Reduce the back-and-forth that’s slowing down your services

When a government service takes too long, our first instinct is often to blame the process.

Maybe we need to redesign the service. Maybe we need new software. Maybe we need more staff.

Sometimes those things are true.

But often the biggest delay is what happens when people submit incomplete or incorrect forms.

Look at your incomplete applications. Not just how many there are, but why they’re incomplete.

• What do staff most often ask people to fix?

• What fields get left blank, filled in wrong, or misunderstood?

Now look at the back-and-forth. Each round of corrections adds days, sometimes weeks. In some services, that exchange accounts for more time than the actual decision or processing. That waiting time is often where the biggest opportunity for improvement lives.

Most incomplete or incorrect applications share a few root causes:

• People didn’t understand what was being asked.

• They didn’t know what documents or information to gather before starting.

• The form used terms that mean something specific internally but not to the public.

None of these require new software to fix.

Once you identify incomplete applications, look for patterns.

• What information is most frequently missing?

• What questions are commonly misunderstood?

• What documents do people forget to include?

• Which form fields do people make the most mistakes on?

• What errors cause staff to stop processing an application and request clarification?

Every correction request creates work. The goal is not to catch mistakes. It’s to prevent them.

Good content helps people submit complete and accurate applications the first time.

That might mean:

• Explaining requirements in plain language.

• Showing examples of acceptable documents.

• Providing checklists before someone starts.

• Breaking complex applications into smaller steps.

• Using field-level guidance directly on forms.

A simple example: instead of asking for “proof of residency,” list exactly what documents are accepted.

The fewer assumptions you make, the fewer mistakes people make.

When content isn’t working, the temptation is to add more of it, like a how-to video, a detailed PDF, a comprehensive FAQ. These feel thorough, but they often make the problem worse.

Videos can be hard to follow when you’re trying to track steps and do them at the same time. PDFs often pack in so much that people don’t know where to start. FAQ pages are notoriously hard to organize in a way that helps anyone find what they need. A poorly executed video or PDF can create more confusion than it resolves.

Before reaching for any of these, ask whether the problem can be solved with better words in the right place. A single clear sentence at the top of a form field often does more than a 3-minute video linked from the bottom of the page.

Even with great instructions, some applications will still need corrections.

When you request more information, be specific about what’s missing and how to fix it. Instead of “Your application is incomplete,” try: “We need your contractor’s license number. You can find it on your contractor’s invoice or on the State License Board website.” The faster people understand the problem, the faster they can resolve it.

Not every applicant fits the standard process. Delays happen when someone has an unusual situation the instructions don’t cover.

If edge cases are common enough to document, consider a subpage tailored to this audience rather than adding more content to the main page. Keeping the primary page focused helps most people move through it quickly without getting lost in scenarios that don’t apply to them.

But not every edge case belongs in written guidance. Some situations are too dependent on individual circumstances to resolve with a help article. That’s exactly what staff are for. Make it easy for people to recognize when their situation needs a human to help and make it easy to reach one.

An action page helps people get a service or complete a task. It gives people context before they act, reducing errors later on.

The structure does the work for you.

• Need to know: the cost, time required, and key eligibility criteria

• Before you start: what to gather, confirm, or complete before beginning

These 2 sections alone answer the questions that most often drive back-and-forth.

Steps walks the person through the process one action at a time, in plain language, in the right order. Each step is a discrete thing to do, with the information they need to get it done.

What’s next tells people what happens after they submit, like expected timeframes, what the agency will do, and when they’ll hear back. This reduces calls and emails from people who submitted correctly but have no idea what to expect.

Get help provides a human to contact so when someone does get stuck, they know exactly where to go.

Related links connect the page to other pages they may need like a fee schedule, a supporting application, an eligibility guide.

When a service has a high incomplete application rate, check if it has an action page and whether that page has done its job. A well-built action page gives people what they need to succeed. This means fewer errors coming in and less problems for staff to resolve.

When a service runs slowly or generates complaints, the instinct is to look at systems, staffing, or processes. Content is often overlooked.

Content helps people understand requirements, provide the right information, and navigate the process successfully.

When content is clear, applications arrive in better shape, staff spend less time on rework, and people get outcomes faster.

Good content won’t fix a broken process or bad software. But before you invest in redesigning a process or buying new technology, take a closer look at your content. Clear, useful content may be the thing that makes your service faster.