State website gets revamped

January 23, 2017

Governor C.L. “Butch” Otter announced Friday that the State of Idaho’s official website, www.idaho.gov, has a fresh, user-friendly new design and significantly improved functionality. “We want to that ensure interaction with Idaho’s State government is as pleasant and efficient as possible,” Governor Otter said. “Easy online access to information and services that citizens and businesses need is crucial in our increasingly digital world. I’m pleased to announce the new website design, which cost our taxpayers nothing.” At first glance, visitors will notice that the website makeover leverages Idaho’s beauty by prominently featuring a scenic Gem State photo that will change seasonally. Test users preferred homepage designs that included landscapes, rating them as easier to navigate, more enjoyable to use and more trustworthy. In addition to improved visual appeal, the homepage has been reconfigured to more nimbly accommodate the two most common tasks performed by users: scrolling and searching. Homepage content is divided into groups with easily understood category titles. The most visited services, pages and searches are displayed for each category. This additional context guides website visitors to the content they need. The website actively measures the most popular clicks within the site and dynamically reprioritizes content in real time. Popular links require only one click from the homepage. The search results page is even more robust, with content from online services, topics and state agency data. The search engine indexes all Idaho State websites and Twitter feeds. In addition, the results page remains on www.idaho.gov so users still have access to the site navigation. Since a growing number of Idahoans access the Internet primarily through mobile devices, www.idaho.gov incorporates the latest in responsive design to maintain mobile compatibility. Additionally, the revamped site meets international online accessibility requirements and is screen-reader compatible. The new version of www.idaho.gov is the fifth redesign in the 20-year history of Idaho’s official Internet presence. The site is managed and operated without taxpayer funds through a public-private partnership between the State and Access Idaho, a Boise-based company.