You haven't been online long if you haven't had to learn how to deal with critics, haters, and trolls. They are everywhere. Your Facebook page, the comments section of newspaper articles, and even your blog comments. The more traffic you get, the more critics you'll have. 

I’m sure I’m not the only one with a distinct memory for those mean-spirited or otherwise critical comments on Facebook, Twitter, or my blog. In this episode I talk with Kami Huyse from Zoetica Media about her experience with online critics. She spent two years with a critic who followed her to every online space she frequented, calling her names and publicly attacking her. Yowza!

Kami offers advice on how to deal with criticism and even when we should consider criticism a GOOD thing.

You can find Kami at the Zoetica Media, on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram. Check out her SlideShare for more great content! This year, she was able to launch the CiviliNation Harassment Barometer, a quarterly report that monitors online harassment in the US. You can sign up to receive that report for free!

 

Highlights from the Episode

• You will not be able to avoid conflict online, but you can minimize it by the type of content you post and the ways you interact.
• Many times conflict in the comments deals with character of the commenter, not the issue at hand. (Make sure you don’t fall into this trap!)
• Deleting your Facebook account is pretty drastic, but it is not a bad idea to evaluate whether online interaction is something you can handle.
• Don’t react. RESPOND.
• Criticism stings, but can also sometimes help you see where you have room to grow. Take some time to think about whether the criticism has any truth before you dismiss it.

 

Easy Traps to Fall into with Criticism

• Defending yourself TOO much
• Taking things too personally
• Unleashing your fans on the offending commenter
• Responding in the moment without taking time to think about it

 

How to Handle Critics & Trolls

• Prepare yourself from them and know that they WILL come.
• When you receive a negative or nasty comment, pause.
• Type out a response in another program that is not online so you won’t be tempted to hit send. Come back and read it later to see if you REALLY want to send it.
• Remember that you are not likely to change someone’s mind about you.
• Keep some amount of separation between your online world and your real world.

 

Questions to Ask before Diving into the Fray

• Is there any truth to the criticism or comment that you might grow from?
• Do you really NEED to respond?
• Are you adding value to the conversation?
• How will the readers watching perceive your handling of the situation?
• Does a response to the critic fit with the brand or persona you have built online?
• What will you gain from engaging? What will you lose if you don’t?
  
  

Helpful links:

• CiviliNation
• Civility in the Digital Age
• How to Deal with Social Media Trolls
• Should You Turn Off Comments on Your Blog?

 

Have you experienced criticism online? How did you deal with it?