Email Communication & Web 2.0: Agency Collaboration and Service to the Citizen
Presented By:
Ron Oberbillig, Chief Operating Officer – FCG
Eugene Luke, Emergency Management Specialist – FEMA Scott Burns, co-Founder and CEO - GovDelivery
March 27, 2008
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Best Practices Webinar Series
Agenda (1 Hour)
Ron Oberbillig
• Ron Oberbillig (FCG) Introduction, Emerging Best Practices
• Gene Luke (FEMA) Utilizing Email for Emergency Communications • Scott Burns (GovDelivery) Web 2.0: Making Collaboration Across Government Possible • Q&A (Type your questions in the “Q&A Box”)
Best Practices Webinar Series
About Federal Consulting Group (FCG)
Ron Oberbillig
• Fee-for-service franchise in the U.S. Department of the Treasury • Works with federal agencies to transform public service • Collaborates with senior leaders to create a citizencentered, results-oriented government • Facilitates best practices from both the private and public sectors • Currently provides to many agencies
• ForeSee Results web surveys based on American Customer Satisfaction Index
• Maxamine site optimization software
• GovDelivery email subscription management service
Best Practices Webinar Series
Agency Communications – Challenges
Ron Oberbillig
• Growth of the Web
Hundreds of millions pages managed by the government
• User expectations increasing
ACSI™ scores decrease if sites don‟t continuously improve
• Websites hold a ton of information, but visitors won‟t take the time to „dig through‟ the site
Low repeat traffic of government websites
• Public wants instant information – what they want, when they want it and how they want it
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Agency Communications - Opportunities
Ron Oberbillig
• Growth of the Web!
– Information repository
• Integrated communications effort approach
– Website content – Email communications – Citizen Satisfaction (ACSI® Scores)
• Web 2.0
– Better collaboration across government – “One-Stop-Shopping” for the Citizen
Best Practices Webinar Series
Benefits of Email Subscription Management
Ron Oberbillig
• Improve Service for Citizens
• Communicate More Effectively & Efficiently
• Communicate on major issues, emergencies, policy changes, and major projects.
• Reach target stakeholders on specific issues of interest (grants, programs, events, publication updates, etc.)
• Reduce the Cost of Government
• Low-cost means to communicate with citizens • Reduce costs for printing, postage, etc.
• Use as a Platform for Collaboration
Best Practices Webinar Series
About FEMA
Gene Luke
• Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)
• Primary Mission: “..to reduce the loss of life and property and protect the Nation from all hazards..”
– Natural disasters – floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, etc. – Acts of terrorism – Man-made disasters • Comprehensive emergency management system: Preparedness. Protection. Response. Recover. Mitigation.
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FEMA Efforts
Gene Luke
• Our goal – to make FEMA emergency information immediately available. – Declared Emergencies - Emergency Preparation – Declared Disasters - Mitigation Best Practices – Supply Lists - Determine Your Risk – Applying for Assistance - Recover & Rebuild – Coping with Disaster - Cleaning & Rebuilding • Make related emergency information more powerful through: – Personalization (zip code) • Targeted communication – Assistance – Federal Responses – Tips on Rebuilding
Best Practices Webinar Series
FEMA Email Update Results
Gene Luke
• Launched on fema.gov September 2007 • Email Update Metrics (as of February, 2008):
– Number of subscribers (individuals): 54,000+ – Average number of topics subscribed to per user: 4.7
– Number of unique subscription topics available: 92
– Number of emails sent: 5,113,000+
• Top Subscribed-to Topics:
1. Fire Administration 2. NIMS 3. Major Disaster Declarations 4. Emergency Declarations 5. Fire Management Assistance Declarations
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FEMA Reporting: Overview
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FEMA Reporting: Items
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FEMA Reporting: Subscribers
Best Practices Webinar Series
FEMA.gov Email Update Sign-Up
Gene Luke
3 1
Click on Email updates link on FEMA homepage
Signed up to info. of interest
2
Enter email address (password optional)
4
Shown other options Best Practices Webinar Series
Current FEMA.gov Email Update Topics
Gene Luke
Best Practices Webinar Series
Connecting Web Content with Email Updates
Gene Luke
Manual Website Update
Emails can be created and sent manually at any time Change noticed on appropriate webpage; email generated w/ link to new content Change noticed in RSS feed; email generated containing new content
RSS Feed Update
Web Services
Integrate internal systems directly with Email Subscription System
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Sample FEMA.gov Emails Sent to Subscribers
Gene Luke
Best Practices Webinar Series
GovDelivery Deployment Highlight: Currently using GovDelivery Web 2.0 Collaboration Network to promote Content Related to FEMA
Gene Luke
Best Practices Webinar Series
Web 2.0 Defined
Scott Burns
A supposed second-generation of Internet-based services - such as social networking sites, wikis, communication tools, and folksonomies - that let people collaborate and share information online in ways previously unavailable.
Embracing the web as a platform
(Source: Wikipedia)
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Software as a Service: Making Web 2.0 Possible
Scott Burns
My Account
Application
Database
Other Accounts
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The Internet Makes Cross-Promotion to Web Users Easy… for Companies that can Pay $
Scott Burns
Sponsored links from advertisers
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Collaboration within an Agency has Led Each Agency’s Audience to Signup for Dramatically More Topics
Scott Burns
Why the improvement?
# of Topics (Subscriptions) per Subscriber
(Centers for Disease Control & Prevention)
48.5
• Better cross-promotion between agencies • Improved usability
1632% Increase
Why it matters? • Better service to the public
2.8
• Reach public with more updated information
Using Listserv
Using GovDelivery Enterprise-Wide
• Improve exposure of lower traffic areas of the website
Best Practices Webinar Series
Web 2.0 Makes Collaboration Possible Across Agencies and Departments [FEMA Example]
Scott Burns
Best Practices Webinar Series
Treas.gov
Scott Burns
Best Practices Webinar Series
Agencies Grow their “Audience” and Reach More Citizens Because of the Web 2.0 Collaboration Network
Scott Burns
Average New Subscribers per Day
323
Before GovDelivery Network After GovDelivery Network 261 221
189 150 160 164 152 168
85 44 9 FEMA TSA Ready.gov DHS.gov USFA CDC*
*FEMA and USFA (Fire Administration) promote CDC content to their end users due to its relevance even though it is part of a different federal department Best Practices Webinar Series Source: GovDelivery subscription growth comparing weekdays in January and weekdays from 2/13/08 – 3/24/08
Web 2.0 Collaboration Network
Scott Burns
• Clearinghouse of subscriptions options
– Choose subscription options from other government entities to offer end users – Highlight “featured” partner agencies to your website visitors
• Voluntary participation • Items/topics tagged or categorized to make them easy to find
Best Practices Webinar Series
Agency Benefits
Scott Burns
• More subscribers
– Improved communication / delivery on mission – Increased site visits – Greater convenience to the public
• Cross-governmental collaboration
• Complete control
– Optional participation
– Control what content is offered to your subscribers – Control where your content is presented
Best Practices Webinar Series
Citizen Benefits
Scott Burns
• Access to relevant government content at the best time • Better awareness of government and services and information
• Future:
– Ability to view and update profiles across multiple agencies from one page – Improved usability: Search, single location, robust tagging
Best Practices Webinar Series
Potential Network Examples
Scott Burns
Same department with separate GovDelivery accounts
Examples: HHS, AHRQ, FDA, Medicare, State Health Departments
Serving same industry
Examples for financial services industry: Federal Reserve, Department of Treasury, Bureau of Economic Analysis
Similar audience
Examples for senior citizens: Medicare, Social Security
Cross-government portals
Examples: USA.gov, GovBenefits, DisabilityInfo
Serving same geography
Examples: 1) Groups of state agencies in TX, IN, OR 2) Cities/Counties/Transit Authorities/State Agencies serving a given state or region
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How Big is the Network for Potential Collaboration?
Scott Burns
• Over 100 State and Local Governments • Enterprise-wide Federal Participation – Department of Homeland Security
•
Cross-Governmental Portals USA.gov, FCIC, GovBenefits.gov, DisabilityInfo.gov,
Export.gov
– Treasury
– Department of Justice – Department of Labor
• • •
•
State.gov, Careers.state.gov, State Dept. Retirement Website (State Dept.) EPA.gov, EPA Office of Radiation, EPA Office of R&D Food Safety and Inspection Service (USDA)
Other major participants – Federal Reserve Board of Governors
– Department of Transportation
• Health & Human Services
– HHS.gov / Pandemicflu.gov / SurgeonGeneral.gov / etc. – Centers for Disease Control
– Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality – Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services – Food and Drug Administration • Bureau of Economic Analysis, International Trade Administration (Commerce) • DOD.mil, Pentagon Channel (Defense)
– Federal Reserve Banks, New York & St. Louis
– Social Security Administration – Library of Congress
– Federal Election Commission
– International Trade Commission
– Commodities and Futures Trading Commission
– USAID Global Health Initiative – Thrift Savings Plan
Best Practices Webinar Series
Tying Email to Other Web 2.0 Capabilities
Scott Burns
Full integration with YouTube and Blogs
Help Public to Post Agency Content to Web 2.0 Sites
• Offer subscriptions to YouTube and Blog content o Promote Web 2.0 content side-byside with other agency content o Generate usage o Ensure an integrated approach
• GovDelivery sends email updates automatically when new videos & blog postings occur
• Connect users to their Web 2.0 communities through the GovDelivery Web 2.0 toolbar
• Enable users to post stories/links of interest from your agency with a single click • Facilitate discussion and awareness of your agency’s priority issues
Best Practices Webinar Series
Q&A Discussion
Type your questions in the “Q&A Box”--------------------------------------->
Thank You!
For more information email: info@govdelivery.com or Ron Oberbillig – ron.oberbillig@bpd.treas.gov Gene Luke – eugene.luke@dhs.gov Scott Burns – scott.burns@govdelivery.com (202)504-3646 or (866) 276-5583 ext. 303