Introducing Support Staff?

[GoldenMerc]

The amount of tickets Habbox gets on a day to to day basis isn't that much really.

Tell me figures matthew, as a leading director in this company i deserve to know

[scott]

Not every day we get a ticket, sometimes we can go 2 or 3 days without getting a ticket and then other days we can get 2 in the one day the support system isn't used that much I'd much rather be in control of who gets unbanned and not unbanned on the forum etc rather than passing it over to someone else to do - so if it was introduced then I'd want them to ask or tell me if it was done (That might sound like i want loads of power or whatever but it's the exact same as I need to know why someone gets banned/warned/infracted etc) and then it would just add even more people to go through and at Habbox I think we have enough of that

I don't think waiting 24 hours for a reply is that bad, I reply to them as soon as I can which generally is less than 24 hours anyway as I check it regularly throughout the day.

[-Danube-]

It's a nice idea in theory, but for it to be efficient we'd have to give them access to everything they would need, which basically creates more admins and more risk for the site. The reason why i say we'd need to give them access to things is because if they don't have it, then they would have to ask an Admin for say a ban reason etc etc and submit requests and stuff, which just prolongs the actual process. Rather than an admin just dealing with it straight away, you'd get the support staff having to submit requests to the admins for things etc, meaning that the admin is essentially still a major part in the whole process.

I really don't think there is much of an issue with the support system as it is? If it ever got as bad as Sulake then maybe we'd have to open a call centre

[The Don]

Fine guys, i'll step up and take one for the team and become an admin...

[nvrspk4]

The reason I see to keep ban appeals to the administrators is the bans are a reflection of the moderation mentality. Support staff would have to be versed in Moderation Department procedures so that they could evaluate ban reasons. On a side note, they'd also need access to infractions and the restricted post section that only SMods and Admins can see (or perhaps that has changed). But back to the moderation mentality, they'd be judging moderation decisions without having actually moderated themselves. If you're picking people with lots of moderation experience, why aren't they SMods/Admins anyway?

Also, ban appeals is where you find issues with the moderation if at all, and bans are usually issued by Super Moderators. If there is a problem pattern emerging in bans, its best if the administrators are the ones checking as they will realize and will be able to speak with authority to the Super Moderators and correct issues with moderation as they arise. Also, creating a group that can override the bans of Super Moderators that have usually had quite a bit of moderation experience and have worked hard to get to that position is going to create bad feelings.

Finally, keeping the number of people who review bans small leads to consistent policies, instead of people getting unbanned based on who views the ban report. A 24hr response time to bans is pretty damn good. After all, wrongful bans aren't such a problem that you should be seeking support to appeal bans all that often.

Just my two cents.