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E-MailI Don’t Ban People From My Community, People Ban Themselves
During the “Building an Irresistible Private Member Community” panel at BlogWorld Expo, I mentioned that one of the biggest challenges that I face, when managing an online community, isn’t spam or some form of hit and run vandalism, but when a veteran member, that you expect better from, does something completely inappropriate.
Those are some of the most personally challenging, stressful situations that I encounter. When someone who has contributed a bunch to your community is veering off the path and you have to correct it. It’s never fun, but that’s why you’re the community manager. Not to have fun, but to do the hard things.
From that point, there are a handful of scenarios that can play out. The best case scenario is the member understands what you are saying, can see where the issue is and they adjust for it or keep it in mind. The worst case scenario is that they continue to go down hill, forcing you to bring about a final resolution, e.g. banning them. Never easy, just another hard thing that you have to do.
But, I have come to a certain understanding that puts this decision in the proper context. After managing communities for a long enough period of time, I realized that I don’t really ban people. People ban themselves. This isn’t a way of shirking the responsibility at all. I am responsible for the ban, but realistically, it’s the member who makes this choice. Let me explain.
When I make the decision to ban someone, that decision is carefully made and is based completely on the member’s actions. I try to ban in a consistent manner and by the time we ban someone, in a case like this, they must have really gone off the deep end because, as long as someone seems well meaning, we work with them and send them notifications and try to productively work toward an understanding. To be banned, to put it simply, you either were a big jerk or you have demonstrated that you do not care about the community, it’s members, staff or guidelines (usually both).
We have a great system of documentation and a member is banned (largely) based on that documentation. When they have reached the point where they need to be banned, when other options have been reasonably exhausted, they have reached that point and it is done. It’s a consistent thing. But, the member decides when and if they reach that point – we just try to guide them.
Excellent viewpoint on this touchy subject!
On the flip side of this, though, are the community guidelines. I can’t specifically discuss your site or guidelines, so this is an ‘in general’ comment. Unfortunately, many sites add guideline after guideline to curb ‘inappropriate behaviors’. Some sites change their guidelines every few months or more frequent. The problem stems from when the guidelines start stepping on themselves. When the members cannot make heads or tails of what they should and shouldn’t be doing. Assuming the community guidelines are clearly written, this isn’t an issue. It’s when they start getting mired by things that are conflicting that makes it hard for members to understand what the moderator / site owner is really expecting.
If a member steps up and tells you your guidelines are conflicted and problematic, then as a moderator or owner, it is your obligation to review your guidelines for readability, functionality and usability (from the user perspective). In this case, it may be equally the board’s fault that lead to the user’s behavior. While a member may be clearly violating the terms of your ‘current’ guidelines, you might also need to review your guidelines to find out if they are truly workable to support the content and functionality of your site.
Many sites are getting more and more restrictive, to the point of censoring speech. If the guidelines get to this point, it may be time to review the guidelines to, once again, properly support the community.
Thanks for the comment and kind words, Mr. Barr.
Hey Brian,
Thanks for the thoughtful comment.
I think that there isn’t a right answer for any one site. What you or I may deem restrictive may be good for that site or for the goals that the owner(s) of that site are seeking. I think what we know, however, is what is too restrictive for our own sites and that is what we should work hard to protect. We shouldn’t apply our standards to them.
I don’t believe in doing something just because one member says to, though. I do believe in listening to feedback, but it has to be weighed against your experience and the community as a whole.
All guidelines censor speech, it’s the nature of the beast. But, the important thing is to ensure that the fall within our goals and what is right for our individual communities. :)
Thanks,
Patrick
Spot-on Patrick, it seems to be human nature these days to try to find a scapegoat when in reality it is their own behaviour (no one else’s) that causes forum admins to ban people.