A Less Taxing Site

Background

The Louisiana Department of Revenue (LDR) is dedicated to fairly and efficiently administering Louisiana’s tax laws to help people be compliant while getting exceptional customer service. They’re committed to fostering public trust, enhancing economic growth, and maximizing revenue collection so essential services can benefit all citizens of Louisiana. Part of their work for Louisiana means providing a front door for people to get tax information, such as where to pay and where to find their refunds.

Problem

LDR's existing website created barriers for both the public and its own staff. The site was not compliant with Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), exposing the department to legal risk and failing users who rely on assistive technologies. Content updates required staff to submit service tickets and wait on outside intervention. The site's structure also made it difficult for visitors to find what they needed quickly, which matters when the majority of users arrive on mobile devices with a specific task in mind.

Solution

OTS began with research: reviewing how the IRS and comparable state revenue departments structured their sites, then auditing LDR’s existing site to identify gaps. The findings shaped a reorganized site architecture built around the needs of four distinct user groups: individuals, businesses, tax professionals, and general needs.

From there, OTS redesigned the site visually in alignment with a new LDR brand identity. Rather than optimizing for engagement, the new design prioritizes task completion which means sending users to what they need with as few steps as possible. Analytics data informed a system of prominent task links that LDR staff can adjust to reflect seasonal trends or shifting user priorities.

On the technical side, the site was rebuilt as a content-managed, flat-file system. This architecture delivers fast load times for a predominantly mobile user base as over 83% of visitors depending on the time of day, while giving designated LDR employees the ability to update content directly and on demand. A preview-and-approval workflow ensures quality control before any changes go live.

Outcome

LDR’s own subject matter experts now update and edit their own content as soon as they need to and don’t have to wait to create service tickets. Site visitors can more easily find content based on their relationship to LDR as an individual, business, or tax professional. Prominent links guide users to the most important or frequently-accessed functions of the site.