Do you use blogs for your assoc.

Started by KrystalA • 11 replies • 1452 views

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KrystalA (Iowa)
Posts: 60

Posted:

I have recently been asked about incorporating a blog into our site, more for news purposes than anything.

Does anyone here utilize one, and if so, can you provide a url? I would be curious what all people do with them

Thanks

DonnaS (Tennessee)
Posts: 5,671

Posted:

Krystal,
A blog is fun but and I do mean BUT!!! Unless you have it monitored constantly, it can turn into a slugfest and the Board will be the first casualty. You would like to believe that adults can be able to not be nasty and vindictive but it seems that being able to write something nasty is easier than a face to face confrontation. Like I said, it can be and should be a positive place to go but it won't stay that way for long. You will have to have very stringent limitations on it's use.

KrystalA (Iowa)
Posts: 60

Posted:

Oh, sadly it wouldn't surprise me how "adults" can end up behaving. I think we will most likely put something in stating that we will remove inappropriate comments, and if needed, we will take legal action for slanderous comments.

Its a big risk, but knowing how little past boards wanted homeowners to know, this might actually help us build a decent community again.

RobertR1 (South Carolina)
Posts: 5,164

Posted:

KystralA,
Do you have a web site? Is it a Board Web site?

If yes, consider having a comments section on your web site.

If not, consider starting one (check HOA Web sites to left of this posting)

Let me say the Most Boards hate Comment section on their web site. Claim it breeds hate and discontent and misunderstanding, and will not allow them. If you put up a Blog personally and use the name of your association, you may be making trouble for yourselve. Check out the possibilities with HOA website, tell them you post on HOATalk,

Personally, comment sections on Web sites and Blogs are just conversations. If you don't like what is said in a conversation you leave or you justify your point. Don't let anyone tell you Blogs and Comment sections on web site don't work. If the Board is afraid of them, they are in the wrong business, in fact the Board don't even have to read them, but as much as they condeem them, they read them and that is when trouble really starts. Blogs and comments are not useful if they get out of control. But, we don't have to let them run wild, nor should they be restricted. The trick is to have 99% of the posters thinking constructive, not necessarily what the Board thinks. If a poster makes a reasonable post prompted by concern, he has a message. And people get into arguments but it is no different than in a selective group talking among themselves about something that concerns all of them.

Should the Board jump up and start running around in circles because they are trying to please all the posters. Not. People are not going to stop talking if they have a concern. I think some boards attach way too much importance when folks talk about them. Take the good stuff and leave the bad, just like living.

hoatalk (California)
Posts: 599

Posted:

Krystal,

Many of our Community123.com website customers have various versions of online forums like this one at our HOATalk site. Each Board has it's own style on how they want member feedback.

Some of our customers use our community-wide discussion forum which includes all members in the conversation via email alerts. Some leave this open and others require every message to be approved prior to appearing on the site.

Other Community123 customers use our Online Suggestion Box which only emails the Board when new messages are posted (not all members). It does not pull the whole community into the conversation and is more for members to speak with the Board.

Some of our community websites have no online forums at all, at the request of the Board, for various reasons. However, the Board still uses our Email Announcements feature to post community announcements that are emailed to all members.

Just consider that when an 'official' community website is launched, the Board has some responsibility over the content of that site. If members are allowed to post inappropriate material then the Board could have some responsibility in that and it certainly would not reflect well on the community. This is why most Boards are sensitive to allowing member postings to a community website.

There are many technical options out there and we have seen wonderful results from all of them in various communities. The community forum, if used properly, can be a powerful tool to bring the community together. If left open and unmonitored it can also become a soapbox for a few negative individuals to spoil the website for the rest.

If you decide to allow member contributions on your website in any form, just consider that eventually someone will see it as their opportunity to hijack the site for their own purposes, be it posting sales ads or negative rants about the Board. For this reason, there must be clear posting rules and some mechanism for the Board to oversee or approve the posted content (email notices are the method we use).

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hoatalk (California)
Posts: 599

Posted:

PS - If you are talking about a blog where only the Board or website committee posts community news then that's a great idea and should cause no issues at all, because the regular members can't post to it.

However, blogs don't normally email their posts to members so you may get better results with a system that emails the news to members as well.

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KrystalA (Iowa)
Posts: 60

Posted:

Quote:

Posted By hoatalk on 12/01/2007 5:41 PM
PS - If you are talking about a blog where only the Board or website committee posts community news then that's a great idea and should cause no issues at all, because the regular members can't post to it.

However, blogs don't normally email their posts to members so you may get better results with a system that emails the news to members as well.

Thata exactly what we are going to do. Set it up for no comments and more for a easy way to get information out to the owners. Eventually we hope to set it up with an email feature, but we want to get all the privacy rules established.

DonnaS (Tennessee)
Posts: 5,671

Posted:

Krystal,
Now you're talking. Keep absolute control until the posters get the idea that it is a positive site. It can be fun and useful but with restrictions.

JosephW (Michigan)
Posts: 882

Posted:

Most blog software has a feature that let's you notify people when something new is posted, via e-mail. Also, blogs allow you to use RSS which you can then post the latest x number of article titles to any page in your web site.

Blogs only work when you update them regularly. Have a list of potential posts that you can use when there isn't much news.

Joe

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PatrickS (Washington)
Posts: 34

Posted:

We did it at first thinking it would foster community activism, but it just was a way to anonymously slam your neighbor. If it is used with the no comment feature, I am sure it would be great. It caused so much heartache in our community, we shut it down.

JohnO6 (Georgia)
Posts: 424

Posted:

If you want to use Discussion Forums on your website, they should be accessible only to members who are logged into the website. Then, the message posting process technology should automatically capture their name so that no posts are anonymous. That will go a long way towards avoiding the "bashing" mentality.

GeraldT4
Posts: 1,022

Posted:

KrystalA - You state you've been recently asked to incorporate the blog into your site. First, is there a monetary or time and energy cost of doing so? Most certainly there is a time and energy cost when it comes to monitoring, correct? Who is going to screen the posts and therefore monitor them to prevent possible inflammatory remarks? All it takes is one bad egg and all bets are off. IMHO I'd treat the request for a blog the same I would with any request to do something that uses association funds. I'd need to know how many are asking for the feature so the ends justify the means. Is it just one or two owners, is it a quorum of the community, etc.? While I understand and respect your intent to promote communication, and or community spirit, the blog and website can't negate the other more traditional means of communication which are necessary and typical components of fiduciary responsibility.

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