7 Reasons We Overhauled NY’s Website
What you’ll find in ny.gov’s first relaunch in 15 years
Fifteen years ago, the State of New York launched its website, ny.gov. A lot has changed since then. Connection speeds got faster, smartphones got smarter, and social media transformed the way we get news. But one thing that hasn’t changed is the State’s website — until now.
Here’s the original ny.gov website, launched in 1999, and in use until this week:
And here’s the website we’re launching today, designed to serve New Yorkers in the 21st Century:
Why did we overhaul ny.gov and what’s new?
- Government services are a click away. There are over 730 million visits to NY.gov each year, and we offer thousands of services online, from renewing your driver license to providing health insurance.
Now information is presented in a simple how-to format. And we use real-time analytics and search to connect you to them faster.
For example: say you want to start a new business in New York—before, you would have to research across 30 webpages to get the information you need. Now it’s streamlined on one page.
And to keep the services you need handy, you can now save pages instantly to a navigation section called My Services:
2. New York’s new website can help you find a job—or create one. Employment is the top traffic driver to ny.gov. That’s why we created Service pages on how to apply for a government job, search listings, start a business and more.
3. Localized just for you. The new NY.gov helps you find all the State has to offer, and features career fairs and job openings near you — as well as other localized resources, from emergency alerts to farmers’ markets.
4. More social. For government to be effective, it needs to embrace the platforms that New Yorkers use every day. The new ny.gov makes it easy to share information on social media, follow government feeds and download official mobile apps.
5. Life-saving emergency alerts. The public seeks government guidance in times of danger. Unfortunately, in emergency scenarios communication is often compromised: power might be out, or networks down. That’s why we developed custom templates for sharing emergency information — providing crucial alerts to keep you safe, optimized for mobile devices and faster access.
6. Accessible to all. The new ny.gov offers translation into 70 languages – a huge improvement that lets us engage more of our diverse population. And with higher contrast and larger text sizes, people of different ability levels can more easily use ny.gov.
7. Smarter government for your smartphone. Mobile devices are changing how we stay connected, and already more than 25% of traffic to ny.gov is from a smartphone or tablet. The new ny.gov is fully responsive, and seamlessly adapts to every major device and browser, wherever you go.
Lastly: Tell us what to fix. The ny.gov website is a work in progress, and we need your ideas to constantly improve it. Many pages have feedback tools to help measure the success of the website. Tell us where we need to take it next, what to fix—you name it. Your input will help us shape the future of digital government in New York State.
Finally, thanks to all who helped us achieve this important milestone. Finding ways to better serve New Yorkers is a job that’s never done, but today’s launch is an important first step.
