By Ashley Fruechting
The top five digital and Web trends that will impact local government in 2017 start from how easy it is for citizens to engage with their local governments to how cities, towns or counties will address the challenge of protecting digital data.
The relationship between citizens and government is evolving. If there’s one thing we learned at Vision Internet’s during the 2016 election cycle, it’s that citizens want to be heard. The opportunity to increase satisfaction, build trust and foster engagement on the local level is greater than ever. It all begins with a local government website that provides useful, meaningful and accurate information about matters of shared interest and concerns in the community.
Here is Vision’s list of the Top 5 Digital & Web Trends for 2017, along with tips on what local leaders can do to meet growing citizen expectations of municipal services.
#1 User Experience Will Matter More Than Ever
Accenture’s 2016 Public Service Pulse Survey found that 85 percent of U.S. citizens expect government digital services to be the same or higher quality as those of commercial organizations – up 12 percent from 2014. Yet, the most significant obstacle to using digital services from government is “poor website organization.”
What can local leaders do?
- Explore low-cost ways to analyze usability, like Google Analytics and user surveys.
- Continually refine your website’s navigation and homepage based on web analytics and user feedback.
- Organize your website to reflect the needs of residents, rather than the internal structure of government.
#2 Content Strategy is Key to Helping Residents Perform Tasks Online
In the same Public Service Pulse Survey, 41 percent of respondents cited “poorly organized or dense information” as a top obstacle to using digital government services. Overcoming this challenge requires an effective content strategy focused on clear, succinct and actionable information.
How can local leaders ensure success?
- Review website analytics and remove infrequently accessed pages.
- Train all content contributors to write effectively for the web.
- Eliminate legalese and present information in plain language that can easily be understood.
#3 Web Accessibility Standards are on the Horizon
New rules on Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliance for websites will be issued in 2018.
How can local leaders prepare for ADA Web trends?
- Stay ahead of the curve by making website accessibility compliance a strategic imperative.
- Update your staff on accessibility guidelines and ensure that they are trained to write content that is accessible to people with various disabilities.
- Develop an accessibility policy and publish it on your website.
#4 Community Engagement will Takeoff
Engagement takes many forms -- voice-to-voice, face-to-face, mobile and social.
How can local leaders make sure that messages are consistent across all platforms?
- Building community engagement takes time; so begin to regularly ask residents for opinions on small, everyday issues.
- Nurture the habit of engagement by sharing how resident feedback impacts decisions.
- Explore new engagement methods, like blogging and video, to help tell stories better.
#5 Cybersecurity Concerns will Skyrocket
Despite highly publicized national attacks in 2016, state and local governments are especially vulnerable to cyberattacks and other security breaches. Accenture’s 2016 Cybersecurity Report says government organizations rank at the bottom of all industries in terms of security.
How can you turn this around?
- Stay current on the potential risks and threats.
- Make sure you have policies covering data breach notification, disaster recovery, IT service continuity, remote access, employee departure and acceptable use.
- Perform a cybersecurity self-assessment audit to make sure critical systems are protected from attacks with an effective solution.
- Review your disaster recovery plans and make sure key vendors are prepared as well.
