A blog about government-to-citizen digital communication and engagement, Government 2.0, GovDelivery, and other e-government issues
Header

5 Tips on a Website Redesign

January 23rd, 2012 | Posted by GovDelivery in Compelling Content | GovLoop | Web/Tech - (0 Comments)

By Steve Ressler, GovLoop Founder

Last week GovLoop, the online knowledge network for government employees, launched a redesign where we redesigned our home page and launched 7 new sub-communities.

The purpose of the change was to increase the overall readability of the site and organization of the site.   We had been hearing from our members over the last 6 months that the site had become overwhelming with more than 15,000 blog posts, 6,000 forums, and 900 groups.  Our members were having a hard time finding relevant discussions and content that they cared about.  Thus, we set out to develop a streamlined home page and 7 focused “hubs” on the site for the topics:

  • Acquisition
  • Careers
  • Communications
  • Human resources
  • Leadership
  • Project management
  • Technology

As many of you in government probably know, a project of this magnitude takes energy, time, and consensus. Now that we completed the initial redesign I wanted to give my 5 tips on a website redesign:

1) Put someone in charge – In a website redesign, everyone on the team has opinions. The website is something that affects everyone. Plus, design is a skill that everyone has an opinion about. (People wouldn’t give a developer feedback on their code, but they usually have an opinion based on their design tastes; thus, the phrase “design by committee.”) For your website redesign, put someone in charge who is a good project manager and knows design. For our redesign, we made sure that everyone understood that the project was led by Jeff, who was chosen to lead the project because he is skilled in both design and project management.

2) Communicate, communicate, communicate – One leadership tip is to communicate a message until you are sick of it. Then communicate that message 5x more. This rule is even more true in a redesign. With such a big project, everyone wants to know the latest.  So, make sure you are giving constant updates to the rest of the team.

3) Gather data and feedback – Before starting our redesign, we collected a lot of information on what people wanted on GovLoop.  We spent time analyzing our Google Analytics data to understand what people were currently reading on the site and where they navigated to around the site. We also collected qualitative feedback, from discussion threads on GovLoop to one-on-one discussions. For the past year, every time I was with a GovLoop member, I’d ask them what they liked and didn’t like about GovLoop. All of this information was compiled and helped us make decisions, with the ultimate goal of providing a streamlined process for our users to find the content they wanted more easily. Finally, in addition to the data and feedback, it’s important to remember what your vision for a redesign is, ultimately. For us, it was critical to “grow big, stay small,” so we knew the importance of creating something like sub-communities even if our members didn’t articulate it exactly in those words.

4) Put a time scope on it - We knew we only had 2 months to complete our redesign, from project start to when we needed to go live.  While the time pressure limited us from doing some things we wanted, it also provided a clear deadline which forced us to keep our project in scope.

5) Do it right - We’ve redesigned parts of our site before on GovLoop, but the projects were often piecemeal or run by interns. This time, we made sure to do it right; we partnered with the folks at Forum One who brought in a range of skills (front-end developer, interactive designer, project manager) and pushed us to do the redesign the right way. Small decisions made a big difference, like deciding to take a little more time to use an API instead of an RSS feed to bring in pictures and comments to our communities.  All that little bit of extra effort truly made all the difference.

Have you been a part of a redesign? What are your tips? Have you seen the new GovLoop? What do you think of it?

, , , ,

5 Discussion Topics to Drive Activity in Your Online Community

January 20th, 2012 | Posted by Lauren Modeen for GovDelivery in Government 2.0 | GovLoop | Web 2.0 - (0 Comments)

Do you know the biggest killer for an online community? Yep, that’s right. It’s boorrrriinnnggg. So how do you keep a community alive? Good discussions. Here are five fail safe discussion threads to keep the fire burning. These are some of the most popular discussion topics on GovLoop, an online community of 53,650 members, boasting 5,769 total discussion topics to date since the community’s inception in summer of 2008.

5 Discussion Topics to Keep Your Community Alive:

1. A Question Everyone Can Answer

Example: “Introduce Yourself”

Total comments to date = 2,745.

Why it Works: this thread was created on June 15, 2008 and had activity as recently as January 19, 2012. That’s pretty impressive. Why is this topic so sticky? It’s a question everyone can answer, and it makes it super easy for a new member to contribute in a non-threatening way. They can dip their toe into the conversation of the community, get confidence, and begin contributing in more comprehensive ways later.

2. A Timeless Topic

Example: “Favorite Quotes?”

Total comments to date = 520.

Why it Works: this is a timeless topic that doesn’t go out of style or relevance. It’s also another easy “dip toe in the water” topic for a new member to contribute their voice without having to express too much until they get comfortable.

3. Something Competitive

Example: “Vote on $25,000 GovLoop Scholarship”

Total comments to date = 389.

Why it Works: there is real money on the table with this discussion, and people get to vote. People can express themselves through their voting, and feel like they are part of making something happen. Same reason we vote for anything.

4. A Creative Challenge

Example: “In 7 Words or Less, Explain What You Do”

Total comments to date = 378.

Why it Works: it’s creative, and makes people think. They get to read what other people describe in 7 words or less, and try a spin on their own. It’s also another way of expressing themselves in a way that makes them feel part of the larger community, and they can connect with others based on what they do. It’s not political, or opinionated, just lets people be themselves.

5. Something That Personally Affects a Huge Population in Your Community

Example: “Sound Off – Your Thoughts on the Federal Discretionary & Pay Freeze”

Total comments to date = 177.

Why it Works: this topic affects a huge population in the GovLoop community, and possibly for the negative. Plus, it’s a potentially really strong negative – it’s their livelihood. It hits on a major nerve, and generates a ton of energy. For those who are not directly affected through their livelihood, it’s a super controversial topic that gets blood flowing.

, , , , , , ,

GSA Launching 12-week Pilot Training Course on Social Media in Government

January 19th, 2012 | Posted by Lauren Modeen for GovDelivery in Government 2.0 | GovLoop | Social Media | Web 2.0 - (0 Comments)

Starting February 7, the General Services Administration will be piloting a 12-week course centering on social media in government. The course “aims to help new and aspiring social media practitioners understand the strategy and tools that will help them succeed in their roles” as described by Gadi Ben-Yehuda, who will be leading the charge. Each of the 12-week sessions will be 90 min in duration and divided into three parts: 1) a class discussion of an assigned reading; 2) a presentation by a guest lecturer; and 3) hands-on training on some type of social media tool or practice. You can download the full syllabus here.

What will you walk away with at the end of 12 weeks? You’ll learn how to:

  • Evaluate the capabilities and limitations of social media generally and within government specifically
  • Access and articulate the value of social media to leadership
  • Determine the best social media channels for your organization based on goals and objectives
  • Create, engage, and manage online communities

As participants begin to grasp new ways of thinking and begin to brew ideas for new initiatives in their own agencies, they can socialize their thinking in the GovLoop community and get real-time responses, support, and a sense of whether something might really float in the real-world.

, , , , , ,

Sift Through Big Data to Find Real Insight

January 18th, 2012 | Posted by Dennis Still for GovDelivery in Analytics/Data | Compelling Content | Email Communication | Federal Government | GovDelivery | Government 2.0 - (0 Comments)

There is a ton of talk today about “big” data.  The concept comes from our ever increasing ability to collect, store, and manage larger and larger datasets full of vast amounts of information – customer information, habits, purchasing patterns, social media visits, and so on.  Unfortunately, I think many private and public organizations have become much like the Once-ler in Dr. Seuss’ Lorax:

I had to grow bigger so bigger I got. I biggered my factory, I biggered my roads, I biggered the wagons, I biggered the loads…

I biggered my datasets because that is what everyone, everyone needs…

The true test of an organization’s ability to use any data effectively is in the analysis of that data.  What can you understand from “big” data and how can it help government organizations achieve greater efficiencies, effectiveness, and engagement with the citizens they serve?  I think the answer is in the smaller, localized, actionable gems that you sift out of the ever-growing big data.

GovDelivery recently published the 2011 Federal Digital Communications Report in which we reflect on the breadth and depth of digital communications across governmental agencies.  We leveraged big data to highlight actionable information that can provide important insights for government agencies, including what topics were important to citizens.

  • 28% of governmental messages sent out via the GovDelivery platform dealt with Health & Health Care in 2011.  It was a critical topic focused on by the national media, and this report shows that all levels of government agencies provided further analyses, clarifications, policies, and follow-up through their digital communications.

  • Over 25% of governmental messages dealt with Business & Small Business and Jobs & Employment.  Again, the economy has been a major focus throughout the world.  This has given government organizations the opportunity to get out timely information to help its citizens cope as well as help support increased economic activity by educating and encouraging entrepreneurs and small businesses.
  • IRS, National Weather Service, FEMA, and USDA had some of the highest shared content across all Federal agencies that use the GovDelivery digital communications solution.  This list shows the specific messages from government agencies that citizens felt compelled to share with family and other social networks. It demonstrates immediate mission value for government while also providing agencies with information that can help them tailor their future communications. Many shared important updates and news alerts related to subjects like:
  1. SAMHSA – Facebook’s First-of-a-Kind Service to Help Prevent Suicides
  2. USDA – New Food Icon to help consumers make healthier food choices
  3. USA.gov – Moment of silence in remembrance of 9/11
  • By identifying some detailed data, we were able to highlight the incredible growth of specific topics that showed growing public interest. The report showed that the SSA’s W-2 News, FEMA’s Updates During Disasters, and AHRQ’s Patient Safety grew the most by number of subscribers over 2011.

The study overall provides remarkable proof that governments are providing relevant, topic based, and insightful information for their citizens.  GovDelivery is proud to partner with government organizations to help get the word out about the kind of information that impact all of us.

Theoretically, the idea of big data for government sounds valuable, but in reality, big data doesn’t provide the insight that helps you communicate better with the public.  It is not just about “biggering” your data; it is about leveraging specific data to lead to greater wisdom and insights.  If you ever need help seeing the detailed trees through the ever-growing data forest, contact us at GovDelivery.

, , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The changing role of government

January 10th, 2012 | Posted by GovDelivery in Government 2.0 - (1 Comments)

By Mark Capaldini, GovDelivery

The role of government has evolved over time as citizen needs have changed. Today, government is being called on to do more with less. But with limited resources and a need to focus those resources on critical needs, the role of local government must evolve yet again.

In Governing’s November 2011 edition (p 20), there was an article entitled “Full-Service Government Comes to an End,” by Paul W. Taylor. The article focused on the many requests that come through for government employees to resolve. In particular, he noted that in Longmont, CO, “an internal analysis showed that up to 38% of the police departments calls for service did not need a uniformed officer – they needed a neighbor.”

This is only one example, but it raises a large question: Should government become an “information clearinghouse,” helping citizens find and act on information, as well as be a service provider? Should local government become a significant information and services hub, linking citizens to the most appropriate community resources for their needs?

For many years, government has been a “services provider.” But maybe that role needs to expand to “a services and information provider“? For some issues, precious government resources aren’t the best or most cost-effective solution. Other service providers, including neighbors, community groups, civic organizations, churches, non-profit organizations, etc., may be able to provide faster, better, and less expensive solutions.

We all have an interest in government cost-efficiency. When problems or challenges can be resolved faster and better, regardless of who is delivering the service, everyone benefits from a win-win situation.

This, of course, implies an expanded role for government websites – assuming that they can provide the most cost-effective channel for connecting the public to answers and resources. In addition to posting information on the website, subscription alerts, delivered by email, SMS text messages, RSS feeds, and other digital channels, can provide very specific, highly tailored, fast, and inexpensive options for fulfilling the “information clearinghouse” role.  Note that such offerings provide information proactively, not relying solely on Web searches and website visits by the public. In fact, such alerts may increase website visits by providing links that make finding specific information more easy.

Is “service and information provider” a potential new role for government? Would you like to see your local government provide a way to connect with your neighbors and other local residents to help resolve concerns or problems? What do you think of the ideas in the Governing article mentioned above? I’d love to hear your thoughts.

 

, , , ,

Government success with social media

December 29th, 2011 | Posted by Jennifer Kaplan in E-Government | Government 2.0 | Government Success Stories | Local Government | Social Media - (0 Comments)

This blog post is a response to a recent article in the Minneapolis/St. Paul Star Tribune on social media in government. It was a great article, but I felt compelled to respond!

************

I work for a company that does digital communication management (email/text/rss/social media) exclusively for the public sector.  It’s relatively common for cities and counties to struggle with social media, but what many of them fail to understand is that networks like Facebook and Twitter simply provide them with another channel to communicate to citizens. The benefits speak for themselves:

  • New audience.  Social media is an opportunity for government to talk to people in the spaces that they are comfortable in – their social networks.  There are citizens on Facebook that may not be going to a city or county’s website for information. Facebook and Twitter allow government to reach this audience and also gives them an opportunity to promote and direct them back to their website.
  • Immediacy. People pay attention to breaking news, because it’s new and different. Providing timely information through Facebook and Twitter means more people will pay attention and get information faster. This is especially important during weather or other disaster related emergencies. In fact, during recent massive flooding in Thailand, Twitter was key in pushing out emergency messages and helping to find people who needed help:
  • Analytics. Government agencies can use Facebook Insights, the analytics tool that helps you track your “Likes” over time; interactions with your page; messages with the most impressions and feedback; etc. With this data, cities and counties can not only report on the impact of their multi-channel communication efforts, but they can also gain an understanding of what type of content is resonating with their stakeholders.
  • Expansion and engagement. Facebook is more than just facebook.com. With the immense growth over the past few years, you can now leverage Facebook on your website via Facebook widgets, mobile integration so you can update your status with a text message, and customizable apps. The City of San Francisco’s 311 Customer Service Center app  is a great example. They created an app for Facebook that leveraged their customer service request forms so the citizens of San Francisco could report a pothole to the city on Facebook. The main point: Facebook helps you create interactions and engagement across the web.

If there are any cities and counties out there who are having trouble getting upper level decision makers to sign off on a social media plan, check out this blog post from Government Social Media on how you can help introduce the use of social media in your organization. It’s an older post, but I think the suggestions still ring true.

Worried about negative feedback? There are some great tips on another blog, Reach the Public. The key is to have and post a commenting policy. By proactively notifying citizens of what is and isn’t acceptable, cities and counties give themselves the power to remove anything inappropriate.

There are so many local government agencies out there that “get it”, and are doing social media well. I’m surprised that Minneapolis and St. Paul were not mentioned in this article. Minneapolis has 2 of the top 10 most-followed local government  Twitter accounts, according to a recent infographic by Government Technology.  Both cities do an excellent job of posting pertinent information, as well as engaging citizens with local events and activities. Locals should check out @CityMinneapolis and @cityofsaintpaul for more!

, , , , , , , ,

12 Cool Social Media Stats, Tools, and Books Not to Miss – Part 2

December 19th, 2011 | Posted by Lauren Modeen for GovDelivery in Compelling Content | E-Government | Social Media - (1 Comments)

You can get caught up the first six cool social media stats, tool, and books here. I searched high and low, near and far to bring you the next set. Enjoy!

Cool Find #7: 15 Commandments for Government Agencies on Twitter Guide. Shameless plug for my amazing GovLoop co-workers, but this guide “Thou Shalt Tweet” is super helpful for anyone working on social media initiatives in a government agency.

Cool Find #8: Embedding Tweets. Yesterday I was in a roundtable discussion with Adam Sharp, the Government/Politics lead for Twitter. He reviewed everything that is coming down the pike with the new Twitter. To sum up his review: I am ecstatic. But perhaps one of my favorite (albeit simple) features of the new Twitter is the capability to embed tweets. Yup, just like you can grab the embed code of images on Pinterest or videos on YouTube, soon (in the next couple of weeks), you’ll be able to embed tweets on any third-party website. Here’s the full scoop.

Cool Find #9: Ergoarchive. Does this sound familiar? You read a great article, watch a great video, and then a few days later you start racking your brain thinking: “where did I see that great stat, infographic, etc?” If it does, this tool called Ergoarchive might prove helpful. As described by the company: it keeps track of all your web stuff! It saves every web page, every update in your social streams to help you organize, archive and search your browsing history. It’s in the beta stage right now, but you can try it early by requesting an invite.

Cool Find #10: Copywriter’s Handbook. Ah, yes. I thought it was super important to include this book because while I’d love to recommend tons of other books on social media, perhaps we should first learn how to write, and edit. Otherwise, all the social media initiatives in the world won’t help us. At first I thought I’d recommend The Elements of Style by Strunk and White, a book that’s been on my desk since 8th grade, but this one is geared more for the web.

(Image source)

Cool Find #11: If This Then That. Or IFTTT. Here’s a really simplistic description by tech geek Scott Hanselman “IfThisThenThat lets all your online stuff work together to do way more interesting stuff.” Or, here’s the more technical description: “IFTTT is a cloud-based open-ended web workflow creator building on existing social APIs to create more sophisticated distributed aggregated tasks.” Basically, it allow you to create more efficient workflows. Here’s an example:

(Image source)

I know, I know, it sounds philosophical and a bit vague. But if this peaks your interest, read more about it, and you’ll see why this is super neat.

Cool Find #12: Tip for Government Agencies: Before writing the press release, at least agree on the first 140 characters. For my last cool find, I wanted to share not a tool, stat, or book with you, but a thought. And this one is specifically geared at agencies or anyone directly in the public eye. Yesterday, when I was in my roundtable with Adam Sharp, he was describing the pace at which Twitter moves. “Faster than earthquakes” he said, as we were all recalling how thousands along the east coast on August 23, 2011 heard about the earthquake on Twitter before they actually felt the tremors. So, if it’s true Twitter moves faster than earthquakes, what does that say about the PR office of a government agency waiting hours and hours to put out a press release on a particular subject? If news travels that fast, waiting for copy to get approved, WAY after an event happens is probably not good for the agency. Why? The agency most will be entering the conversation long after the news is on the wire. Adam’s recommendation? Before the press release, try to at least tweet the 140 characters you can agree on.

, , , , , , ,

16 Communication Tips to Live By

December 19th, 2011 | Posted by Lauren Modeen for GovDelivery in Compelling Content | Email Communication - (0 Comments)

Want to rise up? Have a healthy, long, fulfilling career? Be a good communicator. All the brains, money, and effort isn’t enough if you can’t represent yourself well over your life.

I just read this wonderful article on the Top 10 Best and Worst Communicators of 2011 and from it distilled 16 communication tips to live by. What do you think? What else should be on the list?

(Image source)

DO’s:

1. Be consistent

2. Be energetic

3. Trumpet a direction

4. Speak from the heart

5. Know when to keep your mouth shut

6. Be multidimensionally creative and create unique experiences

7. Be graceful

8. Be different

DON’Ts:

9. Don’t deceive

10. Don’t NOT communicate

11. Don’t be erratic

12. Don’t not know basic stuff

13. Don’t talk with marbles in your mouth

14. Don’t be meek

15. Don’t be arrogant

16. Don’t try to please everyone

, , , ,

12 Cool Social Media Stats, Tools, and Books Not to Miss – Part 1

December 14th, 2011 | Posted by Lauren Modeen for GovDelivery in Compelling Content | Government 2.0 | Social Media - (3 Comments)

To continue the ongoing holiday theme of 12 -  I thought it would be helpful to share my favorite 12 social media stats, tools, and books that I’ve come across this week. You know – - instead of french hens or ladies dancing. Although french hens would definitely be neat. But I digress.

Here are 12 cool social media stats, tools, and books for your enjoyment. Note: I decided to break this post up into 2 parts. Why? Because (here’s a bonus stat), as mentioned at the recent conference #Tech11, on the average web page, users read at most only 28% of the words? [Source] Only 28%? Sad. So, in the spirit of keeping things brief, I’ll give you 1-6 today, and 7-12 tomorrow.

Cool Find #1: Digital Half-life. Drugs have a half-life. Radioactive nuclides have a half-life. [Nerd alert!] But did you know that you Facebook posts also have a half-life? Yes they do! According to this Facebook study by Visibli, Facebook posts receive 50% of their Likes within the first 1 hour 20 minutes of being published, 80% within the first 7 hours, and 95% within the first 22 hours.

(Image Source, Visibli)

Takeaways:

  • 50% of your likes come within 80 min.
  • 95% of your likes come within 22 hours.
  • As the article points out, to avoid cannibalizing Likes from earlier posts, Facebook page owners may delay future posts until they have maximized engagement on previous ones.

Cool Find #2: How Users Actually View Your Facebook Page (Literally). In media, we’ve talked about the number of “eyeballs” on this and that for years. Well, this study conducted by EyeTrackShop, literally tracks eyeballs. Check out this article by Mashable for best practices on Facebook (and other sites such as LinkedIn, too).

(Image Source, Mashable)

Takeaways:

  • Profile pictures matter. The site feature that attracted most attention on Klout, Facebook and StumbleUpon was the profile photo.
  • Job title garnered more attention than profile photo on LinkedIn. In fact, it got more attention than anything else on the page.
  • Who you know gets noticed. Even if for no better reason than their placement on the page, people do look at those little thumbnails of friends that appear on many social profiles.
  • Content on top wins. The further something is down a page, the fewer number of people look at it.

Cool Find #3: New Twitter (#letsfly). Over the next few weeks (or now, if you download the new app on your iPhone or Android), Twitter will be rolling out a major redesign. There’s a great summary of all the changes in this Mashable article, and here’s a quick snapshot of what’s different:

Takeaway? Get the entire scoop here, but essentially Twitter hopes by adding three new buttons to its homepage, Home, @Connect and #Discover, it will simplify the user experience.

Cool Find #4: Federal Social Media Index. Do you work at a federal agency and want to know how your social media stacks up to others on a weekly basis? This index created by Expert Labs ranks agencies on their engagement levels.

Takeaway? The site is powered by ThinkUp and is updated weekly without intervention from humans, providing an unbiased snap-shot of which federal agencies are leading the charge with social media engagement.

Cool Find #5: The World of Social Media 2011.  I am always on the lookout for the latest stats on social media. Stats are powerful in conversation, presentations, and when trying to demonstrate the value to those still sitting on the “questionable fence.” Here’s an easy to follow video with the latest stats. Did you know that Facebook surpassed Google in the #1 most visited site on the web? Did you also know that 11% of the WORLD POPULATION has a Facebook account?

Takeaway? We live in a social media world. And it’s only increasing. Know the facts, and drive powerful conversations.

Cool Find #6: Book on importance of “Humanizing.” This book highlights why humanizing your organization is essential to flourishing in the digital age.

Takeaway? Pick-up a book this year that will give you some actionable accounts of moving towards a more human organization.

 

, , , , , , , ,

Video: Steve Ressler talks social media successes in goverment

December 1st, 2011 | Posted by Mary Yang for GovDelivery in Compelling Content | Social Media - (0 Comments)

Steve Ressler, founder of Govloop, the social network for government employees and professionals, sat down with us to talk about some social media successes in government and how you might be able to replicate that success.

Hear what he has to say about government agencies and departments using social media today:

Have you seen any social media success stories within government? Share your story and thoughts below!

 

, , , , , , , , , , ,