FTC Request re: Feedback for Business Center website

Request for Approval under the “Generic Clearance for the Collection of Routine Customer Feedback” (OMB Control Number: 3084-0159)

TITLE OF INFORMATION COLLECTION: Feedback Sessions for Business Center Site

PURPOSE:

The FTC is requesting feedback on the design of the Business Center website (business.ftc.gov). Feedback would include an analysis of navigation, presentation, and content.

Participants will be interviewed and asked to interact with the current design of the site. Their feedback will be used to evaluate possible improvements to the site.

DESCRIPTION OF RESPONDENTS:

This site is a comprehensive resource to help businesses comply with FTC rules and regulations. The site includes plain language guidance, legal documents, and case information. Its primary target audience is composed of business owners and attorneys. Respondents will be representative of target audience.

TYPE OF COLLECTION: (Check one)

[ ] Customer Comment Card/Complaint Form [ ] Customer Satisfaction Survey

[x] Usability Testing (e.g., Website or Software [ ] Small Discussion Group

[ ] Focus Group [ ] Other: ______________________

CERTIFICATION:

I certify the following to be true:

1. The collection is voluntary.

2. The collection is low-burden for respondents and low-cost for the Federal Government.

3. The collection is non-controversial and does not raise issues of concern to other federal agencies.

4. The results are not intended to be disseminated to the public.

5. Information gathered will not be used for the purpose of substantially informing influential policy decisions.

6. The collection is targeted to the solicitation of opinions from respondents who have experience with the program or may have experience with the program in the future.

Name: Nicole Vincent

To assist review, please provide answers to the following question:

Personally Identifiable Information:

1. Is personally identifiable information (PII) collected? [ ] Yes [x] No

2. If Yes, is the information that will be collected included in records that are subject to the Privacy Act of 1974? [ ] Yes [ ] No

3. If Applicable, has a System or Records Notice been published? [ ] Yes [ ] No [x] N/A

Gifts or Payments:

Is an incentive (e.g., money or reimbursement of expenses, token of appreciation) provided to participants? [x] Yes [ ] No

There will be a $100 incentive. There will be an out-of-pocket cost to the respondent (i.e. transportation cost to site, taking time off work, etc.). In addition, other organizations pay respondents for these types of studies.

BURDEN HOURS

Category of Respondent	No. of Respondents	Participation Time	Burden
Individuals	12	90 minutes	18 hours
Totals	12		18 hours

FEDERAL COST: The estimated annual cost to the Federal government is $31,000.

If you are conducting a focus group, survey, or plan to employ statistical methods, please provide answers to the following questions:

The selection of your targeted respondents

1. Do you have a customer list or something similar that defines the universe of potential respondents and do you have a sampling plan for selecting from this universe? [ ] Yes [x] No

If the answer is yes, please provide a description of both below (or attach the sampling plan)? If the answer is no, please provide a description of how you plan to identify your potential group of respondents and how you will select them?

The target audience for the FTC Business Center website is composed of business owners and attorneys. The sample will be composed of an equal number of participants in each group.

Potential candidates will be pulled from a database of willing participants who have opted to participate in this type of study. Participants can opt into the database by filling out a form on a recruiting website. Candidates will be screened by phone and asked if they are willing to participate in a session approximately one hour long (the estimate above of 90 minutes factors in an extra 10 - 15 minutes for the screening process, and is rounded conservatively upward). The session could be either (a) in person at a facility in downtown DC or (b) remotely through the web and phone.

The sessions will not ask for any personally identifiable information, and responses will be stored anonymously.

Administration of the Instrument

1. How will you collect the information? (Check all that apply)

[x] Web-based or other forms of Social Media

[x] Telephone

[x] In-person

[ ] Mail

[ ] Other, Explain

2. Will interviewers or facilitators be used? [x] Yes [ ] No

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