Quarterly ACSI E-Gov Index

Four times a year, we work with the University of Michigan on the American Customer Satisfaction Index’s (ACSI) E-Gov Satisfaction Index, a rating of more than 90 federal government websites in terms of how well they are satisfying citizens via the web channel. You can download the full report with scores for individual government websites here or read news coverage of it in Gov Exec, ComputerWorld, or Destination CRM.

For this quarter’s report, my colleague Errol Hau and I actually surveyed the top performing sites (sites that scored over 80 on the ACSI’s 100-point scale, generally considered to be the threshold for excellence) to see what these sites had in common. Why were they able to do so well? Our informal survey shows that sites that achieve top-performer status of 80 or above have several things in common:

• Total commitment to meeting the public’s diverse needs: Many government sites serve diverse publics, which can be challenging. Sites with high citizen satisfaction have learned how to use customer satisfaction analytics to first identify who is visiting their site then customize the online content to serve the needs of their multiple stakeholders. The high scores for content obtained by top-performing sites are proof of their success in this area.

• Recognition by management of the web’s strategic value: Many top-performing sites report having top-down support by management, with recognition by the agency or department director of the strategic value of the online channel. While many high-scoring sites face the familiar challenges of limited budget, staff and time, the fact that they’re supported fully by management enables them to better meet citizens’ needs

• Use of “Voice of citizen” data as an improvement tool: Sites that do a great job from the perspective of their users view citizen satisfaction as more than just a metric. They use data gathered via the reliable and scientific methodology of the ACSI to make both small and large-scale improvements to their sites to keep ahead of citizens’ continually evolving needs. While still challenged by search and navigation like government sites as a whole, top-performing sites outperform the e-government average in these key satisfaction drivers.

• Focus on the mission of citizen service: Sites that excel at meeting the needs of the public consider efficient and effective citizen service to be their mission. Because they put citizens’ needs at the core of all they do, these top-performing sites score well above average in all of the elements measured by the ACSI methodology. . . . .

No matter what a federal website’s score or ultimate mission, it is clear that these four factors are the cornerstone of building a truly superior e-gov website.

Comments

[Tjohns06]

www.business.gov is bucking this trend and has been on a consistent upsurge in user satisfaction. Business.gov has made significant strides to increase ACSI scores by providing added value to the American small business owner (AKA decrease the time spent searching for government business information). The site now serves as a hyperaggregater for federal, state and local business information for the small business owner. SEO analysis, usability studies, Google search, Google maps, mash ups, and more have doubled site traffic and increased ACSI scores in a short 6 months. Total customer satisfaction rose from 70% to 72%. Content scores rose from 73% to 77%. Scores for Functionality, Look and Feel Navigation rose three points each -