I’ve gotten pretty good results with “Could you provide some more details about the problem you experienced?” That’s my typical canned response for no-info URs; I type it out once per session and copy-paste.
I do agree that “could you provide more details?” is a much better thing to hear than “your report is incomplete”. Asking politely insinuates that we do, indeed, need more details, but not that it’s any fault of the reporter’s.
I don’t find that it’s necessary to point out that we’re volunteers, although it’s come up in comment threads before. The reports are sent with usernames and ranks, after all. I don’t mind it if you want to do it, but I don’t think I’ll personally use up any space on it.
The one thing I really like from this thread is the inclusion of the location of the report, in a more human and useful way. Yes, Waze says “New comment on your report on to I-10 W / Baton Rouge” but that’s not entirely helpful. Something like “Could you provide some more details about the problem you experienced on the I-10 W onramp from southbound Causeway?” or “. . . on I-610 E near the Franklin exit?” or “. . . on Camp near Calliope?” or “. . . on Poydras near the Superdome?” could help refresh the reporter’s memory considerably. Not even a properly-working map could do that.
A trick I used with canned responses. I have a .txt file saved with them all in it. I copy-paste out of that. So they really are pretty ‘canned.’
I do the same thing in video games and people think I’m a bot because I ‘type so fast’, lol. But you get to the point where you’re tired of typing the same thing over and over.
I’ll be including locations in first responses from now on.
Text expanders can be helpful too. OS X has one built in since some recent version, iOS too. I only have one Waze-specific one, in iOS (“Reported by sketch. DO NOT CLOSE this UR! Contact sketch via forum PM if you have any questions.”), so far, but I have a few on my Mac for other things. I may look at adding some. I find it’s helpful to start the codes with “xx” because it’s easy to type and very seldom the start of a word you’ll actually want to type—so “xxur” might expand to a general canned UR response, for example.
If I understand correctly, which it’s quite likely I don’t, but I thought if you closed it as not identified they don’t get points and they only get points if you close it as solved?
Ouch. I am in favor of brevity - especially if the reporters are reading/respond from their phone. Seems like even in closing reports in 7 days with a cryptic response is unsettling to reporters unaware of the role the volunteer editing community serves. I am not advocating leaving reports open longer than a week - goodness knows how cluttered high traffic density areas get with pending (and now even the closed ones for a bit longer). Somehow there is a delicate balance between brief and a perception of “rude”. Towards that end, I’m considering a response something like:
The volunteer editing community feels that closing a report after week was sufficient time for a response since important report details may have been forgotten. Thanks for your feedback, but we were unable to take further action.
Of course I would never take the time to type this so it would have to copy/paste all the way.
Perhaps that should be changed, to encourage those who report UR’s to respond to our requests for more info when they leave them blank. Only when a UR is marked solved do they get the points. It’d a win-win, we fixed a map problem and they get the points.
Check your data MGODLEW they get the points when they make the report, regardless of what or even when we get to their UR. As Orbitc stated two posts before yours.
This is precisely why I start out my initial contact with a reporter with the line:
“Hi, volunteer map editor here! :-)” (And then go on from there.)
Keeps it friendly, and informs the reporter that it’s not MY “job,” either.
This isn’t directed at you so much as to those who have said things like “That adds too much clutter/too many words,” “isn’t necessary for them to know,” etc., when I originally mentioned that I use that in my dialog with a reporter.
The initial greeting I send doesn’t even mention that there’s a time limit. After about 7 days, I’ll follow up with one additional message saying that if I don’t hear from them within 24 hours, I’ll have to close it as “Not Identified” and to please help us to help them by providing the requested information. Then, after more than 24 hours, I just close it if I haven’t heard from them.
I realize there are some editors who would allow a UR to just languish for a month or more, hoping that someone will eventually reply. I’m not one of them. But I try to keep the wording of those messages as friendly as possible. (And I’m sure there will always be a few reporters who will decide the wording is rude, anyway - you can’t please everyone.)
I used to use an even shorter one: Details, please?
Worked pretty well, but at the request of another editor,I made it a little friendlier. Very similar to Dave’s, but minus the word “volunteer.” I’m considering adding that in.
After the intro, I have in most cases a short, one-line request for information, which varies on the report type, additional driver verbiage, and the tracings Waze (hopefully) includes. It doe snot set a time limit. Once a week or so, I go through everything over a week old, and give th following canned response:
Hi, again! I’m still willing to help if you’re interested, otherwise, can we close this case? Let me know your intentions in the next day or so, please.
Next I see it and it is is 4 days or more without a response, and it gets canned. i would say my typical nonresponsive case is closed in 14-15 days.
If I see another editor’s case lounging around, I have a variation to tickle both the editor and the driver without appearing to muscle in:
Hello, again, driver! Map editors are still willing to help if you’re interested, otherwise, can we close this case? Let us know your intentions in the next day or so, please.
That’s a good idea, and is in keeping with the recommendations in the Wiki. Out of curiosity, if a response doesn’t come from the driver (or either of them) after a couple of days, do you then close it? As of my last reading of that part of the Wiki, that would be the proper course of action. I’m just curious as to how you handle it.
Yes, I close it if I don’t see an answer after about a week in this case. I give it more leeway, because I want the other editor to have the opportunity to either 1) chime in, or 2) close it directly.
Pennsylvania has a different approach. They have a standard to ask in-depth questions on the first try, to eliminate multiple rounds of conversation. I’ve tried it, and it has elicited a smaller response ratio. I personally think it just makes the reporter more likely to abandon ship, but their mileage may vary from mine. Keep it short and engaging. Once the driver is engaged, they often respond to additional requests. Or maybe they just need friendlier wording. Who knows?
I’ve seen editors ask for more clarification within a couple of days, which is fine. After about a week, they’ll say something to the lines of “still looking for a response, if no response, this will close in 7 days.” Why? Why are we waiting for TWO WEEKS to close out a UR if they haven’t responded?
It takes me about two weeks, but I don’t advertise that they have 7 more days. Here’s my typical sequence, which I have worked out with the regional coordinator:
Find unhandled report. If over two weeks old and nothing beyond general error (i.e., can’t easily be fixed without conversation), just NI it to oblivion. Well, near oblivion in the new WME
Open conversation - this is “day 1”
Respond when e-mail notification comes in, if that happens. If not, ignore it for a week.
If I come across it unresponded and it has been a week, give a one day warning. This usually happens between day 8 and day 10
If I come across it more than 3-4 days later with no response, NI it. Given my weekly cycle for scans, this usually occurs 4 to 7 days after the warning, so it is between 12 and 17 days, or 14-15 days on average form my first response.
In reality, my one day notice is a four+ day notice, because, well, because. We can discuss that if you like. Someone giving 7 days is 1) being slightly more generous, and 2) hopefully sticking to that 7 days and not giving leeway beyond it. If that’s the case, we’re only quibbling about 3 more absolute days than the scenario I gave, and possibly the same amount of time in reality.
But I try to keep the wording of those messages as friendly as possible. (And I’m sure there will always be a few reporters who will decide the wording is rude, anyway - you can’t please everyone.)