The Moderation Playbook You Should Write Before You Need It

The Problem

You have 2,000 members. It's Saturday. Someone starts a fight in a comment thread. Members DM you asking if you saw it. You didn't — you were at dinner. By Sunday morning, three long-time members have quietly left.

If you write the moderation playbook after the incident, you're already late.

Why It Happens

Communities self-govern up to about 300 members. Past that, one loud negative voice can dominate the room. Without a written policy, every case becomes a judgment call, and inconsistency erodes trust faster than the original incident.

The Written Community Agreement

Publish a single pinned post with four sections. Keep it under 400 words.

1. What this community is for

One sentence. "This is a community for X people working on Y."

2. Three explicit norms

Not vague values — behaviors.

• "Feedback is direct and specific. Vague praise is fine; vague criticism is not."
• "Self-promotion happens only in #wins. Anywhere else is a strike."
• "Disagreement is welcome. Personal attacks are an instant ban."

3. The 3-strike rule

• Strike 1: Private DM. Explain the norm violated. No public callout.
• Strike 2: Public warning + 7-day mute.
• Strike 3: Permanent removal, no refund.

Exceptions: spam, harassment, illegal content = instant ban, no strikes.

4. How to report

One link. One person (you, or your mod). One promised response time (24 hours).

The Moderator Role

Past 1,000 members, appoint one moderator. Pick a member who:

• Has been in the community 3+ months.
• Posts weekly.
• Has already de-escalated something in comments.

Give them:

• Admin permissions.
• A private mod channel with you.
• A one-page written SOP (mirrors the community agreement).
• Recognition: a badge, a shoutout, and — if you can — free membership or a small monthly stipend.

One good mod handles 90% of incidents before they reach you.

The Weekend Kill Switch

You will not be online 24/7. Publish this norm openly: "Weekend threads that get heated will be locked, not deleted, until Monday morning. This is a feature, not a bug."

Members respect a founder who protects the room over one who tries to be everywhere.

Do This Today

Draft the community agreement in a doc. Keep it under 400 words. Pin it to the top of the feed by end of day. You don't need a moderator yet — you need the rules written down before you need them.

Next Steps

Beyond moderation, the whole community needs operational structure — see Systems and Team for a 5,000-Member Community.