Sometimes when you help users for anything online do you get some rude replies What do you do in such a situation? I would normally just ignore them.
Helping users sometimes get rude replies
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Darth-Apple
Familiar Face
As an admin/moderator, or just as another user?
Sometimes as an Admin of a forum I get blamed for everything even when something isn't even close to being my fault (ahem, user error).
There are times when I get our site mentor to handle some things because the other members don't perceive him as a threat and he gets along with everyone on the site.
Darth-Apple
Familiar Face
Unfortunately, if there's a good cop/bad cop scenario, the head admin pretty much always has to play bad cop. That's what I've learned over the years.
I have been seeing this a lot more these days than before. Kinda makes me not being helpful or anyone else.
That usually can be avoided when other members or staff members have your back on a forum. Especially if they are big posters or known across the site more frequently. If someone has an issue it won't turn into much of a problem just as long as you get to know your community. Bigger sites are impossible to get to know everyone though smaller communities it may be possible to get to know at least a small percentage of your user base. Either way it's good to know your staff team well. These issues are commonly avoided when your well nit in with your staff team.
It hasn't been too bad, and you do have to expect it when running and owning. But look on the otherwise, you get a lot of positive feedback and people saying very good things. I had nasty people saying not so nice things and at times you just have to deal with them and move on, end of the day as long as it doesn't get public too much then you are good. But most of those people are just trolls with no lives
Darth-Apple
Familiar Face
I had a lot of issues with this many years back at the community that I ran (or took over after the owner handed it off) many years back. I was inexperienced and was utterly unprepared. Made a lot of mistakes and learned a lot from it.
Honestly, if people are being disrespectful, they are aware of it almost 100% of the time. And they are often testing you to see where your limits are. Your active posters might not approve of you putting your foot down, but at the end of the day, as soon as they realize that you have the power right at your fingers to ban toxic people, they'll go right back into line quick.
People will always try to test the staff to see where their limits are. The only way to really handle it is to nip it in the bud. And if a few members leave because of it, it's always better to have a smaller community than to have a large one that's toxic. I've learned that one the hard way. 🙂
Just my two cents, from the lessons I've learned in the past. 🙂
Honestly, if people are being disrespectful, they are aware of it almost 100% of the time. And they are often testing you to see where your limits are. Your active posters might not approve of you putting your foot down, but at the end of the day, as soon as they realize that you have the power right at your fingers to ban toxic people, they'll go right back into line quick.
People will always try to test the staff to see where their limits are. The only way to really handle it is to nip it in the bud. And if a few members leave because of it, it's always better to have a smaller community than to have a large one that's toxic. I've learned that one the hard way. 🙂
Just my two cents, from the lessons I've learned in the past. 🙂
Been on both ends. Trying to help people even as a user can cause drama. Here, in fact.
D
Deleted member 4320
Generally ignore them. If it continues maybe report or ban them but if you ignore them it takes away fuel from the fire.
Often you need community members who are not staff or in a position of power to respond to users who need help. Generally speaking an admin gets blamed for any problems regardless of fault. Sometimes it may be the user's computer needs an update, or the forum software has a bug, ultimately regardless of who is at fault, it becomes your problem. A neutral third party can be a game changer in issues like this.
If you are the administrator, I think you must try to help these people unless they are being outright abusive—just stay positive and friendly and don’t take it personally. But if they are being outright abusive, that would be a violation of your rules presumably, and you could simply ban them?
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