SeeClickFix allows community members to report and track on non-emergency issues they see, notifying local municipalities when there’s a problem that needs to be fixed. SeeClickFix helps bring attention to the sorts of issues that local governments might not otherwise know about or pay attention to: potholes, graffiti, illegal dumping, and the like. By having a mechanism to flag these issues, SeeClickFix serves to empower citizens to track what’s going on in their neighborhood and provides a more efficient means by which governments can identify these issues.
The company was founded in 2009 and already has over 200,000 users reporting problems via its mobile apps and website. Now the company has added a Facebook application, giving users yet another way to report issues.
The Facebook app will tie directly to SeeClickFix’s reporting platform, giving users access to the site’s 140,000 registered public officials. “Facebook has proven to be a powerful platform for encouraging people to plant virtual trees and improve virtual neighborhoods,” says SeeClickFix CEO Ben Berkowitz, who argues that SeeClickFix will help bring some of that virtual care taking so popular via Facebook games like Farmville out into the real world.
To encourage that, the Facebook app features game mechanics that will help encourage activity and interaction. The app will award Civic Points for completing certain tasks, and eventually neighbors will be ranked based on their standing.
SeeClickFix says that over 40% of the reports that have been submitted via the mobile apps and websites have been marked as resolved. It seems likely that expanding the reach to Facebook will help add more visibility, and hopefully, more accountability.
