North Carolina Department of Revenue
Government agency website redesign.
A significant challenge for the North Carolina Department of Revenue (NCDOR) is many people don’t understand how their taxes are determined. This leads to unnecessary frustration and poor perception. To mitigate that, the NCDOR publishes over 13,000 pdf’s of documentation to assist the citizens of North Carolina. The problem is that without a good information architecture, navigation, and search, the average citizen can’t find the information they are looking for. The NCDOR needed a partner that could redesign the website with a simplified user journey so information could be delivered more quickly and effectively.
At a glance.
NCDOR
The North Carolina Department of Revenue (NCDOR) is a cabinet-level executive agency charged with administering tax laws to fund public services benefiting the citizens of North Carolina.
The ask.
NCDOR was flooded with calls from residents asking for information that they couldn’t find online. The information was there, so it was clear their website had an issue – it was not user-friendly. During this same time, the agency was trying to encourage electronic tax filing. They knew driving behavioral change wouldn’t be easy, but with an online process that was already so difficult to use, they were fighting an uphill battle. In order to improve the user experience and add more functionality, they needed a complete website redesign.
The solution.
We built an improved information architecture for over 6,000 web pages that housed 13,000 PDFs. Our team conducted in-depth user research to help us determine and then design a clearer and quicker pathway for users to find the information they were searching for. During usability testing, subjects navigated through the menu to desired content in less than 5 seconds. Our team of front-end engineers worked in partnership with NCDOR’s team of developers to bring the new site to life.
The end result.
By revamping the website, we improved the site’s navigation, provided clearer labeling, and modernized the design. Once launched, the NCDOR noticed an instant impact. Call volume reduced, web usage increased and users began to prefer filing their taxes electronically. After four months, phone calls decreased by 24,000 and the number of tax filings completed online doubled from the prior period.
