Customer experience on Digital.gov

Rebuilding CDC.gov

Thu, 02 Jan 2025 00:00:00 -0500

Learn how the CDC.gov team used a bold “Clean Slate” approach to reimagine the site and meet real user needs.

Making government text messaging more effective with Notify.gov

Tue, 17 Dec 2024 00:00:00 -0500

To improve access to government services, GSA launched Notify.gov, a notification tool that sends text message reminders about government services and benefits programs. This service aims to ensure families receive the right information at the right time on the government services they use.

Requirements for transforming federal customer experience and service delivery

Wed, 04 Dec 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Learn how to strengthen customer experience and service delivery within your federal agency.

Enhancing the customer-centricity of GSA websites

Wed, 30 Oct 2024 00:00:00 -0500

An overview of GSA’s website evaluation process, which combines qualitative and quantitative data to assess website management and performance.

Making the case for human-centered design: A Department of Justice case study

Mon, 28 Oct 2024 00:00:00 -0500

The Access DOJ initiative shares nine lessons on making services more accessible, effective, and efficient.

Making targeted improvements to NPS.gov: A case study from the National Park Service

Fri, 11 Oct 2024 00:00:00 -0500

NPS enhances user experience on NPS.gov by integrating Digital Analytics Program web analytics data and customer feedback from GSA Touchpoints.

Building a culture of customer experience across government

Mon, 07 Oct 2024 00:00:00 -0500

The Life Experience teams contain lessons for establishing a culture of customer experience in government, shifting to a focus on organizational practices.

User research and the Paperwork Reduction Act

Tue, 20 Aug 2024 00:00:00 -0500

User research is an important part of customer experience transformation. Different types of research require different approval under the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA). Through seven case studies, the U.S. Digital Service shows how agencies conducted valuable user research that did not require PRA approval and successfully integrated findings into their projects. Their work illustrates how thoughtful user research transforms delivery of services and helps agencies build trust in government.

Developing an easier way to recruit user research participants

Tue, 06 Aug 2024 00:00:00 -0500

USA.gov and 10x recently partnered to develop a new user research recruitment page. The page launched in February 2024 and has attracted hundreds of sign-ups. It allows participants to assist in testing government websites for compensation, and helps teams find participants that match needed demographics. By simplifying the process and expanding recruitment of diverse populations, the initiative aims to support and streamline user research. It plans to add recruitment opportunities in additional languages and recruit more specific audiences for future studies.

A small team's journey through digital maturity

Mon, 08 Jul 2024 15:55:00 -0500

As a small team, Digital.gov adopted user research and customer experience early. That foundation helps develop evidence-based strategies for today.

Join the Contact Center

Fri, 28 Jun 2024 16:36:00 -0500

Explore methods of service delivery that improve customer experience in government contact centers.

Federal customer experience: OMB has taken actions to implement cross-agency priority goals

Thu, 06 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

In 2021, the President’s Management Agenda identified federal customer experience as a priority area for improvement. To implement this priority area, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) set two long-term, cross-agency priority (CAP) goals. In this study, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) reviews OMB and selected federal agencies’ efforts towards these CAP goals. Learn about actions taken by OMB and selected High Impact Service Providers (HISPs), how OMB has facilitated interagency collaboration, and the extent to which OMB has overseen and assessed progress on these CAP goals.

An introduction to customer experience

Wed, 05 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Understand what customer experience (CX) is and how to leverage customer feedback and analytics to enhance the public’s experience when interacting with government services.

Progress towards delivering a digital-first public experience

Wed, 17 Apr 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Each year, more than 400 million individuals, families, businesses, organizations, and local governments get information and services from about 430 federal agencies and sub-agencies. The Biden-Harris administration is driving a bold vision for how government agencies serve their customers digitally with OMB’s ten-year roadmap for a modern digital experience. Agencies have already made significant strides. Learn about recent successes by the IRS, CDC, NASA, and FEMA, and how OMB will continue to collaborate with agencies to ensure ongoing improvement in digital government services.

Delivering seamless customer journeys

Tue, 16 Apr 2024 00:00:00 +0000

GSA shares a 4-step process used to measure and analyze related websites, and additional plans to improve customers’ digital experience.

Determining the true value of a website: A GSA case study

Tue, 16 Apr 2024 00:00:00 +0000

GSA has developed a composite indicator to visualize six key components of website success.

Customer experience: beyond surveys

Tue, 05 Mar 2024 09:00:00 -0500

Want to measure customer experience? Surveys aren’t the only way! Consider these guiding questions to help your team select an approach based on what you want to learn.

Customer experience and human-centered design

Thu, 18 Jan 2024 14:46:00 -0500

Customer experience is the application of design within a business context to craft the human experience.

Amplifying customer voices

Tue, 19 Dec 2023 17:38:00 -0500

Understand how to use natural language processing and advanced analytics to gain insights on high-impact service performance and survey design.

Delivering on 21st Century IDEA: A case study from the GSA SmartPay team (Part 3)

Wed, 29 Nov 2023 08:04:00 -0500

A GSA SmartPay product owner shares her experience designing user-centered, accessible content for multiple audiences.

2023 Federal Customer Experience (CX) Summit

Thu, 02 Nov 2023 17:37:00 -0500

The inaugural Federal CX Summit will be held November 16th, 2023. Featured speakers from across government will share how to focus on delivering impact to customers and building CX capacity, and will discuss innovations, trends, and technologies that can be leveraged to enhance customer experience at federal agencies. Register to attend this virtual event co-hosted by the Customer Experience Center of Excellence (CX CoE), 18F, and the CX Community of Practice.

Decoding public sentiment: Harnessing open data to gain insights into service delivery

Mon, 30 Oct 2023 10:00:00 -0500

Exploring High-Impact Service Provider performance through open source data analysis to enhance customer experience with federal services.

Why the American People Deserve a Digital Government

Fri, 22 Sep 2023 13:26:00 -0500

OMB recently released new policy guidance for government that includes a variety of actions and standards to help federal agencies design, develop, and deliver modern websites and digital services. Memo M-23-22, Delivering a Digital-First Public Experience, will make it seamless for the public to obtain government information and services online, and help agencies fully implement the 21st Century Integrated Digital Experience Act (21st Century IDEA).

Quarterly PMA Updates Lead the Way for Improved Service Delivery and Trust-Building

Wed, 30 Aug 2023 09:52:00 -0500

Today, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) released its latest updates to the President’s Management Agenda (PMA). This quarter, the Implementation Leads for Customer Experience (Priority 2) share updates on where we are with this PMA priority.

Reflections on a year in government from 11 U.S. Digital Corps fellows

Tue, 18 Jul 2023 11:41:00 -0500

To celebrate their first year in government, 11 U.S. Digital Corps Fellows reflect on what they have learned.

How a Small Team Modernized a Federal Website to Improve CX

Tue, 11 Jul 2023 12:38:00 -0500

The recent redesign of the Office of Natural Resources Revenue (ONRR) website stands as an example for agencies seeking to enhance their online platforms. ONRR’s Open Data, Design, and Development (ODDD) team played a pivotal role in this website transformation by embracing open data, user-centered design, accessibility, collaboration, and continuous improvement.

How to choose the right metrics for your intranet

Tue, 13 Jun 2023 15:25:00 -0500

Explore key metrics to optimize your agency’s intranet to foster improved user engagement, experience, and overall satisfaction.

Personas: learn how to discover your audience, understand them, and pivot to address their needs

Fri, 19 May 2023 15:48:00 -0500

Advice from five federal experts on creating user personas.

Who's your website manager?

Fri, 24 Mar 2023 15:29:00 -0500

The importance of HR and accountability to improving digital service delivery at federal agencies.

Understanding design in 10 questions

Fri, 03 Mar 2023 10:08:00 -0500

How the discipline of design can help your agency improve customer experience.

Digital governance at GSA

Thu, 23 Feb 2023 17:31:00 -0500

A peek into GSA’s internal processes for managing their websites and improving digital experience.

Collaborate with the TTS Public Benefits Studio

Tue, 07 Feb 2023 12:52:00 -0500

The Benefits Studio is seeking feedback and collaboration as it explores texting as a tool to improve the public experience of benefits programs.

To Build Trust, Aim for Easy

Tue, 13 Dec 2022 10:12:00 -0500

Trust is earned through consistency and commitment. Build sites that build trust by considering user needs, respecting people’s time, and avoiding customer experience pitfalls.

Putting People at the Center of Digital Government

Mon, 31 Oct 2022 09:30:00 -0500

USAGov and USAGov en Español are working to reimagine the way we provide government information and services to the public. The USAGov team is an example of how GSA’s Technology Transformation Services (TTS) is aligning and living up to the challenges outlined in the President’s Management Agenda. The focus in 2022 has been on centering the work around the people we serve.

Sunrise to Sunset: Building a Customer-centric Digital Ecosystem

Fri, 14 Oct 2022 08:30:00 -0500

GSA has developed the Digital Lifecycle Program, with tools and guidance to help teams manage a compliant, customer-centric digital property from ideation through sunsetting.

Taking a Design-led Approach to Digital Modernization

Fri, 07 Oct 2022 09:06:00 -0500

Learn how GSA uses collaboration, empathy, and existing expertise to modernize their digital portfolio and improve customer experience.

Your Federal Front Door: USA.gov and USAGov en Español are Focused on the Public

Wed, 05 Oct 2022 10:31:00 -0500

The Biden-Harris Administration’s President’s Management Agenda Vision (PMA) lays the foundation for an effective, equitable, and accountable government that delivers results for all Americans through three main priority areas. Periodically Performance.gov shares stories that highlight real world examples of one of the three PMA priorities. Follow along as they discuss the current approach of the USAGov team and what’s on the horizon for the USAGov website.

CXDay

Tue, 27 Sep 2022 13:40:00 -0500

CXDay—Help us celebrate and champion customer experience (CX) in government. Join Performance.gov and agencies across government for #CXDay on Tuesday, October 4th.

Measuring and Justifying the Government Experience

Fri, 19 Aug 2022 15:21:00 -0500

Private sector organizations use revenue as the primary measurement to justify improving experiences. Many government services don’t have revenue as a lever, so how can we justify work to improve experience? The Office of Natural Resources Revenue (ONRR) leveraged a few metrics on their team that fall into three categories: laws and regulations, improving the experience for users, and saving time for employees.

Announcing the CX Maturity Model

Thu, 30 Jun 2022 13:11:00 -0500

What is Customer Experience?

Tue, 21 Jun 2022 13:18:00 -0500

DHS Usability Testing Kit

Mon, 13 Jun 2022 11:31:00 -0500

Two Years of Federal Student Aid's Virtual Assistant Lead to Lessons Learned and a Clear Vision of the Work Ahead

Mon, 02 May 2022 16:00:00 -0500

Education’s FSA team behind Aidan® shares what they’ve learned over the past two years to help drive improvements and expand the product to a wider range of users.

Celebrate Public Service Recognition Week with the #GovPossible Toolkit

Tue, 12 Apr 2022 14:56:00 -0500

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How USAGov Engaged With the Public in 2021: 3 Examples

Tue, 12 Apr 2022 09:59:00 -0500

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Sunshine Week: How GSA Supports Open Government Principles

Thu, 17 Mar 2022 18:49:00 -0500

Sunshine Week (March 13-19, 2022) celebrates the Government in the Sunshine Act, which promotes greater transparency in government activities. Our mission at GSA is to deliver effective and efficient government services for the American people. To do so, we have to be transparent and accessible—by opening meetings to the public, ensuring that federal buildings and facilities are fully accessible to all people, and making information on documents or pages (web pages, PDFs, newsletters, etc.) open and accessible. Learn about some of our initiatives that best display these principles.

Creating a New Way for People To Discover Government Benefits

Tue, 15 Mar 2022 19:47:00 -0500

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From Fellowship To Full-time: How a CFPB Software Engineer Helped Protect Consumers and Built a Career in Civic Tech

Mon, 07 Mar 2022 11:15:00 -0500

Anselm Bradford, a front-end engineer at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), is using his tech skills to protect American consumers.

The Customer Experience (CX) Symposium Series: A Thought Incubator for Federal CX Practitioners

Fri, 21 Jan 2022 11:21:00 -0500

What is the past, present, and future of public sector customer experience practice? The CX Symposium series gathers practitioners to map our way.

Call for Participation: 2022 Government UX Summit

Wed, 19 Jan 2022 15:47:00 -0500

Learn more about the User Experience Summit submission process, and submit your presentations for consideration!

Webinar Recap: Key Takeaways on Simplifying Hazard Communications With Plain Language

Tue, 04 Jan 2022 12:35:00 -0500

An overview of the presentation by Danielle Nagele of NOAA at the 2021 Plain Language Summit. Learn how she and her team used feedback to decrease confusion and increase impact.

Using Technology to Improve Customer Experience and Service Delivery for the American People

Mon, 13 Dec 2021 11:02:00 -0500

Executive Order 14058, released today, reinforces the second priority of the President’s Management Agenda—centered around improving customer services through technology—and demonstrates the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to reducing customer burden, addressing inequities, and streamlining processes.

Executive Order 14058: Transforming Federal Customer Experience and Service Delivery to Rebuild Trust in Government

Mon, 13 Dec 2021 10:44:00 -0500

A more simple, seamless, and secure customer experience for the American public.

Digital Meets Culture: Getting Your Culture in Line With Your Digital Strategy

Tue, 28 Sep 2021 09:40:00 -0500

Learn how digital service teams in government navigate through the currents of organizational culture and implement change at their agencies.

GSA Launches New Innovation Adoption Community of Practice

Thu, 08 Jul 2021 15:55:00 -0500

GSA is launching the Innovation Adoption Community of Practice on Digital.gov to connect those who embrace innovative methods and practices that improve government service delivery.

Innovation Adoption

Thu, 24 Jun 2021 10:30:00 -0500

Our purpose is to build innovation and intrapreneurship capacity across government by investing in and nurturing innovation, intrapreneurship capabilities, and the innovation experience.

Your Experience Matters

Tue, 22 Jun 2021 14:20:00 -0500

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How To Navigate Challenges to Successfully A/B Test Your Emails

Fri, 21 May 2021 11:44:00 -0500

The article will go over some best practices of implementing A/B testing on your emails.

8 Ways Community of Practice (CoP) Managers Can Improve Member Engagement on Listservs

Fri, 21 May 2021 09:31:00 -0500

Are you a Digital.gov Community of Practice (CoP) lead? Find yourself participating in a CoP discussion and wondering what else you can do? We’ve got some suggestions.

Using Chatbots To Improve Customer Experience

Wed, 07 Apr 2021 20:33:00 -0500

Three federal teams showcase their success using chatbots to improve customer satisfaction, increase availability, and empower their users to accomplish tasks faster.

How to Present Like a Pro

Thu, 25 Mar 2021 12:09:00 -0500

Wendy Wagner-Smith of the Small Business Administration (SBA) shares her tips and tricks for presenting virtually.

How to Present Like a Pro

Thu, 25 Mar 2021 00:00:00 -0500

How to Present Like a Pro—When you are presenting on streaming video, you are essentially doing the same thing as a television news anchor. Try these common methods that television presenters use daily to improve your presentation skills in the “zoom” era.

Five Insider Secrets to Engaging Emails

Fri, 26 Feb 2021 10:39:00 -0500

Engaging readers who receive hundreds of emails a day is not easy, but it starts with the most critical starting point—empathy for their time.

Call for Participation: 2021 Government UX Summit

Mon, 08 Feb 2021 12:43:00 -0500

Join us as virtual presenters for the 2021 Government UX Summit in June! This is a great opportunity to hone your UX skills with the best and brightest user experience researchers and designers from across the government.

Federal Student Aid’s New Virtual Assistant Offers Model for Improved Customer Service in Government

Mon, 07 Dec 2020 10:43:00 -0500

Aidan, Federal Student Aid’s new virtual assistant, gives customers instant responses to questions about financial aid, loan balances, repayment plans, where to find pages on StudentAid.gov, how to identify their loan servicers, and more, without having to contact a call center.

Zero Pageviews Is Your Goal: Finding Problem Pages with Website Analytics

Tue, 27 Oct 2020 10:00:00 -0500

Improve customer experience by turning your website analytics upside down to track the numbers for pages you DON’T want visitors to see.

6 Ways Government Innovators Are Building Stronger Public Services

Wed, 09 Sep 2020 10:00:00 -0500

Learn how federal agencies are using AI, data, cloud computing, customer experience, and the TTS tech stack to improve civic resources for all Americans.

Measure Performance to Make Continuous Improvements

Tue, 04 Aug 2020 12:00:00 -0500

This week, we’re exploring what it means to measure performance, and we’re taking a look at how listening to customers is the best way to continuously improve websites and digital services.

Experimenting with SpecialAnnouncement Markup (Updated June 09, 2020)

Mon, 11 May 2020 12:00:00 -0500

What USA.gov learned during its pilot with SpecialAnnouncement markup to make COVID-19 information easier to find in search results, now updated to reflect changes by major search engines.

DigitalGov Year in Review: Our Top Blogs, Resources, and Writers for 2016

Fri, 03 Feb 2017 11:25:00 -0500

DigitalGov had a pretty great year in 2016, and that was largely due to a bevy of talented and dedicated writers from over 50 agencies and departments across all 3 branches of the federal government (Thank you!!!). Below, we’ll review some program highlights from the last year, including our top-viewed articles and resources, and tell you how you, too, can contribute to DigitalGov in 2017.

Customer Experience

Wed, 08 Jul 2015 10:30:37 -0400

We are an interagency group of customer experience practitioners.

USAGov and USAGov en Español

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

A customer service platform that helps the public navigate the government space by providing topical information and services in English and Spanish.

Department of Homeland Security: Usability Testing Kit

Tue, 27 Sep 2022 11:25:00 -0500

A resource with four approaches to help federal employees perform usability testing.

OMB Circular A-11 Section 280: Managing Customer Experience and Improving Service Delivery

Wed, 08 Jan 2020 01:00:00 -0500

Guidance on how to measure customer experience, including questions on satisfaction and confidence and trust in section 280.7

An advanced approach to accessibility

Wed, 04 Dec 2019 08:00:00 -0500

A deeper look at accessibility: what to do, how to do it, and why it matters.

Guide to the Paperwork Reduction Act

Wed, 09 Oct 2019 15:00:00 -0500

A plain language guide which answers the most common questions to the PRA.

Customer Experience Toolkit

Thu, 07 Jan 2016 05:52:31 -0400

This Toolkit is intended to help government agencies improve how we deliver services and information to the public.

Join the Web Managers

Thu, 21 Nov 2013 02:31:00 -0500

Create a better online experience for the public alongside government web content managers.

Required web content and links

Mon, 05 Dec 2011 12:37:26 -0400

Various policies require you to have certain content—or provide links to content—from specific places on your website.

Human-Centered Design Guide Series

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

A series of guides to help you understand and practice human-centered design.

Tips for Starting Your Customer Experience Journey

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Low-cost, low-lift actions that any federal employee can take to improve customer experience.

Touchpoints

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Touchpoints offers a simple, flexible, and convenient way to start collecting customer feedback so you can focus on serving customers rather than managing surveys.

Spring 2024 Community Summit

Wed, 13 Mar 2024 10:00:00 -0500

Digital service experts across the federal government will share case studies and best practices on delivering a digital-first public experience.

USWDS Monthly Call - November 2023

Thu, 16 Nov 2023 14:00:00 -0500

The USWDS team will continue sharing our progress to improve ongoing research, publishing results and addressing recent findings.

USWDS Monthly Call - October 2023

Thu, 19 Oct 2023 14:00:00 -0500

This month, we’ll share progress and findings from our recent effort to improve our ongoing research practice.

2023 Government UX Summit

Wed, 14 Jun 2023 10:00:00 -0500

User experience (UX) experts across the federal government shared case studies and best practices during this virtual summit.

Strengthening information accessibility for consumers with limited English proficiency

Wed, 24 May 2023 14:00:00 -0500

Tune in to learn what the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is doing to ensure financial products and services are accessible to all consumers, including those with limited English proficiency.

Continuously improve your website by using customer feedback and web analytics: An IRS case study

Wed, 25 Jan 2023 13:00:00 -0500

Get tips and lessons learned from the Internal Revenue Service on how they collect user feedback and use web analytics to improve applications.

Improve Your Website With User Testing

Wed, 28 Sep 2022 14:00:00 -0500

Get tips and lessons learned from the Environmental Protection Agency on how to conduct user testing to improve customer experience.

DHS Usability Testing Kit — So Easy, Anyone Can Do It

Tue, 27 Sep 2022 13:00:00 -0500

Join us for an overview of the Department of Homeland Security’s new Usability Testing Kit, including its four approaches to usability testing.

2022 Federal Plain Language Summit

Wed, 24 Aug 2022 10:30:00 -0500

Join the best and brightest plain language practitioners from across the federal government.

Increase Your Impact With Plain Language

Wed, 13 Jul 2022 14:00:00 -0500

Get tips and lessons learned from the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division on using plain language to increase their impact and influence.

2022 Government UX Summit

Tue, 07 Jun 2022 11:00:00 -0500

A two-day summit—June 7 and June 8—with experts who will share their experiences as UX practitioners in the federal government.

How to Build Your Digital Dream Team

Tue, 17 May 2022 14:00:00 -0500

Learn how to get the right team in place to help you create a trusted, seamless online experience for all your customers.

Change the Way Digital Work Gets Done

Thu, 31 Mar 2022 14:00:00 -0500

Learn about what a Digital End-to-End Efficiency (DEEE) Framework is and how you can get started digitizing and automating your digital processes.

Plain Language + Compassion Help People in Crisis

Wed, 09 Mar 2022 14:00:00 -0500

Meet the content strategists who worked to transform FindTreatment.gov to connect people in crisis with the help that they need.

Language Connections: Tips to Create, Maintain, and Present Non-English Digital Content

Thu, 24 Feb 2022 14:00:00 -0500

Tips to help you improve access to your non-English digital content.

Overcoming Your Fear of Data

Thu, 13 Jan 2022 14:00:00 -0500

Learn how to overcome resistance to data analytics and visualization, ask the right questions, and improve customer experience.

2021 Federal Plain Language Summit

Tue, 21 Sep 2021 10:00:00 -0500

On 9/21/21, PLAIN’s Fourth Federal PL Summit showcases federal employees’ plain language projects. Topics include COVID-19 agency responses, accessibility, user experience, and career enhancement.

Digital Meets Culture: Getting Your Culture in Line With Your Digital Strategy

Thu, 15 Jul 2021 14:00:00 -0500

Join Digital.gov’s Web Managers Community as they host a discussion with panelists from the Lab at OPM, National Institutes of Health, Navy Bureau of Medicine and Surgery, and Presidential Innovation Fellows. The panel will discuss how to align culture and digital strategy to build better digital services.

Using Plain Language To Tell Our Stories

Wed, 14 Jul 2021 14:00:00 -0500

Learn how to tell a story and figure out what role plain language plays in storytelling.

How Chatbots Can Improve Customer Experience

Tue, 23 Feb 2021 14:30:00 -0500

Come see how various agencies have successfully deployed chatbots/AI to interact with the public and foster collaboration between teams!

USWDS Monthly Call - January 2021

Thu, 21 Jan 2021 14:30:00 -0500

Learn how journey maps and service blueprints help teams better understand how people really use our sites and services to do what they need to do.

Practical Tips for Accessible Content and Multilingual Websites

Thu, 03 Dec 2020 14:00:00 -0500

In this talk, we’ll focus on content creation and how accessibility supports multilingual work.

Customer Experience & Continuous Improvement: The USPS Digital Approach

Thu, 12 Nov 2020 14:00:00 -0500

This presentation lays out USPS.com’s continuous improvement approach and how it combines analytics and customer feedback with iterative heuristic reviews, design, and usability testing to monitor, improve, and evolve the USPS.com CX.

2020 Federal Plain Language Summit

Tue, 27 Oct 2020 10:00:00 -0500

Join us for discussion from government and private-sector leaders on how to advance plain language in government communications. Hear lessons learned and victories of every size.

Build Sites to Address the Entire User Journey

Tue, 16 Jun 2020 15:00:00 -0500

This week, we’re exploring what it means to understand the user experience, and we’re taking a look at ways to use journey mapping to find opportunities for improving products and services.

Promote Continuity to Better Support Customer Journeys

Tue, 12 May 2020 17:00:00 -0500

This week, we’re exploring what it means to promote continuity, and we’re taking a look at ways to use service design to deliver a great experience.

A Guide For Agencies Building CX Capacity

Fri, 24 Apr 2020 10:00:00 -0500

GSA’s customer experience team has released a federal buying guide to aid agencies with buying CX Services.

Connecting Americans to Coronavirus Information Online

Fri, 24 Apr 2020 10:00:00 -0500

The American people need access to the most up-to-date public health guidance and information on coronavirus testing facilities. To help Americans find coronavirus information online, incorporate Schema.org’s new standard tags into all web pages related to COVID-19.

Readability Audits of Government Websites with Katherine Spivey

Wed, 11 Mar 2020 14:00:00 -0500

In this meeting, we’ll talk about readability audits and formulas and how they work—and don’t work—to improve web content and the users’ experience.

Making a Mobile-Friendly Website Using the ADAPT Model

Tue, 25 Feb 2020 15:00:00 -0500

The 21st Century Integrated Digital Experience Act (21st Century IDEA) requires federal websites to be “fully functional and usable on common mobile devices.” Mobile-friendliness, however, can mean a variety of things, depending on the perspective of a user. David Fern, co-lead of the MobileGov Community and the Federal Crowdsource Mobile Testing Program, knows a lot about making websites and content mobile-friendly. This webinar gives you insights into his approach—the ADAPT Model—which looks to ensure that websites are mobile-friendly:

Taking a Look at the USAGov Analytics Dashboard

Thu, 16 Jan 2020 11:40:00 -0500

The USA.gov’s team launched a new analytics dashboard that shows the top pages and topics that are trending on USA.gov and USA.gov/espanol. This gives agencies a better window into the information the public needs most so they can prioritize that information and make it more accessible to their users.

The Most Popular Questions from the Public

Tue, 08 Oct 2019 12:00:00 -0500

The team at USAGov analyzed more than 13,000 chats and phone calls from the public, in both English and Spanish, and then tagged these inquiries by popular topic area. These are the top questions our government-wide contact center received over the last four months.

Technology Transformation Begins With People: Closing the Human-Technology Gap

Wed, 11 Sep 2019 12:00:00 -0500

GSA's Technology Transformation Services is prototyping a human-centered approach to cultivating an environment of lifelong learning to attract and retain the best talent to serve our citizens.

Prototyping Engagement Workshops for the Future of Federal Data, Dashboards, and Storytelling

Wed, 21 Aug 2019 18:06:00 -0500

User-centered design is critical for meetings—from the front lines to C-suite. How might we host more hands-on learning sessions and experience exchanges to improve and customize the way the federal workforce communicates to diverse stakeholders?

Building Trust with Users Through Open Communication and Feedback

Thu, 13 Jun 2019 14:00:00 -0500

A look at how FEMA responds to user needs and bugs in their app development.

Redesigning an Intranet Site: Final Stages, Launch, and Lessons Learned

Wed, 07 Mar 2018 12:00:00 -0500

Helpful lessons from the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) on the redesign of an intranet.

Customer Relationship Management - Government Sector Best Practices, Pitfalls and Tips

Tue, 13 Feb 2018 10:00:00 -0500

Join the CX Community for their first meeting of 2018 where CRM in government will be discussed.

Using Journey Mapping to Streamline Processes Across Agencies

Mon, 05 Feb 2018 11:52:00 -0400

How one team used journey mapping to improve the customer experience for newly naturalized citizens attempting to travel abroad.

Making Customer Satisfaction Data Actionable at the Peace Corps

Tue, 30 Jan 2018 09:30:00 -0400

Learn how measuring customer experience helped inform and guide website development at Peace Corps.

Government Launches Login.Gov to Simplify Access to Public Services

Mon, 28 Aug 2017 09:04:54 -0400

Joel Minton, a member of the U.S. Digital Service, is working with GSA’s Technology Transformation Service as the director of login.gov. Tom Mills is the Chief Technology Architect at U.S. Customs and Border Protection. In early April, the U.S. Digital Service and 18F launched login.gov, a single sign-on solution for government websites that will enable

The Data Briefing: Ten Years of Digital Transformation—Lessons Learned

Wed, 26 Jul 2017 12:00:00 -0400

Since 2007, a major consulting firm has conducted an annual survey on organizations’ “Digital IQ.” In the ten years of organizations grappling with digital transformation, what has been learned?

Improving Customer Experience with Digital Personas

Tue, 20 Jun 2017 10:55:09 -0400

Keeping the customer’s needs front and center is important when developing new digital tools. We recently developed a set of user personas as part of our work to establish a more robust—and data informed—understanding of the individuals that engage digitally with the National Archives (NARA). User personas are fictional, but realistic representations of key audience

Opening Public Services to Artificial Intelligence Assistants

Tue, 06 Jun 2017 14:02:20 -0400

“Hey, Computer, how do I access my public services?” Citizens will soon be able to ask their Intelligent Personal Assistants (IPA) this question through an Emerging Citizen Technology open-sourced pilot program. The purpose of the initiative is to guide dozens of federal programs make public service information available through automated, self-service platforms for the home

Build Your Audience by Hosting a Twitter Chat

Mon, 01 May 2017 15:00:08 -0400

Twitter is more than just a platform for sharing news and updates: it can be a tool for directly communicating with your community and understanding what is important to them. One way you can connect with your Twitter audience is by hosting a Twitter Chat. They can be a good way to discuss key topics,

DigitalGov Readers and Subscribers: We Want to Talk to You (Again)

Wed, 08 Mar 2017 01:19:51 -0400

We at DigitalGov want to hear more about you – your job, your role, the challenges you face — all of it — as you work to deliver more secure, effective, and reliable digital services for the public.

DigitalGov University in Review: 2016 Training Trends

Wed, 11 Jan 2017 12:00:02 -0400

Thanks to your participation, DigitalGov University (DGU), the events platform for DigitalGov, hosted over 90 events with 6,648 attendees from over 100 agencies across federal, tribal, state, and local governments.

Applying Customer Service Metrics to Improve Customer Experience (CX)

Thu, 03 Nov 2016 10:00:10 -0400

Lately, I’ve looked at how a government agency measures a customer’s experience. It’s such a complex topic that I would need more than one blog to discuss the nuances behind it. In my last blog, I examined and brokedown three types of customer service metrics: customer satisfaction (CSAT), Net Promoter Score (NPS), and Customer Effort

The Data Briefing: Help Predict the Future of Federal Government Data

Wed, 26 Oct 2016 13:00:55 -0400

In December, I plan to write two postings detailing a scenario analysis for the next ten years of the Federal government’s data technologies. Governments are on the cusp of amazing technological advances propelled by artificial intelligence, blockchain technologies, and the Internet of Things. Also, governments will face new challenges such as the recent global cyber

DigitalGov Readers and Subscribers: We Want to Talk to You

Tue, 25 Oct 2016 15:00:21 -0400

As you know, over the last few years DigitalGov has surfaced the innovative advancements many are making across the government space while providing a platform for learning best practices and coming together as a community. Over the course of the next few weeks, a small team from

CX Day In Government: How We All Shape The Customer Journey

Fri, 07 Oct 2016 11:00:21 -0400

During National Customer Service Week, it’s a great time for organizations across industry and government to celebrate putting customers at the center of our work and to think about what we can do to improve our customers’ end-to-end experiences. When you think this big, it can be a little daunting, but the good news is

Voices of Veterans: Introducing Personas to Better Understand Our Customers

Thu, 29 Sep 2016 11:00:46 -0400

Understanding our Veterans and their unique needs and experiences is at the heart of creating a more Veteran-centered VA. By listening to their voices and the stories they share, we can design services and experiences that meet the needs of Veterans. Taking a step towards a deeper understanding of our Veterans, in the fall of

The New Vote.gov: Leaner, Faster and Multi-Lingual

Wed, 28 Sep 2016 11:00:27 -0400

One year ago this week, we launched vote.gov (also known as vote.usa.gov). It’s a concise and simple site with a single mission: direct citizens through the voter registration process as quickly as possible. It was created by a joint team of USA.gov staffers and Presidential Innovation Fellows, all of whom work within the General Services

Webinar Recap: Snaps and Stripes—Sharing Public Service Stories with Snapchat

Tue, 27 Sep 2016 11:00:50 -0400

Snapchat has quickly become an incredibly effective digital storytelling medium, and content creators across multiple government agencies have adopted it as an important part of their programs.

How Do You Redesign a ‘Dinosaur’? Redesigning an Intranet Site: the Beginning Stages

Mon, 19 Sep 2016 10:00:56 -0400

Many content managers in the digital world understand the irrepressible desire to improve, fix, edit, add, and move things around. Indeed, it’s our job to nurture this ongoing process to create, update, test, update again. And, repeat! But, what about those sites or pages that seem to never crawl up to the ‘high-priority’ list and

Social Security Joins The Hispanic Heritage Month Celebration

Fri, 16 Sep 2016 12:00:53 -0400

Social Security joins you and your family in celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month, which runs from September 15 to October 15. We know the contributions of Hispanics can be traced to before the origins of the United States with the discovery, exploration, and naming of many places in our nation, such as state names like California,

No Longer an Idea of the Future, Artificial Intelligence Is Here and You Are Probably Already Using It

Thu, 15 Sep 2016 11:00:12 -0400

It might surprise some of you to know that artificial intelligence (AI) is already in use and a routine part of our daily lives, but we leverage this technology when we use our smartphones or other devices to ask Apple’s Siri, Microsoft’s Cortana, Google Now, or Amazon’s Alexa a question to get the facts or data we

Emma: Friendly Presence and Innovative USCIS Resource Available 24/7

Thu, 01 Sep 2016 10:00:40 -0400

We are working hard to serve you and continue to make improvements to Emma, our Spanish-speaking Interactive Virtual Assistant. Help us improve Emma’s knowledge by continuing to ask your immigration-related questions on USCIS.gov/es from any device. This blog will help you understand a little bit more about how Emma works and how you can help

Creative Usability Test Methods—or My Brief Career as a Robot Voice

Wed, 31 Aug 2016 12:00:42 -0400

When you want to do a usability test, sometimes you have to step out of your comfort zone and get creative to get the job done. That’s just what happened to us. We’re well practiced at usability testing at USAGov—in person, remote, hallway tests, first-click tests—all of these things we manage without blinking an eye.

Did We Do a Good Job? The Answer Is in Customers’ Business Outcomes

Fri, 12 Aug 2016 10:00:24 -0400

Earlier this week, I shared with my colleagues at EXIM the results of our 2016 export credit insurance customer survey. This is the third consecutive year that our largest customer segment has been asked to share their feedback with us.

CSAT, NPS, and CES: 3 Easy Ways to Measure Customer Experience (CX)

Fri, 05 Aug 2016 14:00:45 -0400

Have you ever wondered how to measure a customer’s experience? I’ve thought about it, specifically about how to measure the experience with services from government agencies. This is a complex topic because government services can be vastly different from each other.

What’s All The Fuss Around Customer Experience?

Fri, 29 Jul 2016 10:00:56 -0400

Have you been hearing the terms “Customer Experience” or “CX” a lot lately? Maybe you’re wondering how they relate to customer service, or maybe you want to learn more about CX and how it can help your customers. Whether you directly interact with customers, support front line employees, or manage program operations, your work has

The Data Briefing: Mobile Apps, Responsive Web Sites, and the “Mobile Moment”

Wed, 13 Jul 2016 10:00:43 -0400

The debate between responsive websites and mobile apps took a decisive turn this week when the United Kingdom’s Digital Service (UKDS) banned the creation of mobile apps. In an interview with GovInsider, the founder of UKDS, Ben Terrett, explained that mobile apps were too expensive to build and maintain. Responsive websites were easier to build

The Data Briefing: I, For One, Welcome Our New Chatbot Blockchain Digital Autonomous Organizations

Wed, 06 Jul 2016 11:00:56 -0400

It is at the intersections of fields where you find the most fascinating and innovative concepts. Recently, a conference on “Open Human Resources and the Cognitive Era” explored the use of chatbots and blockchain technologies in human resources. Human Resources (HR) is quietly undergoing a revolution as many HR practitioners are transforming HR by using

Our CX Recipe for Success: Complete with Ingredient List and Substitutions!

Tue, 31 May 2016 12:15:34 -0400

If you were to spend any time with me in the kitchen, you would often find me searching out substitutions for ingredients that I don’t have on hand or have to drive 100 miles to find. I don’t want to abandon the recipe, so I substitute instead. I find that in the world of internal

The Content Corner: Is Scheduling Social Media Posts Truly Social?

Mon, 23 May 2016 11:10:49 -0400

Good communicators are always…well…evaluating the way they communicate. As we think of the “customer experience,” it is key to constantly consider your methods for engaging with your audience. Just as the platforms themselves continue to change to keep their audience, continuing to refine our ways of sending messages will assure that you don’t get left

Kids.Gov Reenvisioned

Mon, 23 May 2016 10:00:16 -0400

At USAGov, we always put our customers first. In the wake of our rebranding efforts, our desire to create a positive user experience across the organization has pushed us to turn a scrutinous eye toward Kids.gov; a site focused on providing information and resources to parents, teachers, and kids.

Improving Internal Communications: Best Practices

Fri, 20 May 2016 10:00:55 -0400

Customers are not the only group with whom we need to effectively communicate as we work to improve our quality of service. Effective communication between employees and leadership is critical to improving the customer experience. Front line employees interact with the public on a regular basis, and if employees do not have the information they

Customer Experience Performance Metrics: Two Sides to Every Story

Mon, 16 May 2016 10:00:06 -0400

Performance metrics, targets and public reporting are not new in government; however, customer-oriented metrics have been underutilized and under-reported publicly for a long time. Today, as the principles of customer experience as a management discipline gain momentum across the federal government, there is an opportunity to use data to tell more of the story where

Help Customer Experience Drive Change at Your Agency

Tue, 10 May 2016 04:28:03 -0400

With the recent launch of the Core Federal Services Council—which seeks to improve the customer experience for core federal programs by ensuring use of customer feedback data and identifying strategies—building on the Feedback USA pilot, the Federal Front Door and other customer experience initiatives, 2016 may in fact be the Year of the Customer. But,

The Data Briefing: Chatbots and the Rise of Conversational Commerce and Citizen Experience

Wed, 20 Apr 2016 11:00:59 -0400

Ten months ago, I wrote about the rise of the post-app world in which mobile personal assistants would do the work of five to 10 apps combined. These mobile personal assistants, now known as chatbots, would work through conversational interfaces (voice and instant messaging, for example). The idea is to build more natural interfaces for people

Creating a Culture of Engagement – Webinar Recap

Fri, 18 Mar 2016 11:00:57 -0400

Employee engagement, evidenced by displays of dedication, persistence, effort and overall attachment to organization and mission, is a key factor in business success, but it can be a struggle for government organizations. Organizational leaders seeking to cultivate a culture of engagement need tangible examples of how to successfully move the needle in a positive direction.

Picture This: 3 Ways to Zoom In On Cross-Agency Collaboration

Fri, 04 Mar 2016 10:00:09 -0400

Cross-agency collaboration in the federal government has become a prevalent topic, more widely spoken and written about in the recent past than ever before, thanks, in part, to a bigger-than-ever focus on customer experience as a way of thinking within government. Rising customer expectations, advances in technology, and recommendations from government oversight organizations continue to

Case Study: OCSIT’s Email Customer Survey Process

Fri, 29 Jan 2016 10:00:34 -0400

To help us gauge the effectiveness of the programs we offer to other government agencies, we launched our first Government Customer Experience Index (GCXi) survey in 2013.

Government Customer Service Policies & Requirements: 1993 to Present

Thu, 07 Jan 2016 05:41:53 -0400

A list of government customer service policies and requirements.

Digging Into the Data of Our Customer Survey

Tue, 05 Jan 2016 09:00:06 -0400

As a follow-up to the recent post about our annual customer satisfaction survey, we wanted to dig into the data and share some of the overall results to give you some more insights into how we’re using your feedback to improve our programs and services.

CX Community—Year One

Wed, 30 Dec 2015 10:00:47 -0400

Customer experience, or CX, is everywhere these days. If you’re wondering how customer experience differs from customer service, customer service usually involves a single interaction, such as a phone call to your cable company, while the customer experience encompasses the entire relationship.

OCSIT’s 2015 Customer Survey—What We Learned

Mon, 28 Dec 2015 10:00:13 -0400

Three years ago, GSA’s Office of Citizen Services and Innovative Technologies (OCSIT) set out to design a system to consistently measure customer satisfaction across our office. We were inspired by the Digital Government Strategy, which tasks agencies to adopt a customer-centric approach to service delivery.

After the Survey: Turning Customer Feedback into Action

Tue, 22 Dec 2015 10:00:42 -0400

Doing business with any U.S. government agency can be a daunting task. For example, in the case of customers new to EXIM Bank, there are application forms to complete, rules to understand, processes to navigate and conditions that have to be met in order to work with our agency.

Government Customer Service Update—Webinar Recap

Mon, 14 Dec 2015 13:00:28 -0400

When the public comes to the federal government for information and services, they should receive an optimal customer experience. The Customer Service CAP goal spells out specific strategies to help us achieve this.

Connecting with the Social and Behavioral Sciences Team

Wed, 09 Dec 2015 01:40:55 -0400

The new Social and Behavioral Sciences Team (SBST) aims to make government programs more effective and efficient. Amira Choueiki from the SBST joined us to explain what the SBST does, and to discuss some of the projects they’ve worked on.

CX Data in Action Series: Case Study #1

Mon, 07 Dec 2015 11:10:18 -0400

It’s not new that agencies are inundated with data, but what data should you collect to improve your agency’s programs and enhance the customer experience? The Department of Labor’s Employee Benefit Security Administration’s (EBSA) has been perfecting their process to collect actionable data for the past 14 years.

UX vs. CX: What’s the Dif? Part 2

Fri, 20 Nov 2015 11:10:26 -0400

In honor of World Usability Day, which happened on November 12, we’d like to demystify two extremely important and oft-confusing acronyms—CX and UX. Customer Experience (CX) and User Experience (UX), while related, focus on different aspects of service delivery.

Executive Order 13571 — Streamlining Service Delivery and Improving Customer Service

Thu, 12 Nov 2015 03:18:42 -0400

Executive Order 13571 requires agencies that provide significant services directly to the public to identify and survey their customers, establish service standards and track performance against those standards, and benchmark customer service performance against the best in business.

M-11-24 Implementing Executive Order 13571 on Streamlining Service Delivery and Improving Customer Service

Thu, 12 Nov 2015 03:17:48 -0400

Memo M-11-24 is guidance to Implement Executive Order 13571.

DigitalGov Summit Recap: Innovation Through Customer Experience

Fri, 30 Oct 2015 11:10:21 -0400

A panel discussion at the 2015 DigitalGov Citizen Services Summit delved into customer experience (CX) work at three agencies with diverse missions.

Gov Analytics Breakdown #2: Mobile Is Bigger than Ever

Wed, 21 Oct 2015 13:22:30 -0400

A review of the Digital Analytics Program (DAP) data confirms what many are already saying: Content is being viewed on mobile devices more than ever before, and the percentage of sessions via mobile devices is growing.

National Customer Service Week Is Over, but Our Work Is Not!

Tue, 20 Oct 2015 10:00:56 -0400

Get your customer personas right, and you will improve the customer experience (CX) for the rest of your audience. That’s advice Rick Parrish from Forrester Research gave in response to an audience question during the September 29 DigitalGov University webinar on the state of CX in the federal government. Your key customers are those that are most important to the organization, and often most

5 Factors to Building a Successful Government-wide Digital Analytics Program

Tue, 20 Oct 2015 03:15:07 -0400

Launched just three years ago, the Digital Analytics Program (DAP) continues to drive the 2012 Digital Government Strategy’s mission to improve the citizen experience by streamlining the collection and analysis of digital analytics data on a federal government-wide scale. The DAP officially launched on October 15, 2012 with a release of its first version of

Understanding Your Customer

Tue, 22 Sep 2015 10:00:26 -0400

How well do you know your customers? There’s a new guide out from the Excellence In Government (EIG) Fellows Program to help you do just that. Led by the Partnership for Public Service, EIG is a federal government initiative to train future leaders. This year, three hundred federal employees took the EIG journey to learn

Using Customer Feedback to Improve HealthCare.gov

Thu, 17 Sep 2015 11:10:00 -0400

We recently polled the Customer Experience Community of Practice (CX-COP) to discover what kinds of training people needed most to improve customer experience at their agency.

How Will You Celebrate Customer Service Week?

Fri, 11 Sep 2015 11:00:45 -0400

In 1992, Congress passed Public Law No: 102-481, which proclaimed the first full week in October as National Customer Service Week.

DigitalGov Summit Recap: No Longer the Team of No

Wed, 02 Sep 2015 10:00:51 -0400

During a panel discussion at the second annual DigitalGov Citizen Services Summit, a group of self-proclaimed naysayers came together to dispel myths and share advice to help everyone work together.

HUD’s Switchboard Puts Customer Experience and Customer Service Together

Thu, 27 Aug 2015 10:00:16 -0400

Customer experience is about making sure needs are met. It’s certainly not a new concept for business; every bookstore has a customer service section. Government agencies are slightly different though. Often people are driven to public services by need or regulation, not choice. Government traditionally didn’t need to court positive attention. The increasing prominence of

National Customer Service Week: Coming Soon!

Mon, 24 Aug 2015 10:00:40 -0400

Help us celebrate the Everyday Heroes in our agencies during Customer Service Week, October 5-9, 2015. In 1992, Congress passed Public Law No: 102-481, which proclaimed the first full week in October as National Customer Service Week. The Principles and Practices Subgroup of the Customer Service Cross Agency Priority (CAP) Goal has started work on

Federal Student Aid Customer Experience Journey: A Recap

Fri, 14 Aug 2015 10:00:11 -0400

Customer Experience (CX) deserves a voice at an agency’s senior levels. Putting CX

Journey Mapping the Customer Experience: A USA.gov Case Study

Wed, 12 Aug 2015 10:00:21 -0400

Journey maps are a visual representation of a customer’s end to end journey with your product or service. They are a powerful tool for exploring key interactions and experiences with your organization, programs, and/or services. Journey maps describe a customer’s entire journey, even the parts that occur before and after contact with your organization. They

New Kid in Town: The Customer Experience Community

Fri, 31 Jul 2015 10:00:20 -0400

Cross-Agency Priority (CAP) Goals prioritize activities that all agencies must tackle each year. An important CAP Goal for 2015 addresses customer service and compels federal agencies to improve the quality of service the public receives from the federal government.

Community Rock Star Round Up

Thu, 30 Jul 2015 10:00:21 -0400

Around this month’s Communities Theme, the DigitalGov team thought we’d round up your community rock stars. These are people in your communities who’ve gone above and beyond, who’ve contributed content, organized events, participated in developing toolkits and more.

How the Nationals’ Customer Experience Principles Can Be a Home Run for Agencies

Wed, 22 Jul 2015 10:00:32 -0400

In June, the new Customer Experience Community of Practice (CX-COP) hosted Jonathan Stahl, Executive Director of Ballpark Operations and Guest Experience of the Washington Nationals, to share best practices on how to deliver a great customer experience.

DigitalGov Podcast: Leaders Come and Go, But Your Customers Will Remain

Fri, 17 Jul 2015 13:00:20 -0400

To provide great customer service, bring your agency’s customers to the table. This is one of many insights recently offered by Stephanie Thum, Vice President of Customer Experience at the Export-Import Bank of the United States.

2015 Customer Service Trends: a Mid-Year Update

Wed, 08 Jul 2015 10:00:36 -0400

Earlier this year, we published 15 Government Customer Service Trends for 2015. We’re halfway through the year now—how are these trends holding up? 1. Centralized Customer Offices A few agencies have created centralized customer offices, while others question the need for a single organization that focuses on the customer. As the public’s overall satisfaction with

Won’t You Help Your Neighbor? Communities Theme Month on DigitalGov

Tue, 07 Jul 2015 13:30:06 -0400

It’s a beautiful day in the DigitalGov neighborhood, and we want you to be our neighbor: no red sweater required. The strength of digital government depends on robust collaboration across agencies, offices, and disciplines. The virtual federal neighborhood collaborates through numerous communities of practice, each of which promotes the open exchange of ideas and resources.

DigitalGov Citizen Services Summit: Reflections from Our Livestream Host, and Full Recording Now Available!

Fri, 12 Jun 2015 13:30:22 -0400

The second annual DigitalGov Citizen Services Summit was held at GSA headquarters in Washington, DC on May 21, 2015.

A Conversation with OMB on Customer Service

Fri, 29 May 2015 11:10:49 -0400

We recently sat down with Lisa Danzig, who’s leading work at the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) on the FY15 Cross Agency Priority (CAP) goal on Customer Service (CS). The CS CAP goal aims to help agencies deliver world-class customer service to citizens that’s on par with leading private

Getting to Know Your Users: Tips and Tricks from Veterans Affairs

Fri, 29 May 2015 10:00:22 -0400

Design research isn’t rocket science. But for many of us in the federal government, it can seem daunting and unfamiliar. We’re here to to help demystify the process of design research for those of you ready to wade into the waters. We’ve both done our fair share of design researching at the Department of Veterans

Three of the Greatest Books for Customer Experience (That Aren’t about Customer Experience)

Thu, 28 May 2015 11:10:38 -0400

Dennis Snow and Jeanne Bliss have always been the customer experience (CX) authorities in my mind. Dennis’s Lessons from the Mouse and Jeanne’s Chief Customer Officer were two of the first books I read that described what the practice of customer experience looked like in the halls of Fortune 500 companies like Lands End and Microsoft,

StudentAid.gov: Using Data to Empower Borrowers

Wed, 27 May 2015 13:10:12 -0400

It’s been a while, but in previous posts, I described what we’ve learned from operating StudentAid.gov, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Federal Student Aid website created to educate students and borrowers about the federal student aid programs and process and help them make informed decisions about financing college and career school. We first

5 Crucial Steps for Conducting an Effective Customer Interview

Tue, 26 May 2015 11:10:18 -0400

When focusing on customer experience, we all know that we need to truly understand our customer if we expect to provide them with an enjoyable experience. In an effort to do so, organizations often jump right to a survey to identify their customers’ needs and wants.

Top 5 Ways to Increase Email Survey Responses

Wed, 20 May 2015 01:30:06 -0400

Surveys are a great way to gain valuable insight into your customers’ true interests and needs. With the abundant number of survey tools available, it’s almost too easy to quickly put together a survey and send it out to your target audience.

The Content Corner: Connecting With Customers at Labor

Mon, 18 May 2015 10:00:35 -0400

Here at DigitalGov, customer service is a focal theme during the month of May, and by some type of cosmic chance, I was invited to share my insights on content strategy and content creation at a Customer Service Community of Practice event at the Department of Labor. The event focused on topics I commonly discuss here

DigitalGov Summit: Live From the Comfort of Your Desk

Mon, 18 May 2015 02:59:13 -0400

The DigitalGov platform helps federal agencies meet 21st century digital expectations, and we’ve planned our second DigitalGov Summit with this mission and your needs in mind.

Government Services Through a Life Events Approach

Fri, 15 May 2015 13:30:54 -0400

The federal government is increasingly focused on designing and delivering citizen-centered services with enhanced experiences that deliver value to customers. These ideals are established in the Presidential Management Agenda Customer Service Cross-Agency Priority Goal, the Digital Government Strategy, and various open government activities. Designing services to be responsive to be life events that drive public

Our Customer is Your Customer: Working Together to Improve Search on .Gov Websites

Thu, 14 May 2015 11:10:59 -0400

We know search engines aren’t Magic 8 Balls, but that’s still how we expect them to behave. We want them to answer our complex and burning questions based on just a few words. And we’ve felt that frustration when the top search results don’t serve our needs, and the results page itself makes us work.

Three Ways to Evolve Your Agency’s Customer Mindset

Wed, 13 May 2015 13:00:46 -0400

Customer experience (CX) improvement projects come in many forms, but evolving an agency’s entire mindset to be customer-focused requires far more in the way of commitment, time, staff and organizational patience. As the senior CX lead for a U.S. government agency and an advisory committee member to the President’s Cross-Agency Priority (CAP) goal on customer

Sites Shares Its Path to Improve the Customer Experience

Tue, 12 May 2015 13:00:25 -0400

As the product manager of Sites, my job is to make sure that our service delivers what we offer: provide an easy, fast and cost‐effective solution for federal agencies that want to create a secure government website to reach the public. With 40 websites that are currently live or in active development, our program is

Customer Experience Roundup 2015

Mon, 11 May 2015 14:01:57 -0400

Customer experience touches all of the work we do. From Web to mobile to contact centers and social media, we need to not only be aware of our customers’ experiences but also respond quickly and make changes that will enhance their experiences.

Customer Experience and User Experience Professionals – A Match Made in Heaven!

Fri, 08 May 2015 09:50:44 -0400

Recently, Forrester Research analyst Leah Buley wrote a blog post and report that reminded me of our “what’s the diff?” article on customer experience vs. user experience. In them, she describes the difference between customer experience professionals (CX) and user experience professionals (UX).

Monthly Theme: Customer Service in the Federal Digital Space

Thu, 07 May 2015 14:42:42 -0400

“The customer is king.” “The customer is always right.” Regardless of your feelings on these age-old customer service adages, the fact remains: we’re all serving someone. No matter what corner of the federal digital space you occupy, you are connecting with people, and the outcome of those connections matters. To recognize the importance of these

How Much Will My Agency’s Contact Center Cost?

Thu, 30 Apr 2015 11:10:52 -0400

The federal government has caught the customer experience bug. We want our customers to complete their tasks with minimal effort using a streamlined process. If they need personal help, we want it to be quick, polite, and provide the best answer. But that personal help frequently requires a team of highly skilled, dedicated people—a contact

Lessons Learned from 4 Decades in Federal Contact Centers

Tue, 28 Apr 2015 11:10:38 -0400

For more than 40 years, Warren Snaider has been working at the General Services Administration providing government information to the public. A Senior Federal Information Specialist, Snaider has witnessed government contact centers evolve as technology has changed the way people communicate and access information. Snaider first joined the Federal Information Center in Sacramento in 1972.

Are FAQs Still Relevant?

Mon, 27 Apr 2015 13:10:19 -0400

Users have questions. Your content and website navigation can help them find answers, or potentially cause frustration. One tool for answering questions is up for debate: are FAQ sections still relevant in 2015, or are they a relic of bygone days? Nielsen Norman Group recently published two articles arguing for the continued use and usefulness

Meeting Customer Needs Through Social Media

Fri, 24 Apr 2015 12:03:35 -0400

Social media tools can amplify your agency’s message, but they are also a meeting space for two-way conversations. They can be a key tool to resolve user issues and deliver excellent customer service. This is true for agencies in every corner of the government space. In honor of our monthly contact center theme, we reached

The Ex-Im Bank Annual Conference: A Valuable Tool in the Government CX Toolbox

Mon, 20 Apr 2015 01:53:13 -0400

It can be easy to forget that customer experience (CX) improvement efforts within the government sphere aren’t limited to surveys, journey maps, analytics, big data, apps, and technology. Watching Export-Import Bank’s Annual Conference come together, I’m reminded of the fundamental role that interpersonal communication plays in improving customer experience, from the front line of our

NCI: Reaching the Public via SMS to Change Behaviors

Thu, 16 Apr 2015 11:10:21 -0400

SMS messages are an excellent way to reach audiences. The National Cancer Institute (NCI) saw SMS messages as an opportunity to reach the public for the implementation of their Mobile Health Behavioral Intervention Programs. NCI has 15 SMS based programs, including HealthyYouTxt, a program designed to help users live a healthier lifestyle, and SmokeFreeTxt, a

Government Contact Center Round Up

Fri, 10 Apr 2015 10:00:08 -0400

The Government Contact Center Council (G3C) has been working with DigitalGov University to host events for the contact center community across the federal government.

Monthly Theme: How Federal Contact Centers Deliver Great Customer Service

Wed, 08 Apr 2015 09:35:49 -0400

At the end of last year, DigitalGov posted an article predicting that 2016 would be the year of the customer. Stephanie Thum, Vice President of Customer Experience at Export-Import Bank, looked at the great strides made in federal customer service in 2014 and called it the year of “planting seeds.” She then pointed to 2015

Using Personas to Better Understand Customers: USA.gov Case Study

Mon, 06 Apr 2015 11:49:07 -0400

Personas are fictional characters that describe an organization’s customer behaviors, emotions, attributes, motivations, and goals. They are an important tool to share customer insights and understanding across an organization. Personas also serve as a check to make sure your organization’s actions meet the needs of the majority of customers, including visitors to your website, contact

Trends on Tuesday: Top Five Trends in Mobile App Design for 2015

Tue, 17 Feb 2015 11:10:27 -0400

Mobile user habits are a moving target, and designers have to adjust accordingly. Review these top 5 trends in app design for 2015.

Trends on Tuesday: Mobile Marketing on the Rise

Tue, 27 Jan 2015 11:10:43 -0400

Marketers are increasingly using SMS, push notifications, mobile apps, location-based functionality and other mobile-first techniques to reach constituents. That’s according to a recent article from Marketingland.com, which provided an overview of the mobile trends presented in Salesforce’s 2015 State of Marketing Report. The report was based on a survey of 5,000 marketers in 10 countries. Some

Walking in Our Customers’ Shoes

Fri, 16 Jan 2015 10:00:08 -0400

The General Services Administration’s (GSA’s) focus on customer experience can be traced back to its inception on July 1, 1949, when President Truman created a new federal agency to manage and store government records, handle emergency preparedness, and stockpile strategic supplies for wartime. While our customer focus has stayed with us, GSA’s mission has morphed

15 Government Customer Service Trends for 2015

Mon, 12 Jan 2015 10:00:52 -0400

With public expectations at an all-time high, and trust in government nearing all-time lows, agencies need to step up their game. Veterans, seniors, students, taxpayers—all Americans—deserve the best service from their government. Here are our predictions for how the federal government will improve customer service in the coming year: 1. Many agencies will create a

Trend Watch 2015: What’s in the Forecast for Digital Government?

Fri, 09 Jan 2015 12:44:18 -0400

In January on DigitalGov, we’ll highlight pieces looking at trends we see coming in the digital government space in 2015 and beyond. We have lined up articles around: Customer Service Data 3D Printing at NIH and NASA Accessibility Mobile, and Training. Check back Monday, when we kick-off the month with 15 Government Customer Service Trends.

Trends on Tuesday: Smartphone Users Still Use the Phone for Talking

Tue, 16 Dec 2014 10:57:53 -0400

Smartphones are changing how organizations do business—they are more than just smart Web browsers. As I noted last week, purchases from mobile phones have dramatically increased during the holiday shopping season. The infographic from IfByPhone demonstrates how people are using

Will 2016 Be the Federal Government’s ‘Year of the Customer?’

Mon, 01 Dec 2014 10:00:05 -0400

As 2014 draws to a close, agencies across the federal government are beginning to think about what the customer experience (CX) landscape will look like in the years ahead. There is little doubt that 2014 saw the government make great strides on this front, setting in motion a number of initiatives that will help ensure

4 Tips on Great Survey Design

Mon, 10 Nov 2014 10:00:40 -0400

Whether they pop up while perusing an e-commerce site or land in your inbox after your bumpy flight in from Chicago, surveys are used in many different industries to gauge customer satisfaction and glean insight into user motivations. They are a useful tool in the kit of a user experience designer or anyone

Welcome to User Experience Month!

Fri, 07 Nov 2014 12:00:33 -0400

One challenge with digital government: it’s hard to see people. If you work at a U.S. Post Office, you interact with your customers, talk with them, and even see what they are feeling by looking at their faces. You can understand their experience fairly easily. In the digital world, technology decreases physical distance but increases

DigitalGov University is Making Changes Thanks to You

Fri, 07 Nov 2014 11:19:17 -0400

DigitalGov University took the pulse of our participants this spring and found that our audience wants more information about events, wants us to better communicate the value of programs and wants more access to our programs. DigitalGov University (DGU) is a platform for feds to share ideas, experiences and techniques to meet 21st century public

Customer Service Week 2014

Thu, 09 Oct 2014 10:00:53 -0400

They say that customer experience (CX) is the new marketing. People will tell their friends about their experience with your agency, and social media makes it easy to broadcast whether the experience was easy and enjoyable, or terrible. In 1992, Congress proclaimed the first full week in

3 Steps to Keep Customers Happy During Times of Change

Fri, 12 Sep 2014 10:00:53 -0400

Just like the private sector, government agencies frequently encounter new rules, regulations, policies, and financial realities that impact the way we do business. Of course, change is never easy—and when customers feel the ripple effects of those changes, their satisfaction with an agency can waver. That’s why, during times of change, customer experience leaders should

Redesigning with Customer Feedback: Child Support Enforcement Usability Case Study

Tue, 19 Aug 2014 01:00:49 -0400

The Federal Office of Child Support Enforcement at the Administration for Children and Families had a visually appealing website after an agency-wide redesign of program websites. The problem: Key stakeholders complained they could no longer easily find needed information. Their feedback prompted us to facilitate a UX-minded focus group to recommend improvements that met both users’ business needs and the redesign goals.

How to Choose a User Experience Technique

Mon, 18 Aug 2014 10:00:17 -0400

The good news: Your boss is interested in User Experience! The news: She wants you to do something about it… NOW. Well, don’t be alarmed; you can start by figuring out two simple things.

Delivering a Customer-Focused Government Through Smarter IT

Tue, 12 Aug 2014 14:29:36 -0400

As technology changes, government must change with it to address new challenges and take advantage of new opportunities. This Administration has made important strides in modernizing government so that it serves its constituents more effectively and efficiently, but we know there is much more to do. Last year, a group of digital and technology experts

What is a “Customer Centric” Culture – Part 2

Wed, 06 Aug 2014 13:00:02 -0400

Since April of 2011 when President Obama signed Executive Order 13571 mandating agencies improve the quality of service they give to the public, agencies have been working through strategies to best fulfill this task. We at GSA’s Office of Citizen Services and Innovative Technologies (OCSIT) were no exception. Back in September of 2013, we wrote

Should Your Agency Be Offering Chat Service?

Mon, 28 Jul 2014 01:58:20 -0400

Live Web chat is an important component of good customer service. People like having the option of talking with an agent in real-time without having to pick up the phone. While live chat is not widespread, several agencies have shown great success in serving the public through this alternative channel. At a recent Government Contact

User Experience (UX) vs. Customer Experience (CX): What’s the Dif?

Mon, 07 Jul 2014 10:00:02 -0400

“User Experience” and “Customer Experience.” They sound pretty similar, right? Well, here at the Office of Citizen Services and Innovative Technologies, we look at it like this: User Experience (UX) deals with people interacting with your product and the experience they receive from that interaction. UX is measured with metrics like: success rate, error rate,

Using Analytics to Create Change: USA.gov Usability Case Study

Tue, 01 Jul 2014 13:00:38 -0400

While many people tout the death of the home page, it’s still an important piece of the user experience on USA.gov. In 2013, 30 percent of all sessions on USA.gov included the home page—that’s 8.67 million sessions. The numbers for GobiernoUSA.gov are even higher—79 percent of all sessions included the home page. According to Jakob Nielsen, “A

Government CX: Where Do You Find the Right Foundational Metrics?

Mon, 16 Jun 2014 10:00:33 -0400

Customer service. Customer satisfaction. Improving the customer experience. These buzzwords have become well-trodden territory among government strategists as a new wave of agencies attempt to ignite—or reignite—a focus on customers. Of course, putting customers first is a worthy goal. But what, exactly, do we mean when we use words like “service” and “satisfaction”? These terms

Because It’s Hard

Wed, 07 May 2014 10:00:35 -0400

Two years ago, federal agencies were set on a fast track to create a 21st century digital government. The Federal Digital Strategy served up a heaping set of deliverables on a tight timeline.

Customer Satisfaction: Innovating with Lack of Resources

Mon, 21 Apr 2014 13:09:32 -0400

As government contact centers, we all face financial and technological constraints in our pursuit to improve the customer experience. One challenge faced by many contact centers is staffing limitations to handle the volume of incoming customer traffic. There are barely enough employees to operate phones, let alone work on meeting or exceeding the organizational customer

DigitalGov Search: Cache Me If You Can

Mon, 03 Mar 2014 08:47:36 -0400

Slowness Hurts Web Pages Have you ever been frustrated when visiting a Web page that doesn’t load quickly? Have you ever left a slow Web page before it finished loading? You’re not alone. Several recent studies have quantified customers’ frustration with slow Web pages. Customers now expect results in the

What Do People Think of Your Content? Ask Your Contact Center!

Fri, 28 Feb 2014 09:36:00 -0400

All of us want to improve the content and information we provide to the public, but we’re intimidated by where to start: Does our website provide clear content? Is the best information hidden on pages a few layers down? What should we tweet about

Open for Innovation in DigitalGov!

Wed, 26 Feb 2014 08:43:24 -0400

There’s tons of great work and innovations happening in federal agencies, and it is happening fast. They are embracing the 21st-century citizen expectations and working to deliver anytime, anywhere, any device services and information to the public.

Customer Experience Video Blog: Stephanie Thum, Export-Import Bank

Fri, 21 Feb 2014 11:32:08 -0400

Stephanie Thum from Ex-Im Bank kicks off our video blog with an introduction to customer experience. Stephanie is Vice President of Customer Experience at Ex-Im Bank, a U.S. government agency which serves as the official export credit agency of the United States. We had a chance to

NOAA’s National Ocean Service Goes Responsive

Thu, 06 Feb 2014 10:20:36 -0400

Let’s ponder this for a moment: Maybe you live in South

Contact Center Technologies

Wed, 05 Feb 2014 10:27:01 -0400

A contact center is supported by many technologies designed to enhance the customer experience, improve the operating and management efficiency, or lower the overall costs of running a contact center.

Contact Center Guidelines

Wed, 05 Feb 2014 09:41:22 -0400

The Contact Center is no longer viewed as only a center to receive complaints, but as a valued operation in an agency’s strategy to deliver a quality customer experience.

Government CX: Finding the Metrics that Matter

Mon, 13 Jan 2014 08:42:11 -0400

Customer experience (CX) is an emerging area of focus within government. My role as Vice President of Customer Experience at the Export-Import Bank speaks to this reality. Our agency’s customers and partners consist of U.S. exporters, financial services institutions, insurance brokers and foreign buyers of U.S. products and services. All play a key role in

Three Concepts for Excellence in Contact Centers

Fri, 10 Jan 2014 06:08:16 -0400

Using contact centers to deliver digital services is an emerging area in government. Due to the growth of online services, centers receive more attention and represent an important touch point for customers. When you need to speak directly with someone to get help or resolve an issue, it must be a good experience. This reflects on

The Nuance Between Customers and Partners

Fri, 20 Dec 2013 10:10:08 -0400

Before you can create your customer experience (CX) strategy, you have to answer the key question: Who are your customers? Consider the concept that among the groups you interact with internally, you could be their customer, they could be your customer, or you

What’s Your Strategy? Operational Excellence, Product Leadership or Customer Intimacy?

Mon, 02 Dec 2013 09:22:50 -0400

In the Discipline of Market Leaders by Michael Treacy and Fred Wiersema, we learned about the importance of being clear about your strategic priority. What unique value do you bring to the marketplace and your customers? In this book, they describe three strategic priorities

Great Customer Experience through Open Dialogue

Wed, 20 Nov 2013 09:19:59 -0400

While we think about the audience, we don’t often map out the experience we want them to have when using our services. This is critical information for the design. In other cases, we may not have the data to analyze existing customers’

What Is a “Customer Centric” Culture?

Fri, 27 Sep 2013 09:21:40 -0400

In our very first customer experience (CX) blog post about GSA’s Office of Citizen Services and Innovative Technologies’ (OCSIT) Customer Experience Program, we published our principles and values. Our core principles say that all staff will: Take responsibility for providing an experience greater than customer expectations. Engage, listen and resolve. Design business from the outside

Communication is Key in Measuring Customer Experience

Fri, 20 Sep 2013 06:56:30 -0400

As mentioned in previous blog posts, great efforts have been made in creating a Customer Experience program and a Customer Experience (CX) index in our Office of Citizen Services and Innovative Technologies (OCSIT) at GSA.

StudentAid.gov’s 1st Year: What We’ve Learned and Where We’re Going

Fri, 13 Sep 2013 18:39:05 -0400

Guest post by Brenda Wensil, Chief Customer Experience Officer for Federal Student Aid. Established in late 2010, FSA’s Customer Experience Office is responsible for identifying, measuring and reporting customer expectations and satisfaction with the financial aid services and products offered at Federal Student Aid. In my last post,

Improving Email Open Rates

Wed, 07 Aug 2013 07:40:08 -0400

Guest post by Ellen Langhans, healthfinder.gov Program Manager in the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion at the Department of Health and Human Services, with contribution from Tim Hudak, Web Analytics Specialist in the Office of

The Impact of Culture on Customer Experience

Thu, 01 Aug 2013 07:24:19 -0400

What’s one of the most important factors in delivering a good customer experience? When I first began learning about customer experience, one of the biggest surprises was the importance of culture. Organizational culture can be defined as the values and behavior that contribute to the unique and psychological environment of an organization.It’s based on shared

Understanding Your Customer

Thu, 25 Jul 2013 10:14:06 -0400

Do you know who your customers are? And what they expect from your organization? One of the most critical components of a successful customer experience program is to understand your customer. The first step is knowing who your customers are. Are they veterans, students, senior citizens or other federal workers? In some cases your customers

How to Create a Customer Experience Index

Thu, 18 Jul 2013 07:53:02 -0400

In my last post I talked about how we’re kicking off our Customer Experience program in the Office of Citizen Services and Innovative Technologies (OCSIT) at GSA. There are many paths to creating a customer experience program, from starting with cultural issues like employee

Digital Metrics for Federal Agencies

Mon, 15 Jul 2013 11:41:47 -0400

Digital metrics are critical for measuring, analyzing, and reporting on the effectiveness of your Web, mobile, social media, and other digital channels. Every agency should have a metrics strategy to measure performance, customer satisfaction, and engagement, and use the data to make continuous improvements to serve its customers. Part 1: Common Metrics: Guidance, Best Practices, and

Kicking Off Our Customer Experience Program

Wed, 10 Jul 2013 10:23:01 -0400

The vision for my office, the Office of Citizen Services and Innovative Technologies (OCSIT) at GSA, is simple: Deliver a world-class experience to the public when accessing government information and services – anytime, anywhere – through the delivery channel they choose. We create and leverage products, services and

What’s In a Name Does Matter

Mon, 01 Jul 2013 18:48:33 -0400

Can you imagine how frustrating and confusing it would be to find several variations of the same agency name on different sites or even different pages or documents on the same site? This is what happens everyday to Spanish-speaking customers accessing the Spanish names of

5 Steps for Delivering a Better Customer Experience

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 08:50:08 -0400

Everyone wants to know how to provide outstanding customer experience in government. It can be difficult, because everyday our customers are also doing business with companies like Starbucks, Zappos, and Virgin America, that excel in customer service.

Tips for Creating Great Digital Content for Kids

Mon, 17 Jun 2013 10:24:36 -0400

Great websites for kids have many of the same features as websites for adults, but some key differences are worth noting when writing digital content for kids or teens. Kids have short attention spans, so it’s important to keep your site engaging, fun,

comScore Report, October 2012

Wed, 14 Nov 2012 14:13:09 -0400

In October 2012, comScore, a Web analytics research company, released an independently produced report that analyzes 75 federal agency websites on a range of quantitative and qualitative factors.