Data engagement - improvements to in-app stats, detailed reporting, embeds, and exports #919

There are three broad levels at which we provide ways to use the data: the group level (i.e. individual repair groups); the network level (i.e. networks of repair groups); and the international level (i.e. across all groups in Restarters, used for comms or campaigning purposes).

We can also distinguish between what reporting is publicly available (e.g. available to anyone, whether using Restarters or not), versus what is ‘privately’ available to networks and groups using the platform.

There are various ways in which the data can be made useful for groups. These are:

• In-app stats

  • Stats and figures displayed directly in the application
  • Best for headline stats (e.g. total items, total fixed, etc)
  • Pros
    • More control over branding;
    • Provide a quick, at a glance overview of the stats
  • Cons
    • More time-consuming to create and maintain - have to be coded into the application
    • More effort to make dynamic (hover, filter, etc)

• Detailed reporting

  • Reports in Metabase
    • Best for more in-depth analysis
  • Pros
    • Very easy to create and maintain
    • Easy to add dynamic filtering
    • Can also be used as embeds
  • Cons
    • Less control over branding and layout

• Embeds

  • Simple ways for networks/groups etc to share the data on their own channels

• Downloads

  • Access to the raw data to download and use for groups/networks’ own purposes (e.g. analysis in spreadsheets, other data tools)

We currently have the best reporting functionality at the network level. Reporting at the group level is underserved. There is room for improvement at the international level, though some of this is already covered via the Open Repair Alliance.

Recommended changes

For groups

We will create the infrastructure for a new data reporting section for every group, easily accessible from within Restarters. This will give groups easy access to commonly requested analysis of their group data, helping them to see the utility of data collection.

This reporting section will be initially populated with two existing popular reports and will be easily extendable over time to any new reports of interest to groups, future proofing us to new requirements. We’ll make reports available in English and French, with other languages added on an ad-hoc basis if requested.

Existing reports:

• group highlights: items seen, items repaired, waste and CO2e diverted, number of events run, visitors, and volunteer shifts; repair outcomes; most common categories seen; events averages
• item records: searchable list of items seen at events for the group

New report:

• data quality: a report highlighting any data quality issues in the groups’ data

We will also tidy up the in-app stats on group pages - possibly removing the ‘device breakdown’ section in the process (or, if not, extending it to include unpowered).

For networks

We’ll ensure that each network has its own data reporting section (some currently do, but not all), and that this is more easily accessible from network pages.

We’ll make the item records and event records available as standard to all networks (these are currently only available to some networks).

We’ll review and collate the list of existing bespoke reports created for various networks, and share this with all networks, to consider if any networks would like access to reports that they don’t currently have for their network. This has potential income generation potential.

We’ll make a data quality report available on a per network basis. This may encourage networks to take some ownership over the quality of the data from the groups in their network.

We’ll consider the possibility of social media sharing image generation at the network-level.

For global/international reporting

We’ll fix longstanding issues with the Fixometer page within Restarters. This will allow users of the platform to search through item repair attempts from the global community (or their own group).

• For powered/unpowered items, make clear that this is ‘fixed’ number
• ‘Years volunteered’ -> ‘years of time volunteered’
• Add figure for number of events held
• Fix the list of items
  • Fix sorting and filtering
  • Remove tabbed distinction between powered and unpowered
  • Clarify what the ‘i’ is supposed to do (or remove the note about it)

We’ll enable it such that all item records are downloadable by everyone using the platform, not just administrators as it currently stands.

We’ll create a new, public dashboard of analysis of all the repair attempts contained within Restarters. This will showcase the scale of activity on Restarters and of repair globally. Groups will be able to share this with members of the public interested in repair activities.

Initially this will contain:

• Number of repairs
• Map of repair groups
• Most common product categories
• Repair success rates
• Breakdown of barriers to repair
• Filterable by country, group, and date range

Some of this functionality is code changes for this repo, some of it is in Metabase. Sub-issues on this topic are for those related to code changes for now.