests
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Place Fishing under Marinas
Participants consistently separated the two, suggesting different mental models.
Surface FAQs more prominently
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Participants repeatedly noted that FAQs were hard to find
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All six recommended making FAQs easier to access from the main navigation
Why These Changes Matter
These recommendations aim to reduce ambiguity, limit overlapping categories, and better reflect users' mental models, making it easier for visitors to understand where information lives quickly. Together, they informed how we approached reorganizing the navigation structure and refining major menu labels in the redesign.
Evaluating Our Updated Navigation Through a Recommendation Tree Test
To validate our updated navigation structure, we ran a Recommendation Tree Test to assess whether revised labels and groupings better aligned with users’ expectations. This allowed us to directly compare performance against the original tree test and measure improvements in clarity.
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Participants completed six scenario-based tasks (such as booking a campsite, finding boating access, or contacting a park). We measured success rate, navigation path directness, and clarity/ease ratings to evaluate how intuitively users could navigate the updated structure.
Key Findings
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Highest-performing labels:
Golfing and Contact Information achieved the strongest success and directness, indicating these labels were immediately clear and intuitive.
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Improved but still imperfect:
Boating and Birthday/Event Planning showed noticeable improvement compared to earlier tests, though some hesitation remained.
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Persistent label confusion:
Users frequently confuse Camping vs. Camping Reservations and Historic Sites vs. Tours & Exhibits, suggesting overlapping mental models and the need for more precise differentiation.
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Positive user feedback:
Most participants rated overall clarity and ease between 4.0 and 4.5 out of 5, signaling a clear improvement in navigational understanding.
Updated Sitemap
After synthesizing insights from the card sort, tree testing, and usability evaluations, we redesigned the sitemap to create a structure that feels clearer, more predictable, and better aligned with how users naturally group information.
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Our goals were to:
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Reduce overlap between categories and eliminate ambiguous placements
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Improve clarity for high-priority tasks (such as camping reservations, boating access, and contact information)
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Group related content more intuitively, so users don’t have to guess where information lives​
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This updated sitemap better reflects users’ mental models, helping transform a dense, content-heavy site into a navigation system that feels easier to scan, understand, and navigate with confidence.
Updated Wireframes
Using insights from all three evaluative methods, we redesigned key pages to reflect the improved navigation structure and clearer labeling system. These updated wireframes prioritize usability by focusing on:
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Clearer, task-oriented labels (e.g., Golfing, Contact Information, Camping Reservations)
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Reduced cognitive load through simplified layouts and better content grouping
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More direct pathways to high-priority actions like booking, trip planning, and contacting the park
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Stronger alignment with users’ mental models, informed by tree testing and card sort results
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Together, these updates transform the site from a dense information hub into a structure that is easier to scan, understand, and navigate with confidence.
First-Click Test
(Redesigned Wireframes)
After refining our sitemap and wireframes, we ran a second round of First-Click Testing to see whether our redesign improved navigation clarity and task success.
We tested 8 realistic tasks, ranging from finding locations for activities like fishing or birdwatching to locating contact information to finding seasonal jobs. Each task used our redesigned homepage wireframe with updated labeling and expanded drop-downs.
We analyzed:
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Click accuracy
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Time to click
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Heatmaps + click clusters
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Follow-up clarity & ease ratings
This helped us evaluate where the redesign succeeded and where users still hesitated.
Key Findings
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Intuitive doesn’t always mean accurate.
Even when users found the redesigned interface easier to navigate, accuracy didn’t consistently improve. This reinforced an important lesson: a design can look clean and feel simple, yet still lack the cues users need to make confident decisions.
Labels matter more than we think.
Minor wording changes had a significant impact. Broad parent categories, such as “Activities,” were selected more often than specific sub-options. Clear, descriptive, action-oriented labels go a long way in supporting effective wayfinding.
User behavior exposes gaps designers can’t see.
Outlier clicks, hesitation, and repeated wrong choices clearly revealed where the structure wasn’t doing enough. User actions surfaced friction points more honestly than assumptions or intentions alone.
Visual hierarchy guides navigation
Participants often clicked elements that looked important or visually prominent, even when they weren’t the correct choice. This highlighted how strongly UI layout influences user paths, even before users read content.
Small IA improvements can create big wins.
The updated “Seasonal Jobs” task demonstrated how a simple label relocation dramatically improved clarity, confidence, and task speed. Incremental IA changes can be just as impactful as major redesigns.
Our Top Recommendations
​Thank You
For viewing my group's redesign of the New Jersey State Parks IA!
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This project highlighted just how robust clear information architecture can be on a large, content-heavy site. Through card sorting, tree testing, and first-click testing, I learned how users actually interpret labels and how easily confusion can arise when structure doesn’t match mental models.
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Testing and iterating on navigation showed me that “intuitive” doesn’t always mean accurate, and that even small labeling or hierarchy changes can dramatically improve confidence and task success. This project strengthened my ability to analyze user behavior, identify friction points, and make data-informed design decisions.
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It reinforced the idea that strong UX often comes from incremental improvements rather than massive redesigns, and that testing is where clarity truly reveals itself.