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University Marketing and Communications

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  3. Guidelines & Policies
  4. Social Media Guidelines
  5. Community Interaction and Moderation

Guidelines & Policies

Community Interaction and Moderation

Interaction

Engaging with your followers and the community on behalf of the social media profile that you manage is encouraged. Interacting with your audience in the comments can increase your reach and sparks great engagement, building affinity for the University.

Always be mindful of your voice and tone when interacting with others online to ensure that what you do and say is in line withʉ۪s mission and values. Think carefully about the context of what you are saying to make sure it cannot be misinterpreted.

When to Respond

  • General Engagement: Triage or respond to comments, direct messages and mentions as promptly as possible to maintain an active and approachable presence.
  • Praise and Positive Feedback: Acknowledge compliments and expressions of pride with simple, genuine responses to reinforce community connection. For example, if someone comments, “whose house?,” it’s always great to respond with a proud “Coogs’ house!”
  • Event-Specific Posts: Monitor posts related to live events or announcements more frequently to engage in real-time.
  • Questions: Answer inquiries promptly, providing accurate and concise information. Redirect to other departments when necessary.
  • Escalations: Recognize when an issue requires input from another department or higher-level staff member and ensure it is handled quickly and professionally.

Handling Negative Feedback

  • Ignore Trolls: Refrain from responding to comments clearly intended to provoke or incite hostility. Focus on addressing concerns from those genuinely seeking assistance, and recognize when someone is expressing anger without a sincere desire for resolution. The latter should usually not be publicly responded to.
  • Acknowledge Concerns: If we are in the position to potentially improve something for someone who has a genuine complaint, respond respectfully, showing empathy and understanding without being defensive. Example: “Thank you for sharing your concerns. We have shared this feedback with the appropriate team.” However, be cautious, as doing this could potentially draw more public attention or validity to the concern.
  • Avoid Arguments: Do not engage in debates or escalate the conversation in public comments. Always keep responses professional and neutral.
  • Redirect to Private Messages: For sensitive or ongoing issues, ask the commenter to privately message so we can look into their situation. Example: “We’d love to assist you further — please send us a private message so we can help.”
  • Don’t Make Guarantees: Be careful to not guarantee a solution to someone’s issue, even if it seems like there is a clear path to a resolution. Sometimes things are not as they seem. For example, do not say, “Please email the Office of Undergraduate Admissions so they can get you registered for the June 16 New Student Orientation.” Instead, use language like, “Please email the Office of Undergraduate Admissions to see how they may be able to help with New Student Orientation.”
  • Escalation Protocol: Follow a clear process for addressing serious complaints, ensuring proper documentation and timely escalation.

Moderation

The University is committed to fostering an educational environment that allows for freedoms of speech and expression in accordance with the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Posts, comments and messages left by other users that are protected by the First Amendment may not be deleted, and users cannot be blocked. Additionally, comment filtering must be disabled or set to the lowest possible setting.

Profile administrators must consult with the Office of General Counsel before taking any action against content on social media profiles. Profile administrators may refer social media activity that is inconsistent with the platform’s guidelines or terms of service to the applicable social media platform and/or authorities for appropriate action.

Title IX Obligation

University employees have mandatory reporting obligations and must report any incident of sexual misconduct to , including reports of potential sexual misconduct made on social media or received by direct message. Additionally, certain University employees also have reporting obligations and must report any incident of discrimination to , including reports of potential discrimination made on social media or received by direct message.

Crisis Communication

In moments of crisis or emergency, only share posts coming from the flagship University of Houston social media accounts, the 91ĆĆ˝â°ć Police Department, the 91ĆĆ˝â°ć Office of Environmental Health and Life Safety and the University of Houston Office of Emergency Management. Only create new posts when authorized by University officials.

In the event that your college/department becomes involved in a crisis or receives a high volume of negative feedback for any reason, reach out to UMC Social Media staff for guidance. Do not make any statements on behalf of the University. Additionally, please note the University’s protocol on issuing institutional statements.