Imagine you have built a unique platform where users can engage with each other most effectively and safely, and as an effect, build a good reputation, retain customers, and grow through word of mouth – all to enhance the value of your product.
It’s time to sit back and enjoy, right?
Quite the opposite.
Wherever there is user-generated content, there is a need to moderate it.
We have all seen it or have been subject to it, either if other users have harassed us directly, offended us with a post or message, or removed our content without explanation.
Content moderation. You know you need it, but when user-generated content is your bread and butter, it might feel counterintuitive to spend time and money on restricting it.
What is content moderation?
Content moderation ensures user-generated content that must uphold the platform-specific rules, guidelines, and terms of service while establishing its suitability for publishing. In other words, when a user submits content to a website, that piece of content will go through a screening process to make sure you’re protecting your visitors from offensive or, more often seen – misleading information.
We refer here to all types of content, from images, videos, ads, social media pages, websites, online marketplaces, dating sites, and forums. The goal of content moderation is to maintain a brand reputation and credibility and raise your followers’ and customers’ trust.
As you can see, it comes like a recipe for the best practices, all to protect your customers’ user experience, so that’s why we are going to explore a little more about why it is crucial to have it.
Why is content moderation important?
Reducing the risk of receiving inappropriate user-generated content
We should consider the risk of receiving user-generated content submission that violates posting guidelines. Which, indeed, is unavoidable.
However, suppose a team of well-trained content moderators acts as guardians of your business. In that case, the existence of offensive and upsetting content caused by internet trolls and bullies will decrease.
Of course, this is the idealist case, as many small businesses do not have the luxury of having a team dedicated only to this matter at the beginning of their journey.
Their role is to implement every rule or set of guidelines to ensure users do not overstep their boundaries with the different types of content they post and share.
Acting like a bad cop – good cop.
Consequently, it results in a more positive environment where users can interact freely with each other without risking exposure to unacceptable online social behavior. Increasing the safety of your active and online community will eventually raise the business’ credibility.
2. Using content moderation to understand buying patterns
Businesses mostly rely on releasing high volumes of promotional campaigns. Content moderation is the key to better understanding their customers’ buying behaviour and opinions on a particular trend, content, or even a product.
Recognizing behavioural patterns when presented with any company-related content is highly instrumental in redirecting your strategies towards customer acquisition.
Knowing what type of content engages their interest assures you an active online community that might as well influence the decision-making process.
Also, coordinating online contests, crowdsourcing, and displaying customer stories will significantly impact your sales-driving efforts. It will be much easier if you’ve had an efficient moderation team.
To be more precise, we refer to a professional and reliable content moderator who will ensure that your business can scale. Alongside your internal and external marketing and sales efforts, keep possible threats of defaming negative user content under control.
3. Increasing conversion rates
Protecting users from malicious and harmful content, in the long term, will save not only your trusted customers but also your business reputation.
Here is an example of why using content moderation will increase traffic and conversion rates:
At first, a single positive review may seem like a fragment of good news for your business. Image someone posted a review on your business’s website or any review platform, such as Glassdoor. Positive reviews increase customers’ trust, but they can also work as a propelling factor for higher conversion rates.
Additionally, a well-moderated website acknowledges both positive and negative reviews, which would have a higher impact on your audience. It will show character, trust, and transparency among what everyone else does – propelling only the positive side.
Can tech be the overall solution?
Technology can help and support content moderation but cannot be an overarching solution.
There are at least five reasons to consider keeping humans in the loop to avoid the downsides of automated content moderation. Let’s dig into it:
- Certain decisions are not clear-cut – determined users can employ different tactics to mislead the automated solution. Replacing certain letters in a word without losing the meaning, inserting “moderate” frames in an inoffensive-looking video, or sending users outside your platform via certain links.
- Answering escalations and appeals from users – the affected user should have the possibility to appeal, and this should always be reviewed by a person (or more, depending on the case).
- Interpreting reports and articulating insights – insights from moderation can be extracted via different data analysis and reporting, relying on people to solve them.
- Training the automated content moderation tool – tools can become better via training or assisted learning, and this is an action requiring human presence.
- Being able to comply with regulations related to automatic decision making – certain regulations (in effect or the making) require that people do content moderation; hence the need to employ a person who can augment your automated tools.
How we can help your business with content moderation
We understand the importance of content moderation and the need to have a dedicated team to coordinate and monitor this closely. To this belief, we can promise you full support in complementing automated content moderation. How does this work?
We would be there for you, from the dedicated platform, across multiple properties.
To be more precise, we are skilled in proactive moderation to identify users who violate terms of service and reactive moderation. Last but not least, using reporting and insights will help your business drive better decisions and continuously improve your product.
What’s next?
Several initiatives, same as in the case of GDPR, the European Union leads the regulatory landscape, and the Digital Services Act (DSA) will introduce new actions and concepts like risk-based actions and independent trusted flaggers.
All in one, we need to be prepared!
Better safe than sorry, right?
