Should Moderators Be Paid for Their Work?

[InMyOpinion]

As we all know, forum moderators put in A LOT of effort to keep the online communities safe, organized, engaging and active. They help the administrator(s) enforce the rules, manage disputes, remove spam and very often serve as the backbone of a forum's success. So, should they be financially compensated for all of their time and effort?

Some may argue that moderating a forum is a voluntary role. often taken up by a passionate community member who enjoys the forum and wants to contribute as well as help the forum/forum owner out. But on the other hand, moderation can be time-consuming and even stressful at times, especially on large forums with high activity and volume of members. Paying moderators could help ensure consistency, reliability, and even a higher lever of professionalism.

So, what do you think? Should moderators be paid? If so, would hourly rates, monthly rates or revenue sharing be the best option? Or should moderation remain a voluntary role? I'd love to hear your thoughts!

In my opinion (of course ), I believe that staff are more motivate and willing to work with you if the position is paid. However, sometimes that is not feasible and the administrator spends so much money keeping the forum running with hosting, buying themes etc. that they can exactly afford to pay the moderators. I think if the forum owner expects the moderator to be available for most of the day for most days they should be paying even if it's a little amount. Personally, on my new forum that I am creating (with the help of @Tyrsson ) I will not be paying them in monetary value however they will get free promotion for their business/event/workshop for one month out of the year on the website and forum. The forum is going to be a platform focused on networking, collaboration, and growth within the creative industry. The website will spotlight stylists, jewelers, makeup artists, photographers, designers, and more, while promoting upcoming events, workshops, and exclusive opportunities. So, I think free promotion would be of big help to moderators. Once the website and forum grow and bring in revenue, I will offer paid moderation positions as I like to give back to the community and those who help me make a profitable forum/website.

What's your take on paying moderators? I'd love to know =)

 

[Cory]

I think it depends on various circumstances. If they originally agreed to be nothing more than a volunteer to help the community out, then I think it's safe to say they shouldn't expect payment. If it's a brand-new forum that requires little effort due to the inactivity of getting the forum off the ground, then I think it's best to wait until the community is well-established before offering payment. Then again, if you're hiring someone to be a part of your message board to create content, graphics, codes, etc. it may be fair to agree to offer them a payment beforehand. If they're doing the average things moderators do such as posting around, moderating, building community spirit, etc. it all depends on how much money the board owner has and is willing to offer to do "general" work like this. It is up to the board owner whether their staff are paid.

I don't think it's 100% necessary to offer paid positions for people willing to commit whether they gain incentives or not. Plenty of virtual items can be provided rather than currency for staff positions. Currency is likely the #1 incentive to encourage staff activity and engagement, but as I said, dictating whether staff have paid positions is circumstantial. It can depend on various factors, such as the workload, the type of work, how much time you expect them to be online and engaging, etc. The more you expect from an individual, the less likely you find volunteers willing to work for non-currency items.

 

[Nomad]

The first question is can you actually pay your moderators? If your community is a hobbyist project and does not make any money, it is not possible to pay moderators from your pocket. However, if your community makes money, I think you should always pay your moderators. If you have paid moderators, they will be active in your community, if you have voluntary moderators and staff, they will not be active, and there are under no obligations to remain active on your community, and you cannot demand them to remain active.