Why You Need Better Self-service Tech for Your Government Agency

Investing in self-service technology provides a better customer experience for your citizens while also providing benefits to your organization’s operations.

The demand for self-service technology has always existed. However, the COVID-19 pandemic made self-service more of a necessity and less of an option for the public sector to develop tools for citizens to conduct business without having the need for in-person interaction.

Years later, we find ourselves in a culture of convenience where everyone expects government organizations to have systems they can access at their leisure. People no longer expect to have to make phone calls or go to an office to pay a bill or submit a request for a permit or license.

Self-service solutions give citizens a way to access resources and interact with their local government without ever having to leave their homes. It’s an approach to offer improved citizen engagement and customer experience.

While citizens benefit greatly, public sector agencies can also take advantage of implementing self-service solutions to update and refine operations.

In this article, we’ll explore key reasons why your organization should be leveraging the power of technology by investing in self-service solutions.

Improve Your Daily Operations

Manual processes and outdated technology cost time and money. Likewise, limited budgets and staffing shortages are constant challenges.

Government agencies need technology that is quick, efficient and able to maximize resources in the best way possible.

Self-service tools allow you to automate many manual processes such as filling out paper forms or making phone calls. Tools like online citizen portals streamline your operations. Users can check the status of their cases, view updates and make new requests, saving you time to focus on priority tasks.

The city of Bal Harbor, FL has experienced improved efficiencies with CentralSquare’s Community Development software that features self-service capabilities. Being a smaller municipality, their team has to balance the reality of limited staff while efficiently handling high customer service demands.

The customer portal feature simplifies and expedites their community development projects. Citizens can go through the entire process of a community development project and never need to interact with a customer service representative.

Whether you serve a small or large community, everyone is subject to a high level of citizen demands. By giving your community members these tools, you can improve business productivity and focus on enhancing your community services.

Real-time Accessibility in the Cloud

Disconnected systems limit your ability to serve your community efficiently.

If a citizen engages with your organization online, and later makes a call to your office to resolve an issue, you should be able to have immediate access to all the necessary information.

It’s not enough to just collect and store data – you need to be able to retrieve the information whenever and wherever.

A cloud-based solution does just that. It connects your siloed systems so that information is shared across all mediums and platforms.

Our cloud-based community development software keeps you connected to your data in real time. Field staff can access and file reports from their mobile devices, providing information that is readily accessible to your team and citizens.

Cost Savings

A study from the Harvard Business Review shows that the average cost of a live service interaction, whether phone, email, or live chat can range from $7-13 per interaction. The average cost for a citizen to complete a transaction on their own – mere pennies.

Self-service not only saves time and increases productivity, but it saves your organization’s finances. When customers are able to resolve issues and conduct transactions online, customer support costs decrease.

Lowering supported-related costs frees up the budget to make investments to enhance your operations and your ability to provide services to your community.

Get Started With CentralSquare

It is no secret that citizens have the expectation to be able to conduct business through digital means. Providing self-service solutions improve the citizen experience, but it also creates a way to scale your support team and increase efficiency.

Watch our webinar to learn more about how CentralSquare’s technology is empowering communities to run smarter and more effectively.