This guest post is by Luke Fretwell, CEO of ProudCity (the content management platform you’re reading this article on…). Learn more at ProudCity.com.
I’ve visited thousands of local government websites and have seen it all.
Some are extravagantly designed – overly so – while others look like they were built by the middle school computer science club (some probably are).
Reasons for the discrepancies vary – time, money, politics, ego, expertise, to name just a few.
‘We’re good’
When reaching out to local governments about a new website, these are two standard responses I hear:
- “We’re good.”
- “We’re happy with what we have.”
The problem with these responses is that sometimes they’re subjective and not based on informed awareness. Granted, it’s the standard brush-off to a sales inquiry – we all can empathize with that – but many times when I dive deeper, the reality doesn’t gel with the sentiment.
You may not be good
As there are with cars, our bodies or pretty much anything, there are a few basic diagnostic tests you can run to determine whether your website is in good health – ones that every government website should pass.
These include:
- Accessibility
- Mobility
- Encryption
- Performance
The tests are free and easy – you enter your domain name, select ‘Submit’ and the test results are returned in seconds.
Here are some testing tools we recommend:
- Web Accessibility Evaluation Tool (WAVE) (accessibility)
- Google mobile-friendly test (mobility)
- SSL Checker (encryption)
- Page speed insights (performance)
Test your website today
While you may think your local government website is “good” or you’re “happy with what we have,” it may actually be a disservice to the people you serve.
“Is our website healthy?” is the question to ask. If you see a lot of red flags, it’s time to upgrade or launch a new one.
Do yourself and your community a favor and test your government website today.