How to moderate your platform’s content to protect your community

Today, businesses need to moderate at scale to keep up with real-time comments across a wide range of social platforms. And, as the use of social media increases, the job of manual moderators has become more complex.

     Good to know: 40% of users will disengage from a community after as little as one exposure to toxic content Source: Businesswire

Automatic content moderation leads to less risk

No matter how focussed a manual content moderator is, they’re more likely to miss the odd toxic comment than AI. Human error and the fatigue associated with reading thousands of comments and studying toxic behaviors can affect judgment. We can only concentrate for a limited period then our mind wanders. 

Automated content moderation reduces the risk of errors and works much faster than the human brain. It can also be tailored to suit the needs of a business. For example, a gaming platform may be slightly more lenient in what kind of content it allows compared to a Facebook Group discussing a sensitive cultural issue.

Plus there are the actual interactions that take place on social platforms. When people are hiding behind a keyboard they tend to lose their inhibitions and anger often prevails. 

Toxic comments appear in many forms, some more obvious than others:

• Insults

• Threats

• Racism

• Homophobia

• Sexual harassment

• Body-shaming

• Trolling

• Spam

• Scams

• Ads

Toxic content moderators have to read a lot of bad languages, discrimination, abuse and hate and have to be resilient not to be affected. A machine doesn´t care what it reads – it has no emotions.

Keeping your community safe

Your role is to protect your brand and your audience. Responsible platform users expect to be able to participate and interact without experiencing online toxicity.

Setting high standards on social platforms demonstrates your commitment to your visitors and employees. The opportunities for engagement, acquisition, and retention are immense for businesses that keep the trolls out. 

Prevent, don´t cure

Once a toxic comment is out there it’s too late when your community has seen it. Brand reputation can be damaged in an instant and visitors may leave, never to return.

Prevention of the publication of toxicity is key, both for existing and new audiences. Moderation in real-time means poisonous comments will never reach the public eye. 

If you run your own social platform, for example, a gaming or sports community, Bodyguard is an ideal moderation partner. Our technology connects seamlessly to your platform via an API, then delivers high-quality automated moderation in real-time based on your preferences. Simply put, it’s a safe, easy way to protect your users and your brand.

3 key points to remember about content moderation for platforms:

1. Social media and platforms are growing massively, and so is the need for moderation.

2. Preventing offensive comments before they ‘go live’ protects your community.

3. Bodyguard is an easy way to moderate content in real-time and create an engaging user experience.