Five Ways to Manage Comments on Facebook Page Posts
Recently, I shared a post on my Facebook page. It was an article on 10 things to know about COVID-19 vaccine. The post was boosted to target audiences across Nigeria. Expectedly, reactions were swift and varied.
I learnt lessons managing the comments. These are five lessons from my experience managing comments on my Facebook page posts.
First, your actions should be empowering. Your default mindset should be that everyone is sincere about their concerns until proven otherwise. Indeed, some people are genuine about their needs to have answers to issues that bother them. For example, one of the commenters wanted to know if COVID-19 vaccines are safe for women of childbearing age. I responded in the affirmative. I informed him that several researches show that the vaccine is safe for women of childbearing age and pregnant women. He thanked me.
Second, be honest with your own experiences. People connect with that. My response to comments on fear of side effects of COVID-19 vaccines was to share mine. I was drowsy after my first dose and slept soundly that night. I did not have any side effects after my second dose. After my booster dose, I was feverish, had body aches and pain at the injection site. All three symptoms disappeared by the third day.
Third, you must be alert to comments. Check your posts several times in a day. You want to make sure that genuine comments are responded to as soon as possible. In contrast, you want to ensure negative comments are removed from the public view immediately. You don’t want them to attract trolls.
Fourth, look out for those that turn your post into a marketplace. Hide such comments. These individuals descend on posts as bees to honey. For example, one was offering herbal remedies that could “cure” HIV/AIDS, sexually transmitted infections, epilepsy, cancers etc. Another offered to make people rich through many fraudulent means. I found their offers hilarious and misleading. I muted all of them.
Lastly, quietly disempower negative comments. These are made by trolls whose sole aim is to refuse to see reason. Such people are usually abusive. There are several ways to deal with them. You could hide their comments. Doing so is the easiest way to quietly remove a comment whether the commenter is simply misinformed or has ill-intent. This ensures others like them do not latch on and propagate more hateful comments. If they persist, you could ban them from engaging with your page or block them outrightly. I did all three in responding to such comments to my post. For instance, I blocked the people who called me an idiot. Same for the one who asked God to punish me and the one who called me a “useless soul”.
Managing Facebook page comments is tasking. However, the rewards could be lifesaving. Do not relent. Be alert. Keep pushing.
