1.4: User Expectations and Customer Service

Ensure that websites are meeting user expectations and needs and that the customer experience with websites is continually enhanced.

Other Information:

How does your Agency currently ensure that websites are meeting user expectations and needs and that the customer experience with websites is continually enhanced? GSA ensures that its two major websites, GSA.gov and USA.gov are meeting expectations and needs and that the customer experience with those websites is continually enhanced. Last year GSA.gov transformed its look and feel and functionality with a new content management system that enhanced the search capabilities and improved the user experience. GSA’s other domains use multiple feedback mechanisms to address the particular purposes of those domains and sites. GSA also routinely tests its websites to ensure compliance with Section 508 and access for people with disabilities. Our goal is to ensure that all of GSA domains are Section 508 compliant. GSA provides leadership and resources to other agencies in providing accessible content. GSA is also taking a lead in testing usability of web sites not only in GSA but also for other agencies, through the First Friday Product Testing Program. The program trains web teams to test their websites with real users, identify the top usability problems, and identify quick fixes to improve the user experience. This affordable, practical program has been underway for just over a year, but has already helped GSA and over a dozen agencies to make incremental improvements to their websites. For GSA.gov, USA.gov and GobiernoUSA.gov, web teams ensures that user expectations are met and continually enhanced through customer surveys and engagement, analysis of web metrics, frequent usability testing, and an established continuous website improvement cycle. GSA.gov, USA.gov and GobiernoUSA.gov customers are surveyed on the websites using the ACSI survey to benchmark satisfaction on our sites against other government and commercial sites. We also survey the public to gauge the effectiveness of the Frequently asked questions in our online database, and the helpfulness of the information provided by the staff in our contact center. USA.gov and GobiernoUSA.gov added polls and user-generated comments to engage visitors and learn more about their opinions, preferences and trends. When a customer sends an email about the USA.gov or GobiernoUSA.gov websites, the messages are not only read, but acted upon and responded to in a short-time frame because we value direct communication with our audience. We also engage our audience through social media channels such as Facebook, Twitter and the USA.gov Blog. GSA.gov constantly monitors usage with WebTrends, Google search appliance logs, and data collection tools such as Crazy Egg. Likewise,USA.gov and GobiernoUSA.gov staff constantly monitor visitor traffic and use via various log analysis and data collection tools and analysis of the USASearch search logs to identify top search terms. We also monitor popular FAQ's and popular questions that come in to our contact center through phone calls, emails and chat to understand what information the public is currently seeking. We routinely update the homepage of both sites to prominently display these top requests, to make them easy to access. GSA.gov, USA.gov and GobiernoUSA.gov are designed according to usability best practices, and are routinely tested to learn how people use our sites and specific steps that we can take to improve user experience. These domains and their sites have a continuous website improvement cycle where functional and design enhancements are released every 6 weeks at a minimum. To further enhance the customer experience and become more efficient, GSA integrated four websites into USA.gov and GobiernoUSA.gov. The sites were rich in content, but lacked the strong brand recognition of USA.gov and GobiernoUSA.gov. The immediate result is that USA.gov and GobiernoUSA.gov benefited from this new rich content and because of the strong brand recognition, this content is being found and used by the public in ever increasing numbers.

Indicator(s):

Indicator:1

Content