Oh Donna if only I had this three weeks ago when analysing a card sort! Wonderful stuff. I look forward to using it.

Although I'm a big fan of running card sorts and learn a great deal each time I do, one of the trickiest parts is quantifying the results. Not any more. Thanks Donna.

Thanks Donna. Just getting into this xls now and I think it is going to be very useful - especially to be able to show the quizzical managers some scientific analysis.

I am not sure how to approach sub categories. One sort group came up with 10 high level categories, but one of those categories has four sub categories, and one has three. Do I use the categories or sub categories in the group column of the Sort worksheet? Using only sub-categories might lose some useful chunking up.

much appreciated
Louisa

Hi Louisa

For analysis, you can do one of two things with subcategories:
- break them into their own little groups, but make a note of the broader group so you don't forget that it was there
- combine them into broader categories and keep a note of the detailed breakdown

The way I make the decision is to look at what the overall pattern is with all the sorters and analyse all at a similar level.

For example, if everyone creates 10 groups with 10 cards, but one group creates 2 main categories with 5 subcategories each, analyse at the sub-category level. If one group creates 10 main groups with 2 sub-groups each, analyse at the broader level.

This isn't just a limitation of my spreadsheet - all statistical analysis needs you to make this sort of decision in order to crunch numbers sensibly.

I'm going to add some notes about this to the instructions when I next review them.

Nick, this spreadsheet has lots of relationships - adding cards means changes need to be made throughout the sheet. I've just sent you the larger spreadsheet, but this too only manages 200 cards. I'll have to make you a spreadsheet that copes with more cards.

In my book, I've made a strong point about thinking about analysis in the planning stage, and making sure you can analyse what you collect ;) It is important to check your analysis tools before you start.

Hi Donna, would you mind sharing the larger spreadsheet with me as well? Thanks!

Donna, I cant think you enough for creating and posting this online. This has been an amazing and eye-opening tool for our card sort. One quick question though - We had 23 participants as opposed to 20. I added a few more tabs to cover their results, added new columns to both summary tabs and changed the formulas, but cant seem to revise the formulas enough pull in the data for tabs Sort21 -Sort23. Any ideas?

Thanks again for sharing!

Donna,

This is great, it seems like it will make my life easier for the card-sort I am doing next week.

I have a question about how you designed the card sort: I see that you put fairly long descriptions on the cards in the first go. How exactly did you elicit the category names from users? Did they create their groups, & assign a group name (original category) of their choosing?

What do you think about the approach where I might provide a label on the front of the card & a brief description of the content on the back?

Thanks.

Hi Donna,

Thank you so much for the spreadsheet - it is invaluable. I wanted to add an extra 15 participants (to have 35 maximum)...is there any way that you can do that easily? I realized that you have to pull forumulas from the different tabs... or do you have a bigger spreadsheet that can accommodate a larger number of participants?

Thanks!

Thanks a lot for this and for your article on card sorting. Really useful!

Hi Sharon

100 people is really too many for a spreadsheet ;) The spreadsheet is great for few enough participants that you can print out the big matricies and look at what they came up with, and you really can't do that with 100 people. Your best bets for that number of participants is:
- split them somehow (demographics, role) and compare results across a couple of groups
- use a statistical tool

Thanks for making this spreadsheet available Donna. What a great tool especially for novices like myself. We just completed a preliminary card sort and your spreadsheet will make explaining the data so much easier. Thanks for all the hard work!

PS --- your user instructions are very well written as well.

Hi Donna,
this method seems like inviting the guests of a restaurant to make the food in the kitchen with the cooks. Isn't the least thing an IA needs "suggestions" from client side on the site structure? I see the comforting rays of mathematics being emitted from this, which can warm a frosty client-IA relationship and give the IA the untouchable aura of a scientist, which then paves the way for the delivery of the actual work: a new site concept that none of the clients could have thought of with more than an initial idea anyway (an idea you can easily collect in a two hour brainstorming meeting). I don't see anything but a soft, mellow middle Information Architecture solution coming out of this that pleases everyone and no one. Unless you throw all data out after everyone got the feeling that their voice counts and will surely embrace the new solution. (The old mediator trick) and then start the actual work. I also can't remember the last project that actually had a budget for something more than a questionaire/brainstorming meeting to gather everyone's opinions on the company, products, their own work and their wishes for the new site. Luxurious! Where did you find the clients that pay for this? The mysterious, undiscovered forests of the Information Architecture market.

This is fantasitc, Donna. Thank you so much for sharing your spreadsheet. What a huge time saver for us all. I wish you every success with your book!