When posting something on online community websites, why do they always require some sort of approval before your post goes live? What happens if someone posts a threatening comment or makes a racist remark? Who should be responsible for addressing these issues? And who decides who gets to decide whether a post is appropriate or harmful?
Community networks play such a significant role in our lives today that it would be impossible to function without them. As a result, companies provide us with multiple platforms where we can share information, express ourselves, connect with friends and family, and even make purchases. While there is no denying the value of these websites, it also means there is a responsibility to ensure that the content posted on those sites stays positive and does not violate any kind of law.
Administrators and moderators are chosen by the owners of online communities because they represent their brand well and give credibility to the site. Moderators usually oversee conversations on forums and other similar websites. They make sure comments stay within certain guidelines, delete inappropriate messages, and moderate discussions, keeping them civil. If a user posts offensive material or violates a rule, a moderator has the power to remove the message or ban the user from using the service.
What is an online community?
So now that you have got an idea of what we are trying to achieve in this blog, let us start by explaining what an online community actually is.
An online community is a place where people come together to discuss topics, share ideas, and build relationships. It is a virtual space where individuals can interact with each other through various forms of media including text, images, video, audio, etc. Online communities may be private (where only members can view the contents) or public (where anyone can access the contents).
Online communities are often used as social networking tools. For example, Facebook allows users to create groups called “micro-communities” where they can share photos, videos, links, and more. These communities allow users to communicate with one another about common interests, hobbies, and events.
Online communities are also used for business purposes. Some businesses use them to promote products, services, and brands. Others use them to find new customers or potential employees.
Why do I need moderation on my community website?
I am the owner of a small community website. It is not very popular, but it has been around for about 6 years and has some good content. However, I have recently noticed that there are many spam comments being posted to the site. This is causing me problems because I can’t moderate them all. So, what should I do? Should I just delete these posts or should I report them to the authorities?
Well, if you are stuck with these questions? Then the first thing you should consider is how much time and effort you want to put into moderating your community. You will probably spend most of your time dealing with spam comments and deleting them. In addition, you will have to deal with complaints from users who don’t like the way you handle things.
If you choose to moderate your own community, then you must decide whether you want to hire someone else to help you out. A lot of people think that hiring a professional moderator is the best option, but it really depends on your budget and resources.
If you decide to go ahead and hire a professional moderator, you will still have to take care of the moderation yourself. That’s why it is important to know how to moderate effectively so that you can keep the peace and avoid any conflicts.
What are the two ways to moderate your online community?
There are two main methods of moderating your online community: manual moderation and automated moderation. Manual moderation involves human intervention while automated moderation uses software to automatically detect and remove spam comments.
Manual moderation is the easiest method of moderating your community. All you have to do is review every comment and remove those that violate your rules. The downside of this approach is that it takes a lot of time and energy.
Automated moderation is the second method of moderating an online community. It is usually done by using software that scans each post in real-time and detects spam comments. Once detected, the software removes the offending comment. Automated moderation is faster than manual moderation since it does not require human involvement. That introduces our plugin, BuddyPress Moderation Pro! The most powerful BuddyPress Moderation solution with advanced features to give you complete control over your community and keep it secure with automatic moderation and limitations, and more.
We’ll get back to community moderation, but for now, let us understand how to create a community website with complete moderation.
How to set up a fully automatic moderated online community website?
Step 1 –
Create a new WordPress installation. We recommend installing WordPress on a separate server (or subdomain) to prevent hacking attempts. If you already have a WordPress installation, you can use it as well.
Step 2 –
Install BuddyPress. Install BuddyPress on your newly created WordPress installation. BuddyPress is a premium plugin, that offers significant and expandable community-building technology.
Step 3 –
Create a BuddyPress group. Create a BuddyPress group called “Community”. Give it a name such as “My Community”, or something related to your business.
Step 4 –
Buy a web service hosting package, and put your community online.
Step 5 –
Every functioning website needs a fancy-looking interface, right? Well well, if you say it doesn’t matter, then you are lying to yourself and all the terms you have stated up until now, similar to “I like her for her personality”. We recommend you to use Reign, the best white-level community solution to build your brand and sell memberships, products, online courses, services, events, and much more.
Step 6 –
Integrate multiple community plugins to your online community website. You should use the BuddyPress Moderation Pro Plugin for complete automatic communities moderators on your online community website. You must install other plugins that can help your website outshine others!
Step 7 –
Keep on running your website, create amazing events for your audience, and attract more people to your online community website. Bring fascinating updates to keep the audience intact with your brand’s community website.
Sigh, these are the steps involved in creating a top-notch online community website. Now let us get back to moderation and how helpful is the BuddyPress Moderation Pro plugin.
Features of the BuddyPress Moderation Pro Plugin
- Establish Who Can Report Items.
- To activate the moderating option, choose the BuddyPress component.
- Users can block and unblock one another.
- enabling member avatar and group photo moderation.
- Enable/Disable BuddyPress Components’ Automatic Moderation.
- Set the Reports Threshold For BuddyPress Components’ Automatic Moderation.
Feature-rich admin panel/dashboard
- gives the moderator position a stylish panel to manage the moderating portion of the function.
- Sort the moderation according to the content type.
- Categories of reported content, report types, and moderator content.
- Notify the administrator.
- Notify users by email and BuddyPress alerts when their material has been regulated.
Community Moderation – The Wrap Up
Moderation is not a casual plugin that just adds flashiness to your community website, it is a requirement. It maintains decorum and creates a healthy environment for people who are a part of the community. Hence, we would like to conclude that “community moderation” is as necessary for setting up security at a bank. Thank you for reading our piece of work, we’ll be more than happy if you comment on anything that you liked or disliked regarding the blog.
Interesting Reads:
The Community Moderation Handbook 101
Steps For Any Online Community Moderation Process
How To Moderate And Manage Your WordPress BuddyPress Powered Community Website?
