Sven Plagge Meier blogging , Encyclopedia , talks about Forums dying and has been more than a decade, administrator of the largest German Depeche Mode Fanformus (> 10,000 User). After Dirk Songürs differentiation he is there, particularly in operational work and speaks in the community with its members. Of course, he also uses the feedback from the community to help them improve. In an interview with me he talks about his views on community management and the challenges to which he meets in his daily work as an operator and maintainer of the forum.
Matthias Bastian Mr. Plagge Meier, thank you for taking the time. Directly to the first question: In your opinion, what qualifications does a good community manager, in particular, is operating in?
Sven Meier Plagge: A good community manager should be able to neutral and balancing occur in relation to its users, without however calling into question his position. He should interact with the community and they watch to record their wishes on the one hand and the other to respond to developments very helpful - in my opinion. Indispensable - Basic knowledge of copyright and Internet law.
Matthias Bastian your community has a very strong product reference. How much commercialism can sustain a community?
Sven Meier Plagge: Also, a profit-oriented strategy may, for the medium to long term success not just on the sale be fixed products. The focus must be the community member displayed his interest in information.
Matthias Bastian How do you measure the success of your community?
Sven Meier Plagge: The primary objective of CM is the long-term commitment from users to the website or on the product. The achievement of objectives can be achieved by membership and to measure traffic to the website, in the case of publications by (online) sales.
Matthias Bastian Do you think that there is such thing as a general rule for good (operating) community management there?
Plagge Sven Meier: I think CM is the foundation of every good that the manager enters into dialogue with its users and them, met in spite of his superior role in the communication on an equal footing.
Matthias Bastian There are now a variety of tools and services that "social harmony" allow the net. Between which community forms you differentiate?
Sven Meier Plagge: I distinguish between traditional communities with forums and communities that are on social networks (Facebook, who knows whom), and find communities that are, for example, by the comments function for contributions. These communities are congruent in parts, but otherwise considered separately.
Matthias Bastian What are the differences in communication via Facebook, Twitter, or a discussion forum? Bring any platform necessarily own rules of communication with them?
Sven Meier Plagge: Yes, each platform has its own rules. On Twitter you are already apparent from the limit of 140 characters, extravagant discussions can not take place there. Special features on Facebook are shown by the wide networking. What is given there by himself, reads with not only the friend but possibly also the colleague or even the boss. In this variation, users are more ready to possible to draw a positive picture of themselves. In contrast to traditional forums it is most directly and kontroversten. This is certainly due to the fact that many users write under a nickname.
Matthias Bastian In the context of this: What do you see as the pros and cons of a central community compared to a decentralized community?
Sven Meier Plagge: an important forum has the advantage that there can form a real community to a website that stands out by its own individual layout or even a CI visually from other communities. This is not possible on Facebook. The advantage there is greater transparency: The users are already logged in the meta-community Facebook. From there it is just a click to the Fapage. This is Allerd at the expense of ties to a community.
Matthias Bastian How much control should be practiced on a community? How to keep the best balance between censorship problematic and possible loss of control?
Sven Meier Plagge: Abstract formulated, one should always exercise as much control that you can counteract any negative developments. An aberration can also be that others feel disturbed because others express their opinions in penetrating manner. In this case the risk is "censoring" having to intervene. As long as one can measure the precise grounds for the accusation of censorship is rather remote.
have proven to be particularly helpful in this regard, fixed rules of conduct that must be recognized in the registry in the form of forum rules and / or netiquette by users.
Matthias Bastian Do you think that communities can have a transparency or dialogue pressure on companies?
Sven Meier Plagge: communities can exert great pressure on companies, sometimes with the help of the media. This can lead to far more transparency than that company for its conduct have to justify (as in the case of recently Navigon ).
Matthias Bastian particular, in Internet forums are mostly anonymous user on the go. To what extent do you think that anonymity on the Internet, the behavior of the users affected, particularly in discussions? Keep this anonymity is important?
Sven Meier Plagge: anonymity is important requirement for many users to take part in a community. On the other hand, it is this anonymity that is often abused by people to insult other people, to be irrelevant or to be misbehaving. Experience has shown that the level discussions, which are conducted under the cloak of anonymity, for the reasons often lower than if the people perform with their real names or at least left a real names when registering must.
I think anonymity is important, although their importance decreases with social networks like Facebook, where it operates mostly under real names. As a community manager should allow an anonymous part of the community, not an anonymous registration. Of which is already discouraged for legal reasons, if a community operator should be taken once as a co-disturber in liability and has no recourse to the real troublemakers.
Matthias Bastian Even if users are anonymous on the road, but you are looking for social contact. In this context, how important is it that one within a community, the users are ways to "socialize", such as an off-topic area?
Plagge Sven Meier: I an off-topic area is very important. It is the natural desire to communicate the people, not just on a topic to talk about in this case, Depeche Mode. Any more than just work colleagues talk about their work, so little it makes sense to limit a community on a topic. Off-topic areas also have the advantage that one learns a lot there about the (other) interests of the community members.
Matthias Bastian Mr. Plagge Meier, what do you associate with the term "culture 2.0"?
Sven Meier Plagge: I think that has emerged in recent years a kind of culture 2.0. In classical forums it is not as present as in networks such as Facebook. Characteristics of this culture is, in my opinion, especially a high level tolerance in dealing with other people and other opinions.
Matthias Bastian is it like when you "Official" in talks to Forum attending? How important it is in this context that the CM is socially established and above all as a human being is within reach?
Sven Meier Plagge: many years I have maintained an account as the administrator of the forum, and a user account as an individual. The idea was, statements from the manager's waiting to be marked as such and to separate them from my private utterances. From my present perspective, this separation is artificial and must fail. Even behind a private account, the members are always perceive the manager.
in Discussions should take care as a community manager. arises particularly in discussions about very contentious issues otherwise the impression that one wants to decide the questions "from above".
To what extent is a CM show off as a person depends on his personality. If you value privacy, less likely to provide insight as someone who wears his heart on his sleeve. In every case but one should be a "tangible" if you want to build a relationship with its users. This is particularly important for the building of trust.
Matthias Bastian Does it make sense to produce in a community hype regarding certain products or their company (in your case: hype regarding a new CD)?
Sven Meier Plagge: comes in the case of Depeche Mode, the hype mean by itself-without the intervention of the CM. You can also fire up the hype, where you increase the tempo of news and speculation can also be included. This makes sense from the point that the band comes into the conversation. Even among community aspects hype makes sense because of the strong to a point towards a sense of common interests, a sense of community is fired.
Matthias Bastian If you are looking for a community manager also dialogue with unhappy customers, or in the case of an inferior product? Why and how?
Sven Meier Plagge: One should always look as CM dialogue. Especially unhappy customers can give a valuable indication of what a product might not be in order.
Matthias Bastian How important is it to remain operational for the CM and always in his role?
Sven Meier Plagge: A CM should remain in his role as long as possible and respond factually. The fall in trolls for some time, however, difficult. Mostly those annoying trolls but other members of the Forum, so you can troll the evidence that others feel disturbed, call to reason. There are also forums rules trolling explicitly as unwanted conduct mark. In this case, help warnings and temporary suspensions
Matthias Bastian. As you step approach to problem users?
Sven Meier Plagge: For minor infringements, the user should be warned via private message. If the violation serious, a warning is ausgsprochen that attracts penalty points for themselves. Upon reaching a certain score or for very serious infringements, the user temporarily or completely blocked. It is important that the rules of the forums is to reckon with the sanctions of rule violations, the user needs.
Matthias Bastian They have long Years experience as a platform operator. What are the most important aspects of building a forum community?
Sven Meier Plagge: openness, friendliness and responding to the wishes of the members. Above all, constant communication is important. The members must have the feeling that one is there for them.
Matthias Bastian And how do you get people to visit the Forum permanently?
Sven Meier Plagge: This is difficult because the key lies in the community itself. Many interesting articles and other nice lure more visitors. Preponderance of small talk and dispute comes from the. As CM can therefore only try to prevent mistakes.
Matthias Bastian What is your best example of a situation in which it was very difficult to conduct a full community management?
Sven Plagge Meier: Last summer 2009, there were probably also due to concert cancellation of the band in Germany, the Forum 10 to 15 users (total was the Forum 9500 members), to their frustration by attacks on the Forum management air have made. At the time there were no written rules of conduct laid down. For this reason, any action against one of the intruders was described as arbitrary, which in turn cause a new Attacks served. This escalation was received on the part of the admins / moderators no longer under control, especially since one of the 30 presenters goes further internal discussions on the troublemakers. In this situation, I've closed the forum for several weeks. The time of closure has been used to create a significantly reduced moderating team a solid set of rules. The interfering users were all locked. With the reopening of all users were invited to accept the (new) rules if they wanted to continue to participate in the forum. Interestingly, the closure has not had the result that more of the user is moving away to other Comunitys. On the contrary: the following months, we had a lot of new registration. Since there were no more problems with users in the forum.
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