Design a better experience for users when scrapers are broken and they are not receiving alerts

[katska]

Background When people don't receive alerts due to a scraper issue with a planning authority, Planning Alerts coverage page currently labels it as "possibly broken."

They might use the contact form option "I've stopped receiving alerts" to let us know about this.

Idea We need to improve communication by:

• Clarifying the Issue: Use simpler language instead of "scraper is broken" to explain the situation to people.
• Provide Self-service Solutions: Instead of only addressing concerns via email, we can also direct users to resources where they can find the information they need on their own.

I'll refine content based on how these emails are received, follow up interactions etc.
This will help shape:

• An email response template,
• Proactive emails for alert issues,
• Planning Alerts help centre and/or contextual help content if needed.

This github issue will serve as a platform to document email responses as I answer people's questions in this circumstance, and gather feedback to ensure the content aligns with people's needs within Planning Alerts design aims and service principles.

[katska]

Here's a couple of recent replies (one is a multiple part email condensed into one response, the second time I preemptively added the council info). So as someone here to help, instead of broken scraper, I'm simply saying there's an outage, and I really want to help people find current information we can't provide right now.

_I'm sorry there is an outage. Unfortunately we're not currently able to bring you updates in Randwick at the moment. We'll be back on line just as soon as possible, however I can't say when that will be right now.

There have been quite a few changes that have affected multiple sources of planning information. Until we can get them back on track - head over to https://www.randwick.nsw.gov.au/planning-and-building/search-das-development-applications

and once you accept their terms and conditions, you'll get to a page where you can pick what you want to see, including DAs on Exhibition.

I hope that helps in the meantime!_

The next response below I explain that there's a technical problem, but without saying much more. It's unsatisfying to say too much unless I already know the nature of the problem, which I might if it's been going on for a while or someone else just wrote in and I had time to look it up. Looking to see what's wrong is better done as much as possible in a separate chunk of work, because troubleshooting scrapers can be quite rabbit-holey, and may result in my not responding. So I prefer to only take a quick look. Also I don't know if it matters to the person we're writing to or it's too much information. I might gauge how much to say by the way the person writes who is asking. So adjusting tone and content is not something we can easily do if we're broadcasting to everyone who would receive an alert normally, rather than responding to an individual email.

_Sadly we're not currently able to bring you information from Sutherland Shire at the moment because of a technical difficulty with it. We're working to track down the bug but until then you can go to the council website and look at the development applications recently submitted from the menu on the top right corner of the page

https://propertydevelopment.ssc.nsw.gov.au/T1PRPROD/WebApps/eproperty/P1/eTrack/eTrackApplicationSearch.aspx?Group=DA&ResultsFunction=SSC.P1.ETR.RESULT.DA&r=SSC.P1.WEBGUEST&f=SSC.P1.ETR.SEARCH.DA

Screenshot 2023-08-09 at 11.49.11 am.png In the meantime, thanks for your patience! Kind regards, Kat_

[katska]

A single email that also works as a preemptive status notice when we find out the feed is unavailable could read:

_Subject: Updates for [your area]: Temporary Outage

Dear [Name],

Thank you for reaching out. We're currently facing an outage, which means updates for [your area] aren't available at Planning Alerts right now. We're actively working to fix this but don't have a restoration date yet.

Until [your area] is restored - head over to council website. *After agreeing to their terms, you'll land on a page where you can select the data you want, including DAs on Exhibition. See the attached screenshot for guidance.

We appreciate your patience and understanding._

Kind regards, [Sender Name] Planning Alerts

We might also note how frequently we'll send updates to remind people they need to look themselves by following a link. I'm keen to hear what others think.

[katska]

As you can see, I've started directing people to the council website directly in individual emails, in each case ensuring the URL works. But if we automate this:

1. The current URL might not always work.
2. Simply providing my current wording isn't useful if the link is broken.

However, I'm leaning towards offering the URL since we already have it. We could perhaps present it as a request for help to check the current link and in finding an updated link if it's broken because the information has moved. Thoughts?

[katska]

I find screenshots have a calming influence on me when receiving instructions from others and I try to include them as much as possible in emails now. I can locate myself easily rather than scanning around a website not ever entirely sure if I'm in the right place. I think it also acts as opening up visual language, encouraging an expectation of sharing screen information. So if someone is having a problem and they have been sent screenshots themselves, they may be more likely to send them when reporting errors themselves. It's an educated guess based on my experience of giving and receiving help.

[katska]

I like how short the Sutherland response is, and felt there was still room for improvement. I asked chat GPT 4 for help: resulting in: "We're facing a technical issue with information from Sutherland Shire. We're fixing it. Meanwhile, visit the council website and check recent development applications from the top right menu."

and then prompted with: Lovely, could you try adding an accent of casual language, I'd like to feel more empathic and encouraging. An example might be changing "we're fixing it" to "We're onto it!" Maybe you have other suggestions. A couple of options could be good too! I want to keep the language a bit casual

and out came two options, I like them both- Here are a couple of options with a touch of casual language:

"Oops! We've hit a little snag with info from Sutherland Shire. Don't worry, we're onto it! In the meantime, pop over to the council website and peek at the recent development applications in the top right menu."

"Hey there! We've got a small hiccup with the Sutherland Shire updates. But hey, we're on the case! While we sort things out, you can swing by the council website and check out the recent development apps from the top right corner."

Is there a way to have a basic 'it's not working' email which we could override with a more detailed one, an editable 'it's not working' email template for each council would be needed for that to be scalable.

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[katska]

Noting I've written a few more of these emails, and I have more to add to this issue. One email is for when there's a problem and we don't know what it is yet. Another is for when the council is actively blocking scrapers. Can they help by getting in touch with the council? I've examples of both of these. Leaving this issue assigned to me to review and point to any potentially useful content Another is to the council, asking them if something has changed. (which we don't do by default but could be a good point of connection if we establish other ongoing communication with them).

[katska]

@JoannaHill I have nothing to add to this without feedback or context of where this might be included.