After reading Tweet with Other B2B Marketers on B2B Chat, I watched my first Twitter chat. I logged in to TweetChat for #Solopr halfway through their discussion hour. As I was trying to make sense of the comments, hashtags, retweets and quick flow of posts, I saw Q4 – during the hour maybe 4 questions were thrown out and a few good answers too.
But I did catch something no one else seemed to catch: one truly great suggestion was lost in the flow of posts—no one ever responded to her!
Now, even though her suggestion was late in the hour, a good moderator would pick up on that suggestion (not just a RT of someone else's comment) and answer it or suggest next steps. That's when I realized the problem: no one claimed the "Host" status at the top of the page. So who was the moderator?
This got me thinking… Does every meeting, forum, panel or discussion need a moderator? Yes, I believe so! Wherever you find a successful discussion, a good moderator or leader was present to keep the discussion on-focus.
Below are four basic principles of a good moderator in any format. (And had there been a moderator who used these principles, #Solopr's Twitter Chat would've been more valuable.)
- A moderator must respect the participants.
David L. Morgan in his book Moderating Focus Group, Volume 4 points out in the first paragraph that the moderator must be interested in the participants and truly believe they have wisdom or valuable insights.
- A moderator must listen closely.
Listening is a most important and, I admit, most difficult task! Even more so when the comments and answers are flying by on an online discussion board. Catching the nuggets within a host of chatter can be difficult. But moderators who are focused, looking for specific answers, can detect the nuggets. Especially if the moderator has prepared the questions ahead, he/she should have a general idea of what answers may be given.
- A moderator must keep control of the discussion/topic.
Jeremiah Owyang, a columnist for Forbes CMO Network, has moderated many panels and has written a detailed blog post How to Successfully Moderate a Conference Panel, A Comprehensive Guide. In the section "when to assert control," he suggests that it's the moderator's job to never allow one panelist to overpower the others and to continue guiding discussions back into context.
- A moderator should wrap up the discussion with a quick summary.
One participant in the #Solopr Twitter chat suggested this – a wrap-up. But as I watched, no one followed through. So what did they spend one hour discussing and what was the value of it? I have no idea.
Don't waste other's time, or your own. Hire good moderators –or step up and become one yourself! What holds you back from being a discussion leader?