Abstract
The Maricopa County Human Services Communication team's strategic plan to optimize the Human Services Department portion of the Maricopa County website has enhanced the level of citizen participation in, and understanding of, government programs. The plan condensed and eliminated unnecessary content and added new content for new programs created under the American Rescue Plan Act. The website was redesigned in alignment with mobile-friendly best practices, and new video content and text were added to provide more useful information to residents. The website was also optimized for search engine optimization, and the menu was redesigned to make it more intuitive for residents to find aid programs. Additionally, a directory page was created to centralize all aid programs on one page, and vanity URLs were created for easy navigation.
This strategic approach has resulted in measurable outcomes, including enhanced employee productivity and improved constituent services. The redesign of every piece of marketing collateral for programs and services ensures equity in access to information, and partner agencies can now share and promote county-level programs by linking to or sharing the digital collateral. This plan has created better intergovernmental cooperation, facilitating effective public policy-making. Overall, the Maricopa County Human Services Communication team's strategic plan has had a measurable impact on improving the administration of existing county government programs and has resulted in cost savings, better service delivery, and increased citizen engagement. As such, they deserve recognition for their outstanding efforts in optimizing the county's website to better serve the community.
Need Addressed by the Program
Maricopa County's Human Services Department faced the challenge of optimizing its website while keeping the overall footprint of the 50-page section the same. The communications manager developed a plan for website optimization by analyzing Google Analytics data to identify the traffic per page. The existing content was reviewed, condensed, and eliminated, and new content was added for new programs that were created as a result of the American Rescue Plan Act. The strategic plan for the website redesign included redesigning pages in alignment with mobile-friendly web design and creating a more intuitive menu for public use. A directory page was created to centralize all aid programs, and vanity URLs were established to allow direct access to individual programs. Additionally, every piece of marketing collateral was redesigned, and all information was posted online in a downloadable and shareable PDF format. This strategic approach ensured that all members of the public and partner agencies had access to accurate and up-to-date information while allowing staff to collaborate more effectively.
Program Description
The Maricopa County Human Services Communication team developed a strategic plan to optimize the Human Services Department section of the County's website, to enhance citizen participation in, and understanding of, government programs, facilitate effective public policy making, and improve the administration of County government programs with measurable results such as cost savings, enhanced employee productivity, improved constituent services, and better intergovernmental cooperation.
To achieve these goals, the Communications Manager used data from Google Analytics to assess traffic per page and reviewed existing content to condense, eliminate, and archive outdated material. The team also added new content for new programs created as a result of the American Rescue Plan Act while keeping the overall website footprint the same. The pages were then redesigned in alignment with current best practices in mobile-friendly web design, ensuring a better user experience.
The team also optimized web pages for search engine optimization, redesigned the website menu to include each choice for better public access, created a directory page to centralize all aid programs on one page, and developed a full catalog of vanity URLs for easier access to each program.
Additionally, every piece of the department’s marketing collateral was redesigned and made available online as downloadable and shareable PDF files with the help of the Graphic Designer, enabling equity to information and ensuring staff uses the most up-to-date versions of information pieces. This strategic approach also allowed partner agencies to share and promote county-level programs by linking to or sharing digital collateral.
Overall, this strategic plan for website optimization resulted in increased citizen participation and understanding of government programs, effective public policy making, improved constituent services, and better intergovernmental cooperation, with no additional costs incurred.
Responding to Economic Downturn
The website optimization project helps Maricopa County respond to the economic downturn in a few ways:
Optimization of the Human Services Department portion of the Maricopa County website: The strategic plan developed by the communications manager ensures that residents have easy access to all aid programs offered by the County, including new programs that were created as a result of the American Rescue Plan Act. This makes it easier for people who are struggling financially to find the resources they need to get back on their feet.
Condensing, eliminating, and archiving content: By reviewing and condensing existing content, the Human Services Communication team can streamline the website and make it more user-friendly. This saves residents time and effort in finding the information they need, which is especially important during times of economic hardship.
Redesign of pages in alignment with current best practices: By redesigning pages to be more mobile-friendly and create a better user experience, the Human Services Communication team is making it easier for people to access the information they need on the go. This is important for people who may not have access to a computer or who need to access information quickly.
Optimization of web pages for search engine optimization: By optimizing web pages for search engine optimization, the Human Services Communication team is making it easier for people to find the information they need through search engines. This is especially important for people who may not be familiar with the Maricopa County website and need to find information quickly.
By making it easier for residents to access information about aid programs and services offered by the County, the Human Services Communication team is helping to mitigate the effects of the economic downturn and ensure that residents have access to the resources they need to weather the storm.
Program Cost
The Maricopa County Human Services Communication team successfully executed a web optimization program with no added expenses beyond the staff hours required for its development and implementation. Using Google Analytics data, the team assessed website traffic and reviewed the existing content to eliminate outdated material, condense, and archive it. Adding new content for new programs created under the American Rescue Plan Act while maintaining the same website footprint was a challenging task. To address this challenge, the team developed a strategic approach, incorporating mobile-friendly web design principles, ensuring an enhanced user experience. The team also added new video and text content to provide residents with useful information. The menu of the website was redesigned, and a directory page was created to centralize all aid programs on one page. The team further redesigned and made all marketing collateral available online as downloadable and shareable PDF files. This project required approximately 92 hours of staff time, and there were no additional expenses.
Results/Success of the Program
The Maricopa County Human Services Communication team's strategic plan to optimize the Human Services Department portion of the Maricopa County website has been incredibly successful in meeting its objectives. The optimized web pages continue to grow in popularity, as evidenced by Google Analytics data, which has shown increased traffic and engagement on the website. The team was able to condense, eliminate, and archive content that was no longer valuable to residents while adding new content for new programs created as a result of the American Rescue Plan Act. The challenge of adding new content while keeping the overall footprint of that section of the website the same was met with great success.
Moreover, the web pages were optimized for search engine optimization, and the menu of the website was redesigned to make it more intuitive for both residents and staff. The creation of a directory page at www.Maricopa.gov/HelpwithBills centralized all aid programs on one page and a full catalog of vanity URLs was created to enable easy navigation. The collateral for the programs and services was redesigned, and all public information pieces were posted online on the website as a downloadable and shareable PDF flyer, enabling equity to information.
The program has been highly successful in achieving its objectives, resulting in improved user experience and increased accessibility of information. As the optimized website serves as a crucial communication tool for the County, it is important to continuously monitor its performance to ensure it continues to meet the needs of the public, staff, and partners. We will track the website's traffic and usage patterns over the long term to identify any issues and make necessary adjustments to improve the user experience and ensure that the website remains an effective tool for accessing information about the County's Human Services programs and services. By doing so, we can ensure that the website continues to support the county's goals of providing equitable and inclusive access to services for all residents.
Outcomes
The Maricopa County Communication team assigned to Human Services has demonstrated a remarkable commitment to improving the accessibility and ease of access to critical public information and aid programs for the most vulnerable members of the community. The team's strategic plan to optimize the Human Services Department portion of the Maricopa County website has been an exceptional achievement that has set the standard for transparency, access, and ease of use.
Through their efforts, the team has successfully redesigned the web pages in alignment with current best practices in mobile-friendly web design, optimized for search engine optimization, and added new video content and text that provides more useful information to residents. The new menu is now more intuitive, allowing for a better user experience and easy navigation to find the right aid programs. Additionally, the creation of a full catalog of vanity URLs has allowed for direct access to the exact pages needed without having to navigate through the menu system.
As a website used by the public, staff, and partners every day, the Maricopa County Communication team continues to monitor the results over the long term. The team's hard work has helped to ensure that all residents have what they need to achieve their fullest potential, promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion priorities within the county, and addressing existing racial and socioeconomic disparities.
Supplemental Materials