We pride ourselves on constantly seeking feedback from our clients and putting that feedback to use by continually improving our products and service. We were finding that our city clients were receiving reported issues in the comments sections of their Facebook posts. The problem with this is that there is no official process in place to address and resolve these issues. The posts and comments have to be moderated and the moderator would then have to turn these comments in to the proper channels and the citizen who commented would not know if the issue had been received or if anything was being done about it. The citizen would be left feeling frustrated and unheard. Government officials know that this is the worst thing a citizen can feel because if they are left to believe that what they care about doesn’t matter, it can lead to apathy. Citizens want to feel as if their issues matter, that they can make a difference, and that they are being heard.
Civic has heard. Now a city’s Facebook followers have the ability to report issues straight from a sidebar tab. The citizen provides their contact information and they are automatically updated via email as their issue progresses from initial report received to resolution.
Citizens were already able to submit issues from their mobile device through their city’s app or from their city’s website. City staff can report issues through the Staff App or through the web using either the Content Management System (CMS) or customizable web plug-in. Being able to submit issues through Facebook is just the newest way for citizens and cities to connect and communicate to work toward the mutual goal of a smarter, better place to live and work.
