Understanding govDelivery

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Digital Resources
govDelivery
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Purpose of govDelivery

govDelivery is like a communication hub in the cloud that helps government groups talk to citizens in different ways. It's a service that automatically sends information using:

  • Email: Send newsletters, updates, and announcements right to people's email boxes.
  • Text Messages: Send quick messages to phones.
  • RSS Feeds: Let people subscribe to updates using special news readers.
  • Social Media: Share information on places like Facebook and Twitter.
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govDelivery's Main goals are to

  • Get Citizens Involved: Make it easy for Iowans to stay up-to-date on government programs, events, and important news.
  • Make Programs Known: Help more people learn about your agency's programs and services.
  • Make Communication Easier: Give you one place to manage and send out information in different ways.

govDelivery makes it simple for people to get updates from your agency how they want – by email or text. Because it's part of the Communications Cloud, state information can also be shared by local and federal government groups, reaching even more people. The Communications Cloud also lets Iowans manage all their government subscriptions in one spot, so it's easy to find and sign up for updates from different state agencies. 

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When to Use govDelivery

govDelivery is a helpful tool for lots of different communication needs. 

Here are some good times to use it:

  • Sending Newsletters: Use ready-made newsletter designs to regularly share updates, news, and helpful information with people who subscribe. This is a great way to keep people in the loop.
  • Sending Press Releases: Quickly send out press releases to news places and interested people. This makes sure important announcements get out fast.
  • Promoting Events: Tell people about upcoming events, workshops, and meetings to get more people to come. govDelivery can send reminders too.
  • Sending Emergency Alerts: Send important alerts and notifications about emergencies, closures, or other urgent situations. Text messages work really well for this.
  • Sharing Program Updates: Tell people about changes to programs, services, or rules. This keeps everyone informed.
  • Sending Targeted Messages: Send special messages to different groups of people based on what they like or where they live. This makes the messages more interesting to them.  
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Benefits of Using govDelivery

Using govDelivery helps government agencies talk to Iowans better, get more people involved, and spread the word about important programs and services.

  • How it Helps Iowans: The Communications Cloud lets Iowans manage all their subscriptions in one place and find new ways to get updates from the State.
  • How it Helps Agencies: govDelivery gives you information about what topics and messages work best. It helps you send personalized messages, get more people to events, and get better feedback. The Communications Cloud also cleans up email lists and handles bounced emails, which saves your staff time.
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A/B Testing with Communications Cloud

Do you want to improve your open rate on messages? You can improve your open rate with the right subject title for your message. For example, instead of  “Board Meeting Agenda?” would more people open the message if the subject was “Continuing Education Revisions on the Agenda for May Board Meeting?” To find out which subject has a better open rate you can leverage A/B testing. 

Follow the instructions for how to send two messages with different subjects to a small sampling of subscribers. After sending the messages to your sampling check the sent report to see which message had a better open rate and then send that message to your remaining subscribers. Testing even a hundred or so interactions can quickly determine what’s working and what’s not working.

Simple A/B testing is available with our existing licensing for the govDelivery Communications Cloud. Granicus also offers additional licensing options for more robust A/B testing if you need more options.

Remember Granicus support is available from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. by calling 800-314-0147. If you have questions about the A/B testing instructions just give them a call!

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Administrator Instructions

DOM DoIT created govDelivery Administrator Instructions which provides information on how to create a bulletin, add topics, and access support and training.

For immediate assistance call govDelivery Support or use govDelivery chat.  Phone 800-314-0147 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.  Press 1 for Support and then 3 for Communications Cloud.

New Administrators may want to review these resources:

a.       govDelivery support articles

b.       ServiceNow links to govDelivery Resources

c.       Knowledge Center videos

d.       AdministratorTraining

The most important link is for login to govDelivery - https://admin.govdelivery.com

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govDelivery Support and Training Resources

govDelivery Phone support - Available from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. by calling 800-314-0147. Select Communications Cloud and govDelivery from the prompts.

govDelivery Online Support - Submit a Support Request or Chat

Search govDelivery Support Articles

Training

Register for upcoming Advanced Bulletin training sessions from govDelivery. 

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