Admin Replies
- Thread starter Allan
- Start date
Joshua Farrell
FP's Housekeeper
If it is a new or small community? No, but the Administrator (and staff if there are any), should atleast make the attempt to help push conversations along, so that the forum doesn't flop on itself.
If it is a forum where you have a larger active userbase (regardless of actual number of users registered), then I expect the Administrator (and/or staff), to make the attempt to participate, but they shouldn't be required to do so if the userbase can sustain istelf.
If it is a forum where you have a larger active userbase (regardless of actual number of users registered), then I expect the Administrator (and/or staff), to make the attempt to participate, but they shouldn't be required to do so if the userbase can sustain istelf.
D
Deleted member 50656
I wouldn't necessarily say the admin/s should reply to every single post, but I do think as Joshua mentioned admins have a responsibility to help ensure conversation is pushed along across the forum, and threads with no or little replies could have conversation encouraged by admins
I wouldn't want the Admin to be the one replying to everything unless it's a super small forum and questions have been asked. No one wants to visit a forum, ask a question then get no response. That's why it's good to at least have 1 or two other staffers to help contribute instead of 1 person being in every thread.
I do not believe an administrator is obligated to reply to every post, but it is surely helpful in order to get numbers up.
Every forum I've been apart of the owner & admin activity dictates the rest of the activity. When I deployed my first time, my community with over 20k members at the time completely died by the time I came back. I had tons of posts, thousands of downloads monthly, and was averaging 500k + views a month. After the deployment it was all nearly gone.
That being said I do believe that admin activity is needed to ensure an active forum stays active.
That being said I do believe that admin activity is needed to ensure an active forum stays active.
I believe a lot of admins don't participate in discussions enough. Depending on what forum it is. I've been in several where they are active but yet at the same time they respond very seldom. Larger forums tend to be that way. Responding to every post is a mistake, you don't want to over-run people but at the same time if you have something to say there's no reason you should hold back on your own discussion board. I tend to speak on my site when I have something to say and I do actually enjoy it when I do, as it gives the discussion a further climb.
Sextafeng23
New Arrival
This is not necessarily needed and it may not be convenient replying everyone in a forum.
FriendlyPerson
Reputable
Agreed but it really depends on how the forum is structured.
In some cases you might actually requires an admin team. I am thinking possibly for "high ticket" market places or such (think selling/buying a business) to validate details or something to that effect?
I do not believe Administrators are obligated to respond to every topic being posted on their forums. When I first start a forum, I'm easily able to do that, as there's typically not a lot of fresh content being published by other users. FP isn't a super large forum, but it would be very difficult for me to go around and reply to every topic that is created. Also, I feel that Administrators should be able to enjoy their forum in a similar manner as other users. If they aren't comfortable speaking on a particular subject (whether that's because of a lack of knowledge or whatever), then they shouldn't be forcing themselves to participate just because they feel obligated to do so. No one would be happy with that.
At the same time, success starts from the top with good leadership, and then it works its way down. If the Administrator of a forum is leaving the forum high and dry, then you're going to see others follow suit. You'll see the rest of the staff team slowly wander off and stop bothering to check in daily... Because no one is going to care as much as the Administrator does. If the Administrator shows that he or she doesn't care, then you can assume you'll see the same thing from everyone else. That type of change may not necessarily be certain the very next day, but you'll slowly see it occur.
At the same time, success starts from the top with good leadership, and then it works its way down. If the Administrator of a forum is leaving the forum high and dry, then you're going to see others follow suit. You'll see the rest of the staff team slowly wander off and stop bothering to check in daily... Because no one is going to care as much as the Administrator does. If the Administrator shows that he or she doesn't care, then you can assume you'll see the same thing from everyone else. That type of change may not necessarily be certain the very next day, but you'll slowly see it occur.
Simply put, no. But they should do it when the forum is new to create activity. But also make it where it doesn't look like administrator isn't spamming all over their board. If it's an older community, I have seen that the administrator and staff doesn't always post or reply to topics. I think they do so within reason and I think that is a good approach.
D
Deleted member 49125
When someone posts, I give it a few days hoping another member will chime in. If they don't, I will. I know what it's like to feel ignored when you post a topic, especially when it's a question & nobody is answering.
I do it when a forum is just starting out to at least get some conversations going. Now that we're at the 2 year mark, I've sort of started backing off a bit, although I do make every effort to at least be semi-active. I feel like staff, as the forum gets older, should be involved in discussion, not 24/7 and definitely not going like a bat out of heck either, but I've always been a believer ofkeeping in touch with your members. Personally I love it when staff is involved in posting on the forums. They might be in charge but they are members just like anybody else.
HolisticStorm
Up-and-Coming Sensation
I think that the admin can reply to any subject of interest to him or her, just like any other member.
D
Deleted member 4320
Admins should make an effort to integrate into the community but I don't think they need to reply to everything though.
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