With another hot summer on the way, you’re likely to get bombarded with questions about backyard swimming pools. There are a number of forms and permits the town will require before a citizen can even start building a swimming pool, but he may not know what they are—or where to find them. He goes to the town’s online Code section about pools, prepared to do some digging, and there he sees it: a note attached by the town clerk who has included links to the exact forms he needs. The citizen thinks to himself, how easy was that?
Adding public notes in eCode360 is the perfect way to delight constituents—and make life easier for municipal staff. An electronic note posted to a section of your Code can lead constituents directly to the information they’re looking for—and even information they didn’t know they needed. Municipal staff benefit, too, because Notes answer many of the phone calls and emails they normally would have to field for commonly asked questions about the Code.
So how do you improve your “note ability?” Try these ideas from our clients:
Help your citizens with links to forms or applications
The Notes feature allows municipalities to post custom links in their online Code that will take users directly to the information they need whether it be a permit, application, or other form. It’s a great way for clerks to free up their time—and a great way for citizens to find paperwork they need without back and forth phone calls or trips to their Town Hall. Here are examples of the types of notes a citizen might find:
Add helpful information for clarification
Notes can also be used to provide clarification or additional information about a section of your Code. Here’s a great example:
Use group notes to alert staff of proposed changes to a specific Code section
Your Code is continually evolving. With Notes, you can give users with passwords a “heads up” anytime a change is proposed to a particular section of your Code. You can also point out relevant information for clarity, or even information to help your staff understand why a part of the Code was changed to preserve history.
Public Notes are visible to everyone but can only be created by Admin users with passwords.
Group Notes are visible to, and can be created by, municipal staff with passwords.
Private Notes are visible only to you when you have logged in using your password.
Municipal staff: Login to eCode360 to unlock your ability to add notes. If you do not have a password yet, request one here.
