As a government department, agency or program, your goal is to serve citizens– efficiently, cost-effectively and using their preferred channels. The release of The ForeSee E-Government Satisfaction Index (Q3 2015) highlights mobile, increasingly the medium of choice for many people. Close to 70% of Americans own smartphones, and some government agencies report that up to 50% of their traffic comes via mobile.

Especially for younger generations, mobile is often the first point of contact with your organization. It’s critical that you manage, measure and optimize your mobile channel as diligently as you do the web. Otherwise, you run the risk of alienating people and forcing them to stand in line, call a contact center or turn to a private sector site to get the information they need.

While every mobile site or app is unique, we’ve observed some general trends regarding how to create a user-friendly mobile experience. One design approach can greatly help government sites that attract a diverse range of visitors and need to effectively segment them on the site’s homepage. In this example, the FDA site provides specific navigation channels for visitors based on their role (although this design could be improved by locating it higher on the page).

Download the report for more tips on visitor segmentation, global and section navigation and touch interaction, among others.

Mobile matters. But, it’s just one component in a digital government strategy that might also encompass desktop and tablet experiences. Citizen-focused government agencies recognize the need to measure each channel using a consistent methodology with a channel-specific approach.

Satisfaction Determines Future Behavior

Regardless of the channel, the key is understanding what drives citizen satisfaction. That’s because satisfaction determines future behaviors. This quarter, The ForeSee E-Government Satisfaction Index (Q3 2015) shows that highly satisfied website visitors are 101% more likely than less satisfied visitors to recommend the site and 88% more likely to use it as a primary resource, driving usage of the cost-effective online channel. Satisfaction also leads to trust: highly-satisfied site visitors are 82% more likely to feel your organization is trustworthy. On the mobile side, highly satisfied mobile visitors are 73% more likely to use the site or app again than less satisfied visitors and a whopping 107% more likely to recommend it.

Citizens’ channel preferences and expectations continue to evolve, so staying one step ahead through the use of predictive customer experience analytics is key to creating a better citizen experience. For more insights into delivering an exceptional digital experience—including a special section focused on mobile—download the current E-Gov Index. You’ll also learn how 100+ federal government websites perform in terms of citizen satisfaction.