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Building BetterCouncil WebsitesA National Benchmarking Report
Your Council Website Matters
The most direct interactions between residents and government happen at the local level. When is my next rubbish collection? Please repair this pothole. I want to register my pet. Everyday local government processes thousands of these requests, and more than ever residents are interacting with Council online rather than visiting their local council offices.
As more people transact with Council online, the more the website becomes the Council.
An effective and easy to use Council website delivers outstanding
customer service at a fraction of the cost of doing so in-person
or over the phone.
We commissioned this research because we believe Australian
Council websites should be as good as the online tools we have
come to rely on in the rest of our daily lives. We’re here to help.
OpenCities Benchmark Report
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Key Findings
What’s working?Where does your website stand? See how your council website ranked against these key criteria, visit www.opencities.com/benchmark
What’s not working?
8%Council websites need to work for everyone. In Australia, the average reading comprehension level is equivalent to the eighth grade. Currently less than 8% of Council websites are written at a reading level that an average Australian can comprehend.
21%According to Google, nearly half of all visitors will leave a mobile site if the pages don’t load within 3 seconds. While the majority of sites have a passing score for page load speed, 21% failed while only 10% can be considered excellent.
95%95% of Council websites provide residents with a search function on the homepage. However, only 23% have incorporated predictive search functionality to intuitively connect people to what they need.
38%Nearly half of all Council websites cannot guarantee a great experience for mobile users. While 53% of sites scored in the Excellent range for mobile readiness, 38% received a failing score for this criteria.
2/3Effective Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) is definitely the norm. Almost 2/3 received a passing grade. Good SEO helps search engines figure out what each page is about and how useful it will be for residents.
86%Australian Council websites are failing significantly when it comes to protecting user privacy through effective encryption. More than 86% of websites received a failing grade due to the lack of encryption they provide for their residents.
90%Council websites get high marks for reliability. Over 90% of websites have an uptime of more than 99.9% - meaning they were up and operational more than 99.9% of the observed period.
53%The majority - more than 53% - of Council websites feature 20 or more accessibility issues. This adversely impacts the experience for residents with disabilities. Only 23% of websites had fewer than 10 errors and thus received a rating of Excellent, judged by compliance with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG 2.0).
51%Nearly 3/4 of Council websites feature some quick links to services as top tasks on their website homepage. However, only 51% of Councils have implemented five or more top tasks. Highlighting the most frequently requested services on the homepage increases the chance that visitors will self-serve instead of giving up and contacting the Council over the phone or in person.
5
The BasicsWe compared the performance of every municipal website in Australia against the following criteria:
What tools did we use?
Our research required both automated and manual website assessment methods. Some factors, such as mobile
readiness, SEO and page load speed, can be reliably observed using tools from Google and other industry leaders.
Other factors, such as search functionality and content readability, require professional testing and assessment.
Results are compared against findings from the Australian Bureau of Statistics and standards such as the
Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG).
Methodology
This National Benchmark report establishes a baseline for the performance and experience of every single Council website, more than 550, across Australia.
What makes a “good” Council website? Like art, web design is highly subjective. We measured how well Australian Council websites rated for each of eight unique criteria to help determine whether or not they are delivering privacy, accessibility and performance for residents.
Receiving high marks on these metrics alone does not guarantee
a great Council website. The results do, however, measure the
fundamental sturdiness of the platform you create for people
and services to meet online. A website that doesn’t meet these
basics is like a telephone without a dial-tone.
OpenCities Benchmark Report
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Prioritisation of Top TasksDoes your website clearly direct residents
to the most frequently used services?
Page Load SpeedHow long to does it take for
your website to load?
Search ExperienceCan the public find what they
need in their own words?
AccessibilityDoes your website ensure equal access
to all users, regardless of disability?
Content ReadabilityWhat level of education of required to
read the information on your site?
PrivacyDoes your website protect your
visitors’ personal details?
Mobile FriendlinessCan the public use your site
on their mobile devices?
Search Engine OptimisationSearch Engine Optimisation - Can
the public find your information
via external search engines?
Does your website specifically direct residents to the most frequently used services?
Most people don’t browse Council websites
like they would a news site or online store.
They visit Council websites with a clear goal
in mind, whether that’s paying for an animal
registration, applying for a building permit
or checking the day for garbage pick-up.
A clearly visible set of tasks on the homepage
indicates that the website has been designed to
be transactional, not just informational. Putting
the most common tasks on your homepage
quickly delivers the services that your residents
need most, dramatically reducing time spent
searching or navigating through extra pages.
Method of Measure
We manually evaluated whether each
Council website prominently displayed links
to frequently used tasks or services.
Excellent
Six or more common tasks are prominently
displayed above-the-fold (before scrolling).
Pass
At least three tasks are linked
somewhere on the homepage.
Fail Minimal or no top tasks.
Prioritisation of Top Tasks
Benchmark Metrics —Pillars of Council Websites That Work
OpenCities Benchmark Report
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25%
51%
24%
Fail
Excellent
Pass
Can the public find what they need in their own words?
Search has become default functionality for any
website. Being able to search a website gives the
public a quick way to find exactly what they need,
which is especially important on government
websites that provide hundreds of different
services. What’s more, many services are referred
to differently by Council, as compared to residents.
Effective search gives residents an easy way to
find information and services without having
to understand which Council department is
responsible for it. Great search functionality
goes even further and helps residents find what
they need by suggesting content as they type.
This is particularly helpful when the resident’s
query (“rubbish collection”) doesn’t match the
official service name (“waste transfer recovery”).
Helping people find the correct entry point for
their transaction minimises frustration and
builds trust between Council and residents.
Method of Measure
We manually assessed whether each Council
website featured a search-box in a prominent
location on the homepage and how it
responded to a typical search request.
Excellent
The website’s search functionality was
displayed prominently while also suggesting
results as the resident types a request.
Pass
The website had a search-box prominently
displayed near the top of the homepage.
Fail The website featured no search whatsoever.
What level of literacy is required to comfortably grasp the content on your site?
Unlike a private business, government serves
everyone. People who cannot understand the
information on a Council website have little
chance of completing transactions unaided.
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics
44% of the adult population, some 8.5 million
people, have basic or below basic literacy
skills - reading at a 7th or 8th grade level.
Website text must be clear and concise. Avoiding
technical jargon and other complex words makes
your text as easy to understand as possible. Your
readability score can tell you how many people
will be able to comprehend your content.
Method of Measure We analysed a content-heavy page with
important information from each website to
determine its readability score and accessibility.
Excellent Critical content is written at or
below an 8th grade level.
Pass Critical content is at or below a 12th grade -
or high school graduate’s - reading level.
Fail Critical content cannot be understood
by residents with less than a high school
reading comprehension level.
Search Experience Content Readability
OpenCities Benchmark Report
1110
5%
23%
72%
Fail
Excellent
Pass
40%
8%
52%Fail
Excellent
Pass
Can the public use your site on mobile devices?
Australians love smartphones. Almost 80% of
us have one in our pockets, and smartphones
are the only source of internet access for one
out of every five people. According to the Pew
Research Center, “40% of smartphone owners use
their phone to look up government services.”
Websites that are fully viewable and work well on
any device are described as “mobile responsive.”
People are five times more likely to leave a site if
it isn’t mobile responsive. As people increasingly
rely on a mobile phone for internet access,
mobile responsiveness will be a bridge or barrier
for residents accessing Council services online.
Method of Measure
To measure mobile friendliness, we
used Google’s performance analysis
tools to generate a 0-100 score.
Excellent Scores above 90. The website has been built to
scale up or down and is usable on hand-held
mobile devices, tablets and desktop computers.
Pass Scores between 75 and 90. The website is
generally mobile-friendly, but significant
improvements could be made.
Fail Scores below 75. There is poor optimisation
for mobile or tablet devices.
Mobile Friendly
OpenCities Benchmark Report
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38%
53%
9%
Fail
Excellent
Pass
How long does it take for your website to load?
Fast loading websites perform better on
every front. They are easier to use, facilitate
more interactions and increase engagement.
According to Google, half of all visitors will leave
a mobile site if the page doesn’t load within
three seconds. When visitors have to wait for
your website to load they begin to associate
their Council with inaction and frustration.
Providing a smooth and fast experience online
encourages people to pursue self-service
options on the website, and cut the number
of complaints you receive. In short, faster
load times improves resident satisfaction.
Method of Measure
Since the performance of a network connection
varies considerably, we analysed page speed
based on how closely the website complies
with Google’s best practices for ensuring
speed and performance. We averaged the
0-100 scores for mobile and desktop speed to
create a single speed score for each Council.
Excellent Scores above 70.
Pass Scores between 40 and 70.
Fail Scores below 40.
Is your website secure?
As society’s digital footprint continues to expand,
the threat of malicious activity online becomes
more pervasive. Both Chrome and Firefox, the
two most popular browsers, have begun to
flag insecure websites and warning visitors to
proceed with caution. To preserve essential
functionality and ensure that online transactions
remain private, Council websites should encrypt
all data exchanges with their residents.
Why is encryption important to local government?
Given the amount of personal data required
in government transactions, the risk to the
public can be significant. If no effort is made
to protect the data of residents, everything
from their name, address, passwords and
payment details can be eavesdropped.
Method of Measure
The use of encryption was defined by a Council’s
implementation of an SSL (Secure Sockets Layer)
certificate; most readily apparent if the website
connects at HTTPS:// instead of HTTP://. We
tested existence and quality of the encryption
using the SSL Labs tools from Qualys.
Excellent A+, A or A- rating from SSL Labs.
Pass B, C or D rating from SSL Labs.
Fail There is no SSL implemented or received
a failing grade from SSL labs.
Page Speed Privacy
OpenCities Benchmark Report
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Where does your website stand? See how your Council website ranked against these key criteria, visit www.opencities.com/benchmark 86%
5%
9%
Fail
Excellent
Pass
21%
10%
69%
Fail
Excellent
Pass
Can the public find you?
Nine out of ten Australians use the internet every
single day, and the most common activity is
search (89%) ahead of browsing social media sites
(81%) and checking email (62%). A well designed
Council website helps search engines connect the
public with essential information about services.
Although search engines have become
exponentially sophisticated, they can’t evaluate
the virtue of a website the same way a human
can. Search engines look for signposts like the
structure of written content, broken links, XML
sitemaps and many more to analyse whether it
is likely to be a valuable resource. Considering all
of these factors when designing a website is a
practice called Search Engine Optimisation (SEO).
SEO helps search engines figure out what each
page is about and how useful it will be for visitors.
Method of Measure
We tested each website for 10 elements of
tagging and metadata optimisation. As some
are more influential than others we weighted
the most important ones. A final score between
0 and 32 tells us if the website architecture
correctly aligns with that of search engines.
Excellent 20 and above. The majority of elements are
present and correctly implemented.
Pass Between 10 and 20. Most elements are
present or well implemented.
Fail Below 10. Most elements are not
present and poorly implemented.
Does your website ensure equal access to all users, regardless of disability?
Accessibility guarantees equal access to
information and services online regardless of
a residents’ developmental abilities or physical
impairments. Approximately 4.3 million people, or
20% of the Australian population, have a disability
that impairs online use. Accessibility is all about
inclusion and ensuring that nobody is left behind,
irrespective of their physical and mental abilities.
The Disability Discrimination Act 1992 makes it
unlawful to discriminate against people with
disabilities and promotes equal rights, equal
access and equal opportunity for people with
disabilities. The more accessibility errors, the greater
the Council’s exposure to discrimination cases
and litigation. Not only is it a legal requirement
to make government websites accessible, it
improves the quality of the website for everyone.
Method of Measure
We measured each website’s accessibility by
testing for compliance with ‘A’ and ‘AA’ rating
of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines
(WCAG 2.0). Websites with fewer accessibility
errors are far more likely to be compatible with
assistive technologies like screen readers.
Excellent Fewer than 10 errors.
Pass Between 10 and 20 errors.
Fail More than 20 errors.
Search Engine Optimisation Accessibility
OpenCities Benchmark Report
1716
53%
23%
24%Fail
Excellent
Pass
37%
4%
59%
Fail
Excellent
Pass
We can build better Council websites. Together.
Captured in the pages of this National Benchmarking Report is the current state of digital local government services. These results tell us what we’re doing right, and where we need to focus our efforts moving forward. Our technologies now power one in ten of all local government websites in Australia, and they epitomise the principles outlined in this report: easy to read and navigate, highly accessible and available on any device.
We conducted this research to survey the digital
landscape, and to reaffirm our hypothesis
that we are all facing the same challenges.
As we custom built one website after
another for our clients, we noticed local
government continuously facing the
same challenges and reinventing the
same wheel over and over in isolation.
That’s why we decided to stop focusing on
custom development, and start working
together with Councils to create an inclusive
digital platform that continually captures,
incorporates and shares all of the tools and
functionality that a modern Council needs.
The result is OpenCities, a turn-key solution
that captures 10 years of local government
digital learnings to empower Councils to
transform how they communicate, engage
and deliver services to their community
- without any custom development.
More than ever, local governments everywhere
face the shared challenge of engaging the
public via meaningful digital interaction.
This report creates a common yardstick,
showing us that local government as a
whole faces the same challenges that
we encounter, and have overcome.
OpenCities Benchmark Report
19
www.opencities.com [email protected]
+61 3 9913 0020
How does your Council website perform?
Use the link below to receive the personalised online report for your Council, rated on each of the eight criteria. Compare your results to other Councils,
or receive a digital version of the full National Benchmarking report.
www.opencities.com/benchmark