DES MOINES, IOWA — Wednesday, April 15, 2020 — The City of Des Moines and partner Revize Software Systems received Gold recognition for the City’s new website from a panel of international judges as part of the 18th annual Horizon Interactive Awards. City staff worked closely with Revize to launch DSM.city on April 15, 2019, one year ago today.
“This award not only validates the team's accomplishments of redesign and modernization but also honors their collaboration and motivation to deliver a better product for the residents of Des Moines,” said Anna Whipple, Chief Information Officer for the City of Des Moines.
Before launching last year, the City’s website had not received a major upgrade in nearly a decade. Since then, the new and improved website has seen nearly 650,000 users over the past year. Design goals for the new website included:
- Resident-focused navigation to help residents quickly access the city information and services they're looking for
- Clear language to help make online City information easier to understand
- Improved search functionality powered by Google
- Mobile-friendly responsive design to help ensure the website is accessible on devices of all sizes
- Automatic language translations in more than 100 languages to better serve residents of all dialects
Government website design awards such as the Horizon Interactive Awards is a prestigious international competition recognizing the “best of the best” of interactive media, including websites, videos, mobile applications, advertising and more. The 2019 competition saw nearly 800 entries from 19 countries, judged by an international, volunteer panel of industry professionals.
Judges looked for the best blend between creativity, content and functionality. Each entry was judged on the following:
- Solution creativity and originality
- Overall graphic design / appearance / user experience
- Communication of message
- Technical merit
- Effectiveness of solution
The City of Des Moines’ website received Gold recognition in the “Government” category of the government website design awards, and “Best of Category” recognition in the “Towns & Municipalities” website category.
“The project was a collaboration between Revize, who understood our vision and had the technical expertise to make it happen, and more than 50 City staff, who reworked pages after pages of content to assure that we met the goals of delivering clear, current and accurate information,” said MaryLee Woods, Deputy Chief Information Officer for the City.
Visit DSM.city to explore the City’s award-winning new website.
CONTACT
Al Setka
Communications Manager, City Manager’s Office
(515) 283-4057
AMSetka@dmgov.org
About the City of Des Moines
The City of Des Moines: Iowa’s capital city and local government servicing more than 217,000 residents, 51+ neighborhoods, over 4,000 acres of parkland and 81 miles of trails. The City of Des Moines stands to be a financially strong city with exceptional city services, fostering an involved community in a customer friendly atmosphere. Visit DSM.city, Facebook and Twitter for more information.