Feedback Post Minimum and Moderation

I was reading through some threads and have to agree completely with this one which is closed http://forums.digitalpoint.com/showthread.php?t=2416032 although I also agree with the moderator's that the original posters tone was off...

I've been a long time lurker of this site and only recently started to post. My background... I own one of a few hundred PR9 domains in existence. I consider myself a fairly knowledgeable person when it comes to PR... fact is, many people can TALK but few people actually have credentials to say "been there - here's how it is.."

So here's my experience to date with Digital point.

It has been extremely discouraging. The forum rules require me to write 20 posts on subjects that are not in the forums where I actually want to post. I've spent considerable timer contributing only to find that either there are too few moderators on this site or the moderators only briefly review posts and are too quick to discount/not approve posts.

Now I also fully know what a Mod will likely type in response.. "Please read FAQ's/ our rules are in place to prevent spam". In my estimation, the rules are actually contributing to spam. 20 spam threads (with some questionable degree of usefulness) per every new poster. No wonder why there are so many posts in the hello world forums with absolutely no value. Long story short, i've read the FAQ's and understand why the rules are in place but they are still wrong and do more to increase spam than reduce it.

Why am I discouraged? Well of the many replies I have written in response to posts, 0 have been approved to date. One in particular was on a thread regarding PR in which my response is by far the most thorough of any responses provided but is for some reason not yet approved or in "no-man's-land"
http://forums.digitalpoint.com/showthread.php?t=2430109

In addition, within my own thread I have received feedback from other posters and have posted my own responses to those posters however once again, my posts are not getting displayed. I feel like someone who started a conversation who can no longer participate in the dialogue.

Lastly, one of my posts was censored by a moderator who seemed to think my post regarding SEO was in actuality a post that should have been placed in Buy/Sell/Trade (to which I have no access - not enough posts yet) and therefore my post was an attempt to circumvent the rules. Frankly speaking, my original post (http://forums.digitalpoint.com/showthread.php?t=2429541&p=17457495#post17457495) had absolutely nothing to do with Buy/Sell/Trade and had everything to do with SEO. I need to find the best dedicated server in Germany as it affects my SEO for a high PR domain. The post was asking other members which hosting providers with servers in Berlin Germany were reputed to have the best quality. Matt Cutts himself has clearly stated that neighborhood and speed have an effect on their searches.

I find it unbelievably frustrating that my posts are censored/moderated or more often than not - fail to be moderated and posted in a timely manner or at all. I agree fully that This 20 post minimum is a poor rule - if you were to remove this policy you would likely end up with less spam as potential members were not forced to post useless topics they don't want to post in the first place.

 

I am with you 100% on this. I work full time online and consider myself to be an internet professional with some standing on other sites. I come here primarily to buy and discover that I am unable even to leave positive feedback when a transaction has been successful. Add to that the fact that I am beginning to think that I would like to sell some of my domains also but discover that I need to somehow increase my posts before I can do so. All in all, like yourself I am finding the whole experience very frustrating - at least on a positive note there are plenty of places to leave a post. But it shouldn't be necessary and insistence on these rules will indeed contribute to a lower standard of post as people try to get their numbers up. Just mad.

 

Sarah,

Can't say I disagree with anything you say however one of the core problems is with moderation. I have 10 posts plus probably another 10 comments so far - Of the 20, only 6 are accounted for with only 3 being approved. For the 3 that have not been approved, one I can only assume was moderated very superficially without really looking at the content before passing judgement as the judgement was clearly wrong, a 2nd was not approved for a trivial reason which was such an insignificant part of the post the decision again made little sense and the last one - ok I agree with the third one..

I still have 14 that simply have dissapeared into no-man's land... This is not lack of quality related as some of those replies were extremely well written and through in terms of content...

Why post if nothing shows up?

 

Yes, I can understand why the rules exist - but in my experience scammers and spammers are sufficently motivated to overcome any rules. To be honest, a scammer is rather more likely than I am to be focused on posting so that they can scam! For my part, I have other things on my mind... which is why I don't often post in forums, even those where I have been a member for years. Perhaps at the very least it should be possible to leave feedback where a significant purchase has taken place? It just seems like a reasonable courtesy to a decent seller.

 

iTrader is being discontinued so it really does not matter.

 

Not sure if this is really the place to ask... but why? Do you know?

 

Refer to thread entitled,"I am getting fake negative ratings. Do the moderaters have any control on DP users?" read post #4.

 

i have to say i'm with you on this one. i have been reading the forum for a while and just recently joined. since i joined couple of days ago, i believe i made a good 15+ posts all of which are replies to existing threads. as far as i'm concerned, all my comments are on topic and provides helpful insight to the initial query. yet, only one post seems to be approved so far with the rest either waiting moderation or missing in action.

i understand a popular forum like DP attracts lot of spammers so rules have to be in place to counter spam. however, it is also important to identify who are spammers and who are contributors. in an attempt to counter spam, dp should not discourage real members who are here not just to get benefit from the forum but at the same time make some contribution to the community