U.S. General Services Administration
Digital experience
What is Digital Experience?
Digital experience is the interaction a customer has with an organization on the Internet. Think about the way you feel when you visit a website or use a mobile app, and how you feel after interacting with it. Does it frustrate you? Do you feel engaged? Were you able to do what you came for? People expect an easy online experience, and if we want satisfied customers, we need to deliver.
Digital experience is impacted by:
- the content on the site
- the way the content is organized
- a person's ability to complete tasks on the site
You can create a positive digital experience for your users by making it easy for them to complete the task they came for, whether it's finding information, filling out a form, or making a purchase. If people can find what they're looking for quickly and easily, they're happier with the interaction and, hopefully, with your agency.
There are laws and policies that set standards and requirements for many parts of the digital experience:
- 21st Century Integrated Digital Experience Act - sets digital improvement requirements for public sites
- DotGov - domain requirements for .gov
- IT Accessibility - law and revised standard
- Connected Government Act - requirement for mobile-friendly websites
- M-15-13 - HTTPS-only standard for secure web connections
- Executive Order 13166 - Improving Access to Services for Persons with Limited English Proficiency
21st Century IDEA and GSA
Besides being a smart business practice, providing an enjoyable digital experience is now the law. The 21st Century Integrated Digital Experience Act, otherwise known as 21st Century IDEA, aims to improve the digital experience for government customers and reinforces existing requirements for federal public websites. Any new or redesigned executive agencies' digital services (like sites, forms, and applications) must be:
- accessible and usable
- based around user needs and tasks
- consistent in appearance
- securely hosted and connected
- original, not duplicating existing content
- searchable
- mobile-friendly
Agencies will also have to show their progress in a series of annual reports, and move paper-based systems online. It's a heavy but much-needed lift, and we pooled some resources to help agencies implement 21st Century IDEA and improve digital experience.
Shared Services
- Digital Analytics Program (DAP) - understand how people are using your content
- Dotgov.gov - use .gov domains to make your government services easy to identify on the internet
- Federalist - build, launch, and manage an accessible website
- Search.gov - help people find the information they need on your website
- U.S. Web Design System - design websites that are accessible, mobile-friendly, and easy to use (version 2.0 available now!)
Tools
- 18F Methods - bring human-centered design into your project
- Analytics.USA.gov - see analytics on federal website performance
- Digital Dashboard - see reports on federal website performance
- Pulse - see how federal government domains are meeting best practices on the web
Buy
- 18F- find top-of-the-industry digital consulting services
- FEDSIM - hands-on, mission-focused program, financial, and acquisition management
- IT Schedule 70 - purchase tools and services to build your websites and digital services
Learn & Connect
Websites
- Digital.gov - tools, methods, practices and policy guidance for effective, accessible digital services
- LEP.gov - resources for limited English proficiency
- Plainlanguage.gov - plain language tools, resources, and examples
- Section508.gov - create accessible products and services
- Usability.gov - tools and resources for a better user experience
Communities