Maricopa County Unveils Redesigned Website, Focused on Resident Experience
By: Maricopa County Government
Tags: Design, Website Design, Government Website, Public Service, User Experience

There’s a new and improved way to “get it done” with Maricopa County. The County’s redesigned website, Maricopa.gov, delivers an improved mobile experience, streamlined content and navigation, and a more effective search bar, powered by Google. The site served more than seven million unique visitors over the past year and is a go-to source of news and information affecting the nation’s fast-growing county.

“Residents expect to find the information they want quickly whether it’s within normal business hours or not. Many people want to complete their county business online, while others simply want to have reliable, easy-to-find contact information when they need to talk something through,” said Board of Supervisors Chairman Bill Gates, District 3. “The new maricopa.gov was designed with the end user in mind, making government more transparent and interactions with the County easier.”

Gates made a better functioning, mobile-friendly website a priority of his Chairmanship in 2019.

Maricopa County’s website redesign project got a big boost with word that Bill Gates would be involved. Turns out, it wasn’t the Bill Gates everyone was expecting.

Site improvements include:

Google search tool that returns more relevant results and less clutter

Consistent look across all pages, with total pages reduced by 20% so the stuff you don’t want doesn’t get in the way of finding the stuff you do

Improvements to the mobile experience which include a menu that follows you when you scroll; larger text that makes reading easier; and large buttons that improve ease of navigation

Common requests/tasks spotlighted and accessible in just a few clicks

Step-by-step instruction pages for more complex processes such as permitting

More online payment and submitting options

A “contact us” page that makes connecting with us easier. Search by department or by task. Go directly to the information you want on the website, or find a number to call. Phone numbers are “click to dial” on mobile.

Quick access to job opportunities on each department page. You’ll understand why Maricopa County jobs are government jobs that feel like anything but government.

A better newsroom so you can get updates about public health, elections, and other topics straight from the source. This year, we’ve been tracking Hepatitis A and West Nile Virus; providing air quality and weather alerts; and, reporting on actions taken by the Board of Supervisors.

A comprehensive reference page “About Maricopa County” for Census statistics, government structure, current leadership, and more. Great for engaged residents of all ages!

What good is a new website if it can’t connect you to puppies?

The project was conceived and completed in less than one year as part of a “refresh” built into a 2016 contract with CivicPlus. Beyond staff time, no new dollars were spent. The Office of Enterprise Technology and the County Manager’s Office of Communications led the effort, in collaboration with other county departments and CivicPlus.

“Our partners at Maricopa County understand that websites are really about the people using them,” said CivicPlus CEO Brian Rempe. “The CivicPlus team embraced that mindset and was able to use the strengths of our platform to collaborate on a design that looks great, functions well, and will allow residents to do more.”

“Maricopa County was recently named one of the top digital counties in America and projects like this will ensure we remain a leader in leveraging technology to improve citizen interaction,” said Ed Winfield, Chief Information Officer at Maricopa County. “This was a great collaborative effort that allowed the County team to create and innovate and CivicPlus to deliver a solution that puts our customers first.”

Chairman Gates views the new website as an integral part of his push toward “smart government that gives people more time in their lives for what matters.”

A redesigned website will help residents who just want to “get beep done.”

About Maricopa.gov

The public-facing website of the nation’s 4th largest county has millions of unique page views each year. Approximately 50% of those visitors come to the site using a phone or tablet, and that number has been growing. The website is used by nearly all county appointed departments. While elected offices and courts have their own websites, links to and information about those agencies and their work is available on Maricopa.gov. The current website, created by CivicPlus, first launched in 2017. Below are screenshots of the website through the years.

1999

2009