Summary
The BTS website from the US Department of Transportation (USDOT) is a vital resource for trusted cross-modal transportation data and statistics for a broad set of consumers including academic researchers, state and local transportation planners, transportation industry stakeholders, and Federal employees. BTS’s website is the main point of access to its subject matter expertise, statistical products and data, and the National Transportation Library. It is the Principal Federal Statistical Agency that provides objective, comprehensive, and relevant information on the extent and use of the Nation’s transportation system. Also, how well the system performs, and the effects of the system on society and the environment. BTS data are meant to be current, easily accessible, and compatible with an evolving landscape and user base.
Problem and Solution
BTS requires a solution to address changing drivers. A confident understanding of BTS services, offerings, and user personas serves as a cornerstone for the BTS mission to provide objective, comprehensive, and relevant information on the Nation’s transportation system, how well the system performs, and the effects of the system on society and environment. The overall objective is to provide communication support for the electronic dissemination of products and analysis of customer satisfaction. Specifically, the objective is to provide communication support for electronic dissemination of products and analysis of customer satisfaction via the following task objectives:
- Develop a clear understanding of the BTS website users and consumers of BTS data
- Assess the BTS website user experience (UX), content, and search engine optimization (SEO) performance
- Provide a dashboard that shows digital platform (website and social media) analytics (views, completions, impressions, etc.) as well as data on social media impressions and reach and website completion
- Assemble a User Testing Report according to user flows and customer feedback
- Deliver wireframes, 3 homepage mock-ups, and recommendations to enhance the visibility of BTS’s products and offerings on digital platforms in a modern, effective, and resilient framework
Solutions
Xentity conducted information architecture reviews and developed recommendations in response. Then, they proceeded to provide user testing results. Xentity researched and built user personas for the various users of the BTS website. The personas were tailored to actual BTS customers/stakeholders and prospective users. These range from decision-makers and transportation professionals to the general public. Information on each persona should include, but is not limited to identifying:
- Who are they?
- What is their main goal?
- What do they need?
- What is stopping them from getting what they need from the BTS website?
Furthermore, Xentity conducted an assessment of the BTS website’s current-state user experience (UX), content, and search engine optimization (SEO) performance to identify areas of opportunities for improving the reach of information. They conducted user testing, including user flows, of the BTS website and gathered customer feedback to analyze current practices and make recommendations for enhancing the visibility of its digital marketing campaigns on digital platforms.
Outcome and Benefit
First, Xentity’s assessment encompassed SEO, Content & UX factors. T his included the technical health of the BTS site, page-level, and sitewide performance, and any gaps and improvement areas for USDOT to improve on. Xentity also deployed an analytics dashboard to reflect digital platform analytics for both the website and social media channels. This helps USDOT better monitor their platforms. Also, they provided a Digital Platform Enhancement Report to drive increased visibility across digital channels. Furthermore, Xentity provided Wireframe and Web Page Mockups to show how content on a webpage should be organized.
Other specific deliverables include a user testing report, which when combined with the aforementioned persona report along with a findings report to go along with the analytics dashboard, helps BTS to increase its market share across digital platforms. Finally, using the wireframe and web page mockups, Xentity created three homepage design mockups for the BTS website. This helped demonstrate to USDOT what their final product should look like if they wish to see the desired improvements.