[PHARAOH LEAP]

Also known Leap not knowing how the snap to admin.

I am sure most of you have probably seen a site run by me in the past. (I have run many.) If you have, and have kept up with them even remotely, you should have noticed that most tend to fall flat within short amounts of time. Unfortunately, sites run by me are not the only ones who face this problem. Sites close down for different problems, depending one who is running it, who is roleplaying on there, systems or a lack thereof, investments in the site. And while poor administration may not be a problem for other sites - may not be a problem for most sites - I'm painfully aware that it is my own sudden lack of motivation to keep up with sites that is a major cause in the closing of my own.

As such, for the sake of better roleplaying and admining experiences now and in the future, I'd like to set some guidelines for myself to prevent such lack of motivation from happening and help me power through it should it happen, as well as improve my administrative skills as a whole.

So I'm coming to you, asking for general things you see/would like to see in a good admin or mod. Fellow staff members: what are the things that you have done that have been good for the sites you've helped run? What have you done that had the opposite effect? Non-staffers: what have some of your better staff done that you thought was admirable? What would you like to see in staff that you haven't before/haven't seen much of?

[SIFR]

Your first goal is your team, and recognizing your own strengths in that team. For example, my ideal position is actually not head admin, but co-admin, with someone above me with a passion for doing things like involvement with the forum's community; site plots, fresh ideas, etc. Meanwhile, I like running the backbone of the site; chasing after people to get work done and making sure systems work properly. No matter which role you take, I firmly believe in finding a partner that is as ambitious as you are and sticking to them like glue for the rest of your RP life.

Secondly, as the head admin, your job should not be to do it all, but to delegate work. I like to do this by splitting my staff into either main chores or teams, depending on the size. Then, I supervise each team, and ride them to make sure they are getting their work done, something that is easily accomplished via a staff live chat or Skype group. If you have a staff member who isn't pulling their fair share, get rid of them. I don't care if they've been sick for 2+ months, have a lot of drama in their lives, are your BFF5EVR, or are just general lazy sacks of shit. No one said they couldn't come back on staff again when a position opened back up. Get rid of them and fill their spot.

If you're doing site plots, do everyone a favour and go through the history of your members to see what you can find. A plot where the main villain is related to one of the site characters is going to be a lot more personally tailored and will make your members feel appreciated. Obviously, though, ask the member you're using the history of before you do it. For example, on a Yu-Gi-Oh site of mine back in 2008, we were RPing in the year 2020, and one of the presidential candidates (we were set in America) was the grandmother of one of our characters, making the attempt on her life via Shadow Magic a lot more personal.

One of the things I know members enjoyed about a recent Sailor Moon site I ran was that I gave personalized Accepted messages in the form of dreams about their past lives, to try to give them a push in what direction they should be heading. While the site did die, I got messages saying that they were shocked at the dreams and thought it was majorly cool. If you can show personalized interest in each and every member, it means a lot. On that note, dreams don't fit every situation. I would take the time to suggest people they could get in contact with for RP or posting Plot Pages that they should take a look at that might be compatible with their character. Posting the three most recent plotters isn't a bad idea either.

A pittrap I've fallen into in the past is giving too much of my life to systems, and regretting it. Contrary to popular belief, you're not out to design a tabletop (I hope), but a story. If you enjoy designing systems, design systems, but if you're there for the story, trust that your members can handle themselves without a system. This is why we have godmodding rules.

Anyway, I might think up more later but this should start the conversation.

EDIT: or you and I can talk about modding a project I have in mind together. Let me show you the world bb.

[redox-kun]

goddamn sifr THATS A LOT TO BE TYPING ON MOBILE

hi uh. i've modded for like 10 months on a pokemon route site and im head admining for...almost a month now. mostly i just join sites my friends run bc real staffing is a pain in the ass. i usually pick staff based on 'who enjoys staffing the least' bc they tend to have a more realistic view of what the job entails

1. plan to succeed for at least three months, not... two weeks. site don't survive on pure luck y'know

2. be ready to make changes on the fly. plans don't always translate seamlessly to reality

3. get a running start in the first couple opening days -- trust me, you'll need it.

4. IT HELPS TO HAVE STAFF FROM DIFFERENT TIME ZONES/WAKING TIMES

5. a dead cbox is a bad cbox. try not to migrate your entire site to skype.

6. to some extent, all staff need to have the ability to be a leader. however, it helps a lot if you can fill the roles of final judge, lore/systems wizard, social butterfly, and sundry lord. combining these roles is doable (and often necessary), but delegation prevents staff burnout. when i see dead sites, i frequently see that admins abandon a site before members do. staff burnout is the deathblow

7. don't get hung up over the details................if people are posting then that's lifeblood for ur site....

8. we joke about how we all hate plot pages but honestly i think they allow for more complex plotting than sites that just plot in the cbox (bc they require a longer attention span)

9. THAT BEING SAID DON'T DISCOURAGE PLOTTING IN THE CBOX...all plotting is good... plots are great plots are awesome...

[SIFR]

redox-kun I type out whole RP posts on my mobile within, like, 15 minutes while I'm on break. This is why I don't use templates, LOL

[redox-kun]

Jan 14, 2015 18:48:43 GMT -8 SIFR said:

redox-kun I type out whole RP posts on my mobile within, like, 15 minutes while I'm on break. This is why I don't use templates, LOL

sifr ur god

[Ginger]

I wouldn't be much help in this... but I wanna lurk the thread to see all replies...
Here I go with a reply...
Staff Exp Reply:

• what are the things that you have done that have been good for the sites you've helped run?

[/blockquote][/spoiler][li] What have you done that had the opposite effect?[/li]

SPOILER: Click to show

Probably keeping staff members I shouldn't have, keeping members I shouldn't have, and putting up with stuff I shouldn't have. When it comes to staff I've always had trouble finding a balance, I either get lazy or missing, a reason always end up doing all the work.

---

[li] Ginger Blabber[/li]

SPOILER: Click to show

Never Ever... EVER.. Make an extra staff account with a group called "new member"
-long story short, don't-

Never Piss off a hacker, seriously don't screw with people.
-Wasn't me, but felt important to mention-

[/ul]
Member Exp Reply:

• what have some of your better staff done that you thought was admirable?

[/blockquote][/spoiler][li] What would you like to see in staff that you haven't before/haven't seen much of?
[/li]

SPOILER: Click to show

Hmm most staff pretty do what I would like to see in staff, granted staff are fine to me if they get their basic jobs done and are welcoming/fun. Staff who build their own skins gain more respect from me than those who don't, but technically you already do that.

[li] Ginger Blabber please ignore[/li]

SPOILER: Click to show

I'm bit crazy... Whenever I join a site... there's seems to be a flow on the site I like, I don't really know how to explain it? Like a dance of members popularity, staff activity, interesting plot flowing along, etc etc..?

As a member if I ever feel a disruption of this flow, I almost always end up leaving after a few days. This disruption could be a new member who speaks a little too vulgar to simple flow of activity. Again... Stupid Crazy lame I know. I just don't know, this imaginary flow can effect my muse and time put into characters on the site...

The important thing I can tell you about this stupid imaginary flow is if I notice the staff activity slowing down... Like with no excuses, hanging out in the cbox without really posting or creating plots with new members. It really bothers me that the staff even cares about the site, makes me question if they even care about the members on the site.

So just keep your activity up and try to show members that the site is your soul and you love it? Is what I'm mainly getting at?

[/ul]
Disclaimer: Remember I still consider myself a newb admin, longest site ran for 9 months.


I may add more later... when I think of something...


Also Second everything Redox said.... No really, those are seriously good points.

[beekeeper]

i think redox kind of pointed it out already, but the biggest thing is just being present and building up a community imo. i staffed on ambi for like two years, and the reason that it lasted that long was because we got to know people, made them welcome and built relationships outside rp. people left, plenty of times, got busy and shit, but they would always come back once thing cleared up. things like advertising and accepting apps in a timely manner is really simple and dry, but you really gotta engage ppl to get them to stay!

[BIG FUCKBOI GAMBINO]

preach trudox

[SIFR]

O ok redox is queen of staffing no one likes sifr's ideas-

Jk. Kinda. Redox has great ideas.

[SIFR]

Double post and slightly off-topic but redox-kun this is a post my friend makes on the Proboards mobile app. He has to keep his RP habit from his wife and so he uses his phone exclusively.

[Nahara46]

Jan 14, 2015 21:34:51 GMT -8 SIFR said:

Double post and slightly off-topic but redox-kun this is a post my friend makes on the Proboards mobile app. He has to keep his RP habit from his wife and so he uses his phone exclusively.

I'm just stalking this thread for tips but holy fucking shit. I've written verrrrrrrrrrrry long posts on my phone during long car trips (2000 word posts hella) but I had to write it first on my laptop and then transfer out of fear of losing it. That's insane.

[redox-kun]

Jan 14, 2015 19:51:45 GMT -8 SIFR said:

O ok redox is queen of staffing no one likes sifr's ideas-

Jk. Kinda. Redox has great ideas.

tbh i don't have that much experience with personal staffing but i've been in the staff inner circle (or at least super friendly terms with the admins) on most sites i rp on so i get a lot of exp via osmosis (I PROMISE I'M NOT A SUCKUP...IT'S JUST BASIC RP SURVIVAL).

i don't really talk ab anything staff related that i haven't personally observed or experienced.

i mean i feel like "succeed at administrating" is kinda a broad topic. specific questions would probably narrow the results better than just...admins throwing on advice lol

[Egao, Egao Everywhere]

Ways to succeed in administrating without even trying is basically building a community and being an active member yourself. As staff, you have to be adaptable to the needs of the site depending on the community. You cannot set up anything perfect from the start; you have to expect changes or additions in the rules or systems, if any.

You need at least 2 active staff people too. You can't do things alone, and they have to be as proactive as you.

In the few times I've staffed, my general experience is lack of initiative from other staff member / leaving too much work or initiative on me. The exception is in GS, where there were many more capable and interested members willing to staff.

Most of the time, I don't staff. My general experience is a bad staff that lose interest or, for some reason, decides to ignore me. I really hate it when a staff members, especially the owner, ignores me or becomes antagonistic (which has happened to me 4 times in my entire rp exp. Two of them were flat out mean who told me to leave.). I'm a very dedicated member. Chances are, if you see me in a site, that's the only site I'm in. So it really makes me upset when they do that to me lol. I'm sure I'm not 100% right but I have feelings.

Always help and encourage others. Just remember to be kind.

[Jacob]

I have headed a site of my own once, but had to withdraw indefinitely in 2009 for reason of disabling physical health problems. Nevertheless, I am quite versed apropos beholding ones I invest(ed) time and work into as an ordinary member closing within a few months, if even that.

Constancy is something I wish more staff would seek to attain. They need not open a game, shut it down, open another, shut that down, and so forth in unwarranted fickleness. Should interest be lost, an offline matter arise ending their administrative or moderating tenure, et cetera, then I feel they must be open and sincere towards their community about matter(s). Members will understand that their leader(s)’ life comes first; those who react otherwise are not particularly people I think belong.

Although I self-abhor chat boxes, chat rooms, instant messengers, and social networks, I had an administrator once who went out of her way to openly welcome me onto her venue via the former Windows Live Messenger. She kindly responded to any inquiries I made after scrutinizing her guidelines and lore. The time I joined was regrettably inopportune, but no owner has done such since in my role-playing experience.

A locale’s controller must wisely choose his or her staff team, then ensure work is evenly distributed among them so pressures are not weighing too heavily upon any autonomous one. The young woman aforementioned had this occur, as did I when another superintendent vanished. Assaying to keep a place afloat against failing health well-nigh caused me an emotional breakdown.

If a situation is advertised as possessing no word count, open to contributions from members, and all else, then I as a prospective associate expect those items to be upheld. I want to see administrators act maturely about character concepts, offline difficulties their populaces may have, and to realize that not every person writes less than, as for instance, two-hundred appellations. It is not realistic, and I detest when I ultimately enter a mendacity.

Yet another supervisor was drawing up a fantasy novel series which she then incorporated into a fandom based orientation the general community adored. Alongside her two cooperative administrators and a moderator, they sought to develop a thorough experience for writers. Battling was and is a part of said franchise, but the group dwelt on character development and plots than most. I liked how information was easily found, easily read, and how with age, the lot continued plotting and threading to maintain an actively small community.

On a personal level, I am a historically minded man approaching his twenty-sixth year. I draw my character ideas from eras sparking my enthusiasm, forming generalizations which I adapt to wherever they find receiving. Fantastical elements still delight me, so such entwine if I can somehow do such. Whether high or low, I admire staff willing to aid the process sans “hand-holding.”

Concerning areas allotting adult content, I do not expect minors’ presences onsite. Whilst I refuse writing such scenarios, I prefer elder gamers as posting partners anyway. Administrators and moderators of 18-years and up based grounds might better handle what guests and subscribers see and are unable to see.

[Deleted]

SIFR can testify to me modding on some pretty crazy places before.

First of all I'm going to second a lot of what was already mentioned by Sifr and Redox, they simply nailed all those nails. 

Something I've found to be uber helpful is to have people on staff who grow really familiar with your members. Even just having a staff member just chill in the c-box all day and talk with people will really help you to zone in on what members want and how they feel. A lot of times, posting up threads and polls of "what do you guys want" and "Is X better than Y" doesn't really draw a lot of the answers you want since it puts things on the spot. Being with the members helps you learn this stuff passively, naturally, and it keeps the conversation between members and staff flowing.

You've really gotta keep a conversation between members and staff, and you can't have staff alienate themselves from members. The moment they do, its generally downhill. Staff should see themselves as members with responsibilities, not gods over a land.