ManagingCommunities.com

Live Streaming Video Events Can Be a Lot of Fun for Text-Based Online Communities

Patrick — Thu, 23 May 2013 22:14:09 +0000

When phpBBHacks.com turned 10, back in April of 2011, I hosted a live streaming celebration for 3 hours. I was joined by a co-host, a friend and former staff member of the site (Jared W. Smith), and together we spoke to a slate of guests that I lined up. They were all people who had [...]

Think About Online Community Moderator Escalation Policies Before You Need Them

Patrick — Mon, 20 May 2013 23:15:32 +0000

photo credit: Phillip Pessar An escalation policy for your moderators outlines what situations need special handling and what should occur when they are identified. For an example, see the BBC’s policy. The idea is that some things simply transcend normal, everyday issues. Suicide threats, grooming of children, etc. When they are identified what should happen? [...]

Amy’s Baking Company: Lessons For Community Managers

Patrick — Thu, 16 May 2013 17:27:29 +0000

photo credit: jo-h There are no lessons to learn from this situation. Thank you. Seriously. There are no lessons to learn here. Years ago, I grew tired of what I refer to [...]

My Friend Posted Those Comments Under My Account!

Patrick — Mon, 13 May 2013 12:00:51 +0000

photo credit: Ni_Ko There have been a few times over the years where someone has posted something on one of my communities that was inappropriate and then they will say that someone else posted those comments under their account. This is a tricky thing because it’s easy to blame your teddy bear for that glass [...]

“Monetizing Online Forums” Passes 10,000 Downloads

Patrick — Thu, 09 May 2013 12:00:06 +0000

As of April 29, “Monetizing Online Forums,” a guide to monetizing online communities the right way, has been downloaded more than 10,000 times. This is a conservative count that comes from our website and through third parties where the book is distributed. For all of the copies hosted through the website, which make up most [...]

eBay Partner Network: Good Monetization Option for Niche Communities

Patrick — Mon, 06 May 2013 20:53:49 +0000

Recently, I was reviewing the vendors that I work with to monetize KarateForums.com. I was looking for something that would better target martial artists and I decided to increase my usage of eBay Partner Network. This is eBay’s affiliate program, which pays on a cost-per-click basis. How much you earn per click is based on [...]

During Your Community’s First 100,000 Posts, You Become the Community Manager You Always Will Be

Patrick — Thu, 02 May 2013 19:00:47 +0000

photo credit: Greene Connections To paraphrase Ryan Leslie, I’ve never had a big board, but they still respect my art. A “big board,” as referred to in community manager circles, is a community with 500,000 posts or more. I’ve never managed one. That will change, soon, when KarateForums.com passes 500,000 posts. What does that really [...]

Can You Delete All of My Posts From Your Forums? Not Without Harming My Community

Patrick — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 12:00:27 +0000

photo credit: mikecogh Once in a while, a member will contact me and ask me to delete all of their posts on my forums, as well as their account. If you’ve run forums for any measure of time, you’ve probably received a request like this. Recently, Jeremiah Hester asked how I handled these matters, so [...]

10 Years After I Started Writing It, “Managing Online Forums” Turns 5

Patrick — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 20:49:49 +0000

It was 10 years ago last month that I began writing what would eventually become “Managing Online Forums.” April 28 will mark 5 years that it has been in publication. Digging through my emails, the earliest message that I can find mentioning the project is in May of 2004. I had told some friends about [...]

Trolls and Destructive Members Less Frequent on a Well Managed Online Community Than Facebook and Twitter

Patrick — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 22:38:51 +0000

photo credit: aerodesign.pl Yesterday, I was on Tech Talk with Craig Peterson, and we discussed online communities and how to approach them as a business (audio). One of the areas that we touched on was the concern that forums and structured online communities might be more susceptible to people who don’t comment in good faith [...]