Skip to main content Screen Reader Website Version
Get a Quote
Home Web Design SEO Services ADA Compliance Hosting & Support Custom Web Applications Our Work About Blog Contact

Why are most government websites so terrible?

The recent debacle with the Affordable Care Act has made headlines but those of us in the development world are just seeing more of the same old thing. Government websites stink! Why is that? I can assure you that their cost structure is very similar to the outrageous cost of healthcare.gov. We have seen bids for local government sites in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. While they are complex, they aren’t that complex. Once major challenge is hooking up to all the old legacy systems local (aw heck, all) governments rely on. This presents challenges but the bids are still overblown – it’s kind of just “the thing to do” with government, huh?

But then, why do they still stink? If they cost so much, so be it, but at least be good, right?

They almost unanimously seem to lumber along, contain sparse information, disconnect and are chock full of broken links. Other websites are just as complex, take Amazon or Ebay for example and you’ll rarely see the kind of issues you find throughout government web projects. Maybe those are extreme examples but you would think that government web developers would at least be working with the latest in industry standards. There is nothing preventing a government site from being responsive or at least mobile friendly. Why do I see so many <font> tags? Is this 1998?

For all the trouble and money you would think the product would be just cutting edge. Nope. We relive  and suffer through the same old clunkers and just kind of shrug… it’s just the way it is.

More Web Design Blog Content

What we’ve been up to lately

Here’s what’s been going on at Livewire in the last few weeks – because, well, why not? It’s a blog ,isn’t it? Finishing up the LDM iphone app – which has been a big project that has presented us with some unique challenges. The Android version is likely

Redirects & Canonical. What’s The Difference?

There is a lot of confusion about the difference between setting redirects and canonicalization. Here’s the deal. What a 301 says to search engines. Hello, Mr. Search Engine. My page has has moved, permanently, to this other address. If you will please remove my old domain from your

No Business is too Small for Mobile

No matter how small your business is, you need to be on mobile. There are more mobile users these days than traditional desktop/laptop users, so the benefit is apparent. If your website is not mobile ready, you are at a distinct disadvantage. First, the user will probably have

Content Marketing Mistakes That Derail Your SEO

Don’t fall into the trap of content which won’t rank on search engines to go along with your sites top-flight graphics. All the effort and money poured into your website is for nothing if you don’t rank on a search engine. These are some common mistakes that can

Jquery Simple Fadeout

A cute little snippet to show a simple green bar upon a successful edit. <?php if(isset($_GET[‘edit’])){ ?> <div id=’notifyy’> Edited Successfully </div>     <script type=”text/javascript”>     $( ‘#notifyy’ ).show(function(){     $(this).fadeOut(5000);     });     </script> <?php } ?> The CSS: #notifyy{width:100%;background:#2f5001;padding:4px 15px;color:#fff;} Always,

Linking Your G+ Page To Your Website

We always get asked: Does anyone use G+? Yes. Is it worth it? Again, Yes. Using Google’s products would obviously help your standing with their search algorithm. We don’t know this to be technically true but it certainly seems so in our experience. The more you use and