Here’s a discussion from a gov’t web managers listserv.
The original question was: should gov’t Facebook pages allow people to post?
I want to be very clear: I interpreted this question as being about posts – where they start a whole new item: text, photos, videos, links, etc. I’m emphatically NOT talking about accepting comments. To me, that’s a non-discussion: you absolutely must accept comments, good and bad, in accordance with a published comment policy. For example, EPA’s is here.
In the image above, I’m discussing allowing people to use what’s in the red box at the top of the page, not the “comment” link or “write a comment” in the green boxes.
At EPA, we welcome comments on our main page, but don’t allow people to post their own stuff.
There are plenty of places for them to make their points, including commenting on our posts. We don’t need to give them a platform.
I disagree that not allowing them to post is the same thing as any other Web page. Other Web pages don’t allow comments, aren’t shareable, and aren’t in a network of 500 million people.
Plenty of interaction happens without allowing people to put whatever they see fit on your branded page.
I think of it this way: a social media presence is like a booth at a shopping mall. You’re there so they can see you as people vs. an institution, you talk to people, you listen to what they say, they can hear each other’s ideas, and you catch casual conversations among people all around you whether they’re talking directly to you or not. You might even hold a public discussion, where you put out a question and then invite people to share their thoughts.
But you don’t allow people to plaster their posters all over your booth and you don’t hand them the microphone unchecked for 3 hours to say anything on any topic.
What do you think? What does your agency do?
After reflecting on this, here is my still-not-fully-decided opinion:
I can say beyond a doubt that if we had not allowed fans’ posts on the City of Reno’s page, we would have missed out on some really important exchanges with citizens. Why? Because they are very limited in what they can write in comments to posts made by us, because of our policy about not making ‘off-topic’ posts.
So if what they want to say doesn’t relate to something we’ve recently posted, how can they say it if posts are disallowed?
That said, I do think the practice should be reviewed by individual agencies if it becomes evident that their mission is being undermined due to page ‘hijackers’.
I totally agree with you here. You definitely need to allow fans/followers to comment and engage in dialogue. Giving them the ability to post full updates is unnecessary and could confuse other fans who look to the page for messaging, announcements and information from the brand/company or agency.
Instead of letting people “post” on your page, you can have a “Discussions” page. People Can bring up their own questions there, but there is no “share” button to cause angst. I see the Census uses one: https://www.facebook.com/board.php?uid=202626512363
Thanks for sharing that link, Sarah. Interesting that the Census Bureau allows BOTH avenues – a discussion page as well as wall posts.
We allow comments and wall posts on the USGS Facebook page. Discussions posts are a good place to have longer conversations…hence the term “discussions.” If Wall posts go long then it’s always good to move them to a discussion area. The Wall posts are great for quick questions and answers, sharing quick bits of information, etc. Many people will read those shorter bits of info and be more inclined go respond. It’s easy. It’s quick. It’s right in front of them. And when more than one person comments it encourages others to comment as well. People know when a post is from the Page and when it’s not…the profile image is a dead giveaway. We have no problem allowing that kind of interaction.
Now, if a comment is not on par with our Comment Policy then it’s taken off. That’s expected. In our experience, to date, people are generally considerate of others and in what they post. The fact that their names appear alongside their comments and updates are usually enough to keep it constructive.
At Yosemite, we also allow comments and wall posts–I completely agree with what Scott said.
However, deciding what complies with our comment policy is trickier than I expected on Facebook (thanks, Jeffrey, for sharing EPA’s comment policy… ours is modeled after yours, although I notice yours has been updated).
For instance, if a professional photographer posts a photograph of Yosemite but doesn’t mention the image is for sale… is that an ad? How about when a business tags Yosemite in one of its posts (which results in that post showing up on our wall) but that post isn’t inherently commercial (but just has regional information that is relevant to Yosemite… but which also highlights the business)?
Is this an ad?
[Name of hotel chain's local hotel, which is a Facebook page]
Visit California and explore California’s beautiful byway, US Hwy 395 , as it winds from Yosemite National Park through the Owens Valley to Mt. Whitney. Experience the natural and cultural forces that shaped this region of the Eastern Sierra.
Never thought comments could be so gray…
1st, seems like given its current dominance, we are mostly talking about Facebook (FB). There are other platforms with different ways of combining options, perhaps one or more that will be as important as FB in the (near?) future.
On FB, a couple other FB approaches you could do to keep the message focused:
-You can have a different “landing tab” than your wall. You can use HTML, PHP, FBML, etc. You have graphic & layout control of the middle column on your “applications.” That means FB browsing users are less likely to see your wall and those unpredictable public comments. A flagrantly commercial example of this approach is the Red Bull FB page.
-A variation on that, Its possible to only allow FB viewers that like your page to comment. Doesn’t seem ethical for the government to do that, but FB created the capability.
Reporting from the nonprofit service sector, the overwhelming number of posts & comments on those walls are favorable, so in addition to getting FB “juice” from wall posts, it tends to generate favorable regard for the organization.
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