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Notis

Add population trends to regional planning

Keep the population question in view and retrieve the Census estimates needed to explore it.

Trigger

Channel Message Received

Triggered when a message is posted in a Slack channel (public, private, or multi-party IM). Does NOT match direct messages.

Action

Get Population Estimates

Tool to retrieve population estimates program (pep) data for a specified vintage and dataset. use when you need population or demographic estimates for specific geographies.

Why this helps

Population trend questions often become open loops when planning conversations move on before someone searches for the data.

  • Makes population research a direct follow-up to planning
  • Keeps vintage and dataset visible in the result
  • Reduces reliance on someone remembering the request

Setup

Build it in a few focused steps.

  • 1Connect Slack and Census bureau to Notis once in the portal.
  • 2Create an automation in Automations or ask Notis to create it conversationally.
  • 3Write one instruction to retrieve Population Estimates Program data for the named geography using the stated vintage and dataset, and note any missing inputs.
  • 4Choose Channel Message Received and select where run reports should go.
  • 5Test with a real population trend question naming a US geography.

Questions about this workflow

Does the workflow calculate a forecast?

No. It retrieves population estimates from the specified Census vintage and dataset; it does not independently forecast future population.

What if the message does not specify a vintage?

The prompt can tell Notis to report that a vintage or dataset needs clarification before proceeding.

When this happens · Trigger

Do this · Action

Supported Triggers and Actions

Notis builds workflows that link Slack to Census bureau. A trigger fires from one place; an action lands in another.

Slack triggers

Census bureau actions

Recurring trigger

Notis starts this workflow on a schedule, such as daily, weekly, or during business hours.

TriggerScheduled

Get ACS 1-Year Estimates

Tool to retrieve 1-year american community survey (acs) estimates for a specified geography. use when you need the most recent annual acs data for a given area.

ActionInstant

Webhook trigger

Notis starts this workflow when an external tool or custom backend sends an HTTP request.

TriggerInstant

Get ACS 5-Year Estimates

Tool to retrieve 5-year american community survey estimates for a specified year. use when detailed acs data by geography and variables is required.

ActionInstant

New Channel Created Trigger

Triggered when a new channel is created in Slack.

TriggerInstant

Get American Business Survey

Tool to retrieve annual business survey (abs) data for a specified year and endpoint.

ActionInstant

Channel Message Received

Triggered when a message is posted in a Slack channel (public, private, or multi-party IM). Does NOT match direct messages.

TriggerInstant

Get Community Resilience Estimates

Tool to retrieve community resilience estimates for a specified year. use after selecting variables and geography to get cre data for analysis.

ActionInstant

Direct Message Received

Triggered when a new direct message (DM) is sent to a user in Slack. Catches all DMs across all DM channels.

TriggerInstant

Get County Business Patterns

Tool to retrieve county business patterns (cbp) data for a specified year. use when you need county-level business establishment and employment statistics filtered by industry and geography.

ActionInstant

Message Reaction Added

Triggered when a reaction is added to a message in Slack. Supports optional filtering by channel and emoji name.

TriggerInstant

Get Decennial Census Data

Tool to retrieve decennial census data for a specified vintage and dataset. use when you need census variables for a given geography.

ActionInstant

Message Reaction Removed

Triggered when a reaction is removed from a message in Slack. Supports optional filtering by channel and emoji name.

TriggerInstant

Get Population Estimates

Tool to retrieve population estimates program (pep) data for a specified vintage and dataset. use when you need population or demographic estimates for specific geographies.

ActionInstant

Reaction Added Trigger

DEPRECATED: use `SLACK_MESSAGE_REACTION_ADDED` instead. Triggered when a reaction is added to a message in Slack.

TriggerInstant

Get Variable Details

Tool to retrieve metadata for a specific variable in a census dataset for a given year. use when you need the label, concept, data type, attribute codes, and valid-value constraints.

ActionInstant

Connect any two apps with Notis in the middle.

Slack and Census bureau, or any other combination from 1,000+ integrations.

When this happens · Trigger

Do this · Action

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No card. Works with personal or business Census bureau.