Last week, GobiernoUSA.gov, the official portal of the US Government in Spanish, unveiled a new site design with new and improved features. The new design is based on user testing, usability best practices, and feedback gathered from a public dialog called “Your Voice Matters”. The redesigned GobiernoUSA.gov makes an already valuable resource for the Hispanic online community even better.

What’s new

Look & Feel – The new design is strikingly simple. Online Hispanics can now navigate a wealth of official Spanish language government information through an intuitive and elegant interface designed to help visitors find the information they need most.

Enhanced Search – Users can search for official Spanish language government information with GobiernoUSA.gov’s new search engine that is up to 9 times faster the previous version. The 5 most popular daily search terms are displayed on the GobiernoUSA.gov home page.

Original Timely Content – Up-to-date content is now front and center, with clear home page links to timely government resources on most sought after information and GobiernoUSA.gov’s original Spanish-language articles. It’s now easier for Spanish speakers to find GobiernoUSA.gov’s plain-language easy-to-understand stories on timely and relevant topics such as the features of the new green card, what to expect from an airport security screening, or summer safety tips.

Useful Tools – The new “Útil y rápido” (Useful and quick) section of the site gathers links of the government’s most compelling and useful Spanish language tools on one easy to navigate page. Visitors are one click away from checking their social security balance, calculating credit card debt, and evaluating their health.

Social Media Channels – Spanish preferring users can now easily engage with GobiernoUSA.gov through Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, RSS and a widget all accessible from the “Connect with Government” bar on the bottom of each page.

What’s to come

Continuous User Testing – While this is a huge leap forward, GobiernoUSA.gov is now poised to keep getting better. By emphasizing search and making it easier for users to find what they are looking for, GobiernoUSA.gov is gathering data that will enable it to provide better services to the Hispanic community in the future.

Challenges, Dialogs, Contests – Just as user dialogs played a huge part in this redesign, GobiernoUSA.gov will continue to collaborate with the Hispanic community through challenges, dialogs, and contests to guide future improvements and services.

Mobile Apps – GobiernoUSA.gov’s English language sister site, USA.gov, has received a lot of attention for its mobile app store, highlighting mobile friendly services from different government agencies and programs. There are currently very few government mobile apps in Spanish, but we expect that to change soon, especially given the recent Pew report demonstrating that Hispanics are significantly more likely to access the Internet from mobile phones.

An extremely valuable resource for the Hispanic community

If you’re not already familiar with GobiernoUSA.gov, now is a great time to check it out. The GobiernoUSA.gov team is dedicated to connecting with the Hispanic community through a strong cultural perspective. We’re convinced that there is no better resource for Spanish preferring Hispanics seeking to interact with the government.