Business.gov
This website was selected as a finalist for the 2008 Web Managers Best Practice Awards. Members of the Web Managers Forum will vote for winners, to be announced at the Government Web Managers conference May 5, 2008, in Washington, DC.
Below is this finalist's nomination form, so Forum members can learn more about the website before they vote.
Describe the top customer task you're nominating:
Providing small business access to federal, state, and local business compliance information
URL of the top customer task
Describe how you identified your top customer task
Business.gov provides information to the business community on federal, state, and local business compliance requirements. It is the primary product of a program called the Business Gateway Initiative and is managed by the U.S. Small Business Administration in conjunction with 21 federal partner agencies. Compliance resources including forms, licenses, permits, and other regulatory information are provided by the agency partnership and aggregated into a cohesive portal by the Business Gateway Team. Earlier in the initiative, feedback obtained from small business owners who use the web site helped determine that providing information only on federal regulatory requirements still left a gap and that additional information on state, local, and municipal requirements was also desired. Business Gateway saw this as an opportunity to provide a more comprehensive solution, since compliance reaches across all levels of government. Essentially, citizens wanted information based on where they live and operate. The Business Gateway program office gathers customer feedback data through an online American Customer Service Index (ACSI) survey, Web analytics tools, focus groups, and usability testing. The feedback provided by business owners drives the content focus of the site and confirms the website is useful and relevant.
Describe how you made this task easier to complete.
In December 2007, Business.gov implemented state–of–the–art Google Custom Search Engine technology and enhanced state and local search features and information on the website. These enhancements were based on feedback expressing the need for geographically focused resources to help business owners understand their state and local regulatory requirements. The new search service provides an exceptional level of power and relevancy by leveraging the features, functionality, and infrastructure of Google.com. Integrating the Google Customer Search Engine allowed business owners to conduct more focused searches and access over 75 pages of additional information and interactive maps. The Business Gateway program office also responded to feedback by prominently positioning the most highly demanded areas of information on the site in an effort to enhance efficiency while making information easy to find. For example, feature boxes, with timely information are now prominently placed on the Home page, and links to the most popular resources are included on corresponding state and local sections of the site. Help is included on the website through an improved Contacts and Help section, which not only provides FAQs, but also includes contact information for SBA and Business Gateway partner agencies.
How do you routinely monitor the success of this task?
Business Gateway relies on a combination of tools to measure citizen satisfaction and further drive improvements. In addition to using the American Customer Service Index (ACSI), the Business Gateway team relies on usability testing and focus group feedback. This intelligence, along with website analytics, drives all that we do, and has resulted in higher levels of satisfaction, traffic, and time saved for the business owners using the website. As a result of the recent enhancements, ACSI scores increased significantly. Total customer satisfaction rose from 70–73 percent. Content scores rose from 73–79 percent. Scores for Functionality and Look and Feel rose four points each, while Navigation went up from 71–74 percent—a figure we expect will continue to rise with the recently implemented State and Local search features. In addition to these scores, a 30 percent jump in site visits and a 36 percent jump in pages viewed from 12/2007 to 01/2008 offers further validation that citizens are finding value in the information. In addition to surveying citizen reaction, Business Gateway works with trade associations, federal, state, and local governments and business–oriented constituent groups to ensure that citizens are receiving the most from the website.
Extra Credit: Describe what you've done to improve other critical tasks and promote critical tasks within your agency.
While the Business Gateway Initiative is a cross–government collaboration, day–to–day operations are managed by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA). The Business.gov website is one of the many resources SBA offers to ensure growth and success of small businesses. One of SBA's strategic goals is to improve the economic environment for small business by minimizing regulatory burden. Business.gov saves business owners time and money by consolidating information into a single website. The site is also used to highlight special programs that the agency offers for small businesses such as the Patriot Express Program for veterans and energy efficiency for small businesses. Business.gov compliments SBA's website—SBA.gov—providing links back to the many templates, guides, and training resources available for starting businesses. While Business.gov offers comprehensive access to compliance requirements across the government, it integrates information about SBA field offices and Small Business Development Centers into the pages so the business community has the option for one–on–one support.
Page Updated or Reviewed: April 15, 2008
