U.S. Bureau of the Census

10/15/2024 | Press release | Archived content

A Census Bureau Survey Landing Page Website Metric Summary

In preparation for the 2030 U.S. Census, the Census Bureau is conducting a series of small experimental studies to improve self-response rates, data quality, and the respondent experience with the census data collection operation. In the Spring of 2023, the first study, the 2023 Census Test, was fielded. Roughly 15,000 sample addresses were sent up to four mailings that included a link to the 2023 Census Test landing page on the Census website and an individualized code to enter the survey instrument. On the landing page, individuals could read about the test, see answers to frequently asked questions, or press an English or Spanish "Respond Now" button to enter the survey login page. This report provides a summary of the landing page usage from February to April 2023, including devices and referral methods by which individuals arrived, and rates at which they navigated from the landing page to the survey instrument. Some of the results were as expected, with landing page hits generally mapping to the estimated mail delivery dates and many of those proceeding forward to access and complete the survey. Those who completed the survey tended to arrive by the expected method of typing or bookmarking the Census Test link that appeared on the mailings, and they predominantly arrived on a desktop or laptop. A more surprising result was the quantity of hits to the landing page (roughly 60%) that never resulted in trying to access the survey, which primarily occurred in visitors arriving via search engines on mobile devices. This pattern occurred throughout the operation, but especially later in the field period; it was unexpected, given that there was no communications campaign associated with this Census Test. It is unclear what motivated these landing page hits or whether these individuals were in sample. This finding suggests that even without an overt communication campaign, information is likely to spread about a web-based Census test and that landing pages are likely to be accessed by individuals not in sample.