Background
The Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) strives to respond to and support Kiwis by providing highly accessible informative platforms.
Challenge
In response to the increase in phone calls and increased telephone traffic to the Ministry of Social Development's call centre, Catalyst and DIA sought to build a highly accessible tool that would make it easy for Kiwis to locate financial advice and guidance regarding COVID-19.
Solution
With the support of the Ministry of Social Development(external link) and the National Emergency Management Agency(external link), DIA and Catalyst collaborated to build and deliver an accessible financial help tool in just six days.
This easy-to-use platform provides Kiwis with financial clarity and DIA with the option to add more information in future – as Kiwis’ needs evolve.
The site's usability was a key outcome - as complex financial information had to be easily digestible and accessible for people in a stressful situation. The team are proud that the average time on this page was 4:30, compared to a 2:00 minute average across the COVID-19 site, with an impressively low bounce rate (1.03%, compared to over 7% for the rest of the site).
Becky Cassam, Life Events Services Manager at DIA, said: “We have a genuine desire to develop digital tools that meet the needs of our users.”
The DIA and Catalyst teams reused elements from previous Life Events websites such as SmartStart(external link), Death Documents(external link) and Te Hokinga ā Wairua - End of Life Services.(external link) Users are presented with multiple choices, and after selecting the applicable options, they are presented with their entitlement information and recommended next steps.
Becky adds, "We will continue to do our best to provide digitised services that make it easier for our people living in Aotearoa.”