Learning from a poorly-designed sign

Yesterday I took my wife to a new dentist. I found the office building, and turned into the parking lot. Right by the entrance to that lot was a sign that displayed to tenants. I looked for the dentist's name, and because his last name began with "L," I focused on the middle of the sign. To my surprise, I saw all sorts of last names, beginning with all sorts of letters. I looked again, and realized the sign was organized not by alphabet, but by floor. That is, all of the first floor tenants were at the top, followed by second floor and so on.

I did eventually find the right dentist. However, the experience frustrated me, and it's not the first time or the first office building that has signs this way. Let's analyze the situation, because there are lessons for how you should communicate with people.

Think about it: when you go into an office building to see a particular person, do you really care who's on each floor and in each office? Probably not. You're looking for a particular person, say Dr. Smith. But if the sign is organized by floor or office, you might have to look multiple places before finding Dr. Smith. Doesn't it make more sense to organize the sign by last name? Doing so reduces the number of times you have to look.

What's the lesson? Look at things from your customer's perspective. In this case, organize the sign the way your customer most likely would find it most convenient.