While federal web portals earned an average score of 75 on a 100-point satisfaction scale in a ForeSee Results survey of customers, FDA’s main website garnered a 66, placing it among the lowest.
The Treasury Department got a 57 and the Environmental Protection Agency also pulled a 66. Also faring poorly were disability.gov (65), socialsecurity.gov (68), and the site for HHS’s Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (69). The scores are based on 300,000 surveys that rated 110 federal sites in Q1 of this year.
When it was launched in mid-2009, FDA’s revamped website was sharply criticized by users and internal staff alike for lost links, poor functionality and incompatible technology. It was also alleged to have been the product of a no-bid contract awarded to a firm with ex-FDA employees.
Three sites that received the highest score of 85 were US Citizenship and Immigration Services’ Spanish-language portal, the General Services Administration’s Gobierno.gov, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s home page. Also receiving high scores were the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases’ main portal, and NASA’s main site, both with 83 points.
From the August 01, 2011 Issue of MM+M - Medical Marketing and Media
