Building Better Business Services: What My Research Revealed About Communication in a Municipality

Cover Photo: Unsplash, Mika Wegelius

Municipal business services are largely similar across Finland. They typically include business advisory and coaching, assistance in finding premises and plots, guidance on permits and regulatory matters, networking opportunities, and support with recruitment and workforce needs. While the services themselves cannot be radically changed, the way they are communicated and presented can make a significant difference.

My MBA thesis explored how service design and user‑centred communication can help the City of Pargas create clearer and more accessible digital services. The findings show that even small improvements can strengthen trust, visibility, and collaboration between the city and its business community.

Defining the Thesis Topic and Research Problem

The thesis was commissioned by the City of Pargas as part of its website renewal in spring 2026. The city wanted to better understand its business audience to ensure that the new website would meet their needs. The timing was relevant: in the 2024 Municipal Business Barometer by Suomen Yrittäjät and Taloustutkimus, Pargas ranked lowest among municipalities of similar size in the region (Yrittäjät, 2025).

Early in the process, a brainstorming session with city representatives explored how Pargas could become a more attractive and business‑friendly municipality in the Turku region. The session revealed both ambition and a clear desire to improve. Some ideas reflected future aspirations, while others highlighted existing strengths. A recurring theme was the importance of a can‑do attitude and active engagement. Since municipalities operate within shared frameworks and regulations, standing out requires differentiation, not through services alone, but through attitude, visibility, and proactive collaboration.

Benchmarking of municipal, regional, and national business services further showed that while Pargas offers comparable services, its digital communication and website usability lag behind the best‑performing municipalities. The core services are similar, but the clarity, structure, and accessibility of information needed improvement.

A Solution Through a Service Design Approach

Traditionally, municipal communication has been shaped from an organisational perspective. A service design approach shifts the focus to the user and aims to anticipate their needs. In my thesis, surveys and interviews were used to gather insights from the users and create customer personas, journeys, and prototypes of a new business service webpage and newsletter.

The research showed that entrepreneurs’ needs extend far beyond a refreshed website. Their communication needs stem from the everyday challenges of running a business, and municipalities can either support or slow them down. For example, an entrepreneur planning an expansion needs clear, accessible information about required permits and processes. When information is scattered or difficult to find, it creates unnecessary friction.

The User Needs Explained

Business representatives highlighted the following as the most important factors in communication with the City of Pargas:

1. Clear and proactive communication
   The research showed that municipalities perceived as business‑friendl,y communicate their services through intuitive website structures, concise content, and clearly defined service paths.
2. Networking opportunities with other local businesses
   Networking was seen as the most important service, as the company representatives wanted to meet each other, but the current means were considered insufficient.
3. Inclusion of small businesses
   Small entrepreneurs felt overshadowed by larger companies, and non‑tourism sectors felt they were not receiving enough attention.
4. Personal contact and concrete support
   Companies would like more personal contact, sparring, and hands‑on support from the city.
5. Visually appealing and coherent content
   The prototypes demonstrated that clearer, visually coherent communication channels are both needed and appreciated.

These findings underline the importance of user‑centered communication and the potential impact of even small improvements.

Conclusion

The research emphasised openness, proactivity, and equality – principles also supported by national communication guidelines and legislation. Municipalities are required to inform residents, service users, organisations, and other stakeholders about their activities, finances, services, plans, and decision‑making processes. Communication must be clear, accessible, and understandable to different groups (Finlex, n.d.). Effective communication is, therefore, not only a legal obligation, but a strategic tool for strengthening a municipality’s vitality and attractiveness (Kuntaliitto, 2016).

Municipalities cannot control the channel through which users encounter them. My study showed that business representatives actively follow social media and newsletters, but in a small city like Pargas, in‑person meetings and networking opportunities are equally important.

Pargas provides valuable business services, but entrepreneurs struggle to find and understand them. This reduces the perceived attractiveness of the municipality. Instead of improving individual channels, the municipality should focus on creating a coherent, predictable service journey across all touchpoints. Business service communication should be treated as a holistic system, not a set of isolated actions.

Author

Jatta Palovuori is an Art Director and Service Designer based in Southwest Finland. Her work focuses on graphic and service design for companies.

The blog post has been reviewed by Novia's editorial board and accepted for publication on 4.6.2026.