To me, digital community engagement is like most relationships. It involves two-way communication, interaction and transactions between two entities - in this case, a government and its citizens. And like most relationships, the first step is to make yourself accessible to the other party. 

We love it when our clients take our goal of helping communities engage and interact online and run with it.  

It's even better when our clients get noticed for the work that they do to engage their communities using the tools in our Government Content Management System (GCMS). 

According to a recent study released by the Monmouth University Polling Institute and Graduate Program in Public Policy, the website for Cherry Hill Township, N.J., ranks first in the entire state - of out 540 municipal websites - for providing citizen interaction online.

Of the many uses of the CivicPlus Government Content Management System (GCMS), sometimes it's the little things that can make the biggest difference.

Through the course of helping more than 1,300 communities and government organizations across the globe enhance their online communications and digital interactions with their citizen users, CivicPlus has picked up on - and also helped create - a few best practices here and there.

CivicPlus is hitting the road! We'll be coming to a city near you, so we'd love to connect. 

It's finished! I’ve been working for hours on the latest email newsletter, and it is finally done. I happily send it on its way and breathe a sigh of relief as I check that task off of my to-do list. Unfortunately, frustration sets in all too quickly as I view open and click-through rates. I’m left asking “Why aren’t people reading this?” or “How come no one is clicking on links to additional information?”.

According to the CivicPlus Digital Citizen Survey, around 50 percent of citizens use a mobile device to access their local government website. Only 29 percent of governments websites are optimized for mobile devices per CivicPlus Digital Community Engagement Assessment.

My grandma lives in Ansley, Neb., a small town with a population around 500. Like lots of small towns across the United States, Ansley is fighting to keep its post office open.

The topic of responsive website design has recently been championed as the "next big thing" in website design. It's the snazzy, brightly colored, shiny object in the room catching everyone's digital eye.

Coca-Cola. McDonald's. Nike. 

These are more than just words. And these words are more than just brand names. When you read them, you are reminded of a taste, an emotion, an image. 

If you see these brand logos, they are easily recognized and evoke those same feelings that come with hearing the brand names.

Government brands are no different.