IDeA improves online service
The Improvement and Development Agency (IDeA) performs an important role working for local government improvement. The agency, as part of the Local Government Association group, has the role of driving improvement within local authorities. This covers local government priorities such as health, children's services and economic development.
Engaging with Webcredible has helped us deliver a site that offers an improved service to our customers as well as lower support costs in the future.
Andrew Georgiou, IDeA
Objectives
The IDeA re-launched its website in 2008, 3 years after its last major refresh. A significant part of the redesign was conducted in-house by the IDeA so it was important to use an external expert to help verify and test the site before it went live. The main objectives of the project were to:
- Provide independent validation of the work carried out by the IDeA
- Improve services to users
- Provide an interface that would lower support costs
- Understand user requirements
- Establish accessibility and ease of use of the site
What we did
We carried out a comprehensive user research project to ensure the redesigned site met user needs. This began with lab-based usability testing with 12 key local government workers who regularly use the site, to establish how easy it was to perform certain tasks. Eye tracking was also used during the tests to pinpoint exactly where on the site users' were looking and for how long.
We then carried out an accessibility audit of the IDeA website to evaluate how well it supported the needs of web users with special needs, including blind, partially sighted and mobility impaired user groups.
We then worked closely with the IDeA team to identify the key requirements of the site and provide solutions accordingly. The IDeA implemented our recommendations onto the redesigned site, including:
- Homepage explaining more clearly the purpose of the site and who it's for
- Main navigation tabs to better indicate the scope of the site
- Redesigned Knowledge page
- Modified networking page to make the difference between sections clearer to users
- Descriptive page titles
- Clearly displayed labels
Results
Through the implementation of Webcredible's recommendations, the IDeA has ensured the highest levels of usability and accessibility for the new website. The usability and accessibility testing project offered validation of the work already carried out by the IDeA.
Our recommendations have significantly improved the IDeA website, giving further clarity in its purpose and scope as well as better location of keywords and more differentiation between the 'Services' and the 'Knowledge' page.
What next?
Please contact us by phone on 0870 242 6095 or by e-mail at info at webcredible.co.uk. We'll discuss your user experience research & design needs and requirements with no pushy sales pitch and no obligation to you.
See also
- Uncover your users' needs and goals with our comprehensive user research offering
- Get a new website through our user-centered design and accessible CSS web design expertise
- Get our accessible and usable CMS so your site offers outstanding accessibility
- Attend one of our 15 fantastic Internet marketing training courses
