Overview

GC Notify is a free, cloud-based platform tool that allows service teams to send email and text messages, either manually through the UI or automated through the API. Messages can be sent individually to a single recipient or in bulk to many recipients.

With an API that can be integrated to departments’ existing web applications or back-office systems, sending can be automated so that specific transactions trigger messages to be sent, such a message confirming that a submitted application was received or that an applicant's status has changed.

Forked from the UK’s Government Digital Service (GOV.UK Notify), GC Notify was modified for the Canadian context. This included adding a French interface, modifying email branding with the Government of Canada signature, and adding support for Canadian phone numbers and multiple time zones.

Vision

A simple tool to allow public servants and government services to send messages to their users, keeping users informed using the most suitable delivery methods.

Previous vision (until October 2021): Empower the Government of Canada to help people by providing timely, relevant updates to the public as they progress through a Government of Canada service or process.

Value Statements

• The government tool that helps you update the people using your service, every step of the way.
• GC Notify provides any Government of Canada department with the ability to send email or text notifications quickly, cheaply and with confidence through a simple GC developer platform tool using templates carrying the trusted GC branding.

Value proposition (why build it?)

What problems does GC Notify aim to solve?

• bilingual and usable.

Public who receive notifications get clarity into their transactions

• Know where they are in the entire process through a service
• Receive more consistent, relevant, and accessible information
• Have more certainty with clear next steps and set timeframe expectations

Public servants who send notifications save time, effort, and costs

• Skip lengthy procurement process to get email and SMS systems
• Streamline the process of sending updates by integrating it into a department’s existing system, deploying faster, and testing along the way
• Send accessible communications that will not be marked as spam as GC Notify has built a reputation as a trusted sender

The Government of Canada becomes more efficient and trusted

• Save time and money with one system that serves many departments’ services.
• Serve people better with more consistent and relevant communications.

Notes to integrate:

• The government can feel like a ‘Black box’ - People applying to government services are forced to live with a lot of unknowns while they wait to hear back from the government. Too often, they are left in the dark and the onus is on them to follow up for critical updates about their file or application.
• Helpdesk time is spent answering status questions - Government departments, in turn, dedicate time, energy, and costs to answering people’s questions regarding their programs and services. They receive a lot of calls and even Access to Information and Privacy (ATIP) requests from people trying to find certainty.
• Procurement takes time and money - procuring a comparable service from a third party takes time and costs a lot.
• Duplicate effort - the work to build, refine and maintain a service should not be repeated for every use case.
• User experience - It is challenging to meet the expectations and needs of all users (gov and public) for services to be accessible