What to do with deactivated users?

MOliveira · 2024-08-21T08:51:19+00:00

There was an error rendering this rich post.

Hi community, I'm looking for tips on how to manage user profiles and their content once they have to be deleted.
Due to all those acronyms related to privacy regulations around the world, we are required to remove former customers and their data from our database after a while. That same process should extend to the community, so how do other community builders out there manage this process?

Find more posts tagged with

User Management

Community Management

Comments

Kirstie Macfarlane

Hi @MOliveira - thanks for your question!

There are a few ways you can treat deleted users and their content, but generally we would recommend one of these two:

Keep the user content - the user's content remains in place and is untouched.
Blank the user content - the user's content is replaced with a message stating that the user has been deleted.

The issue with deleting users and their content is that it can disrupt any discussions that they started or participated in.

If you choose to keep the user content, their post will remain but their username will be replaced with "Deleted User". This is the best option in terms of maintaining the value of the content they have added to your community.

If you choose to blank the user content, their content will also be removed but a placeholder will remain showing other users that there was a post at one point. This can help users to understand why the flow of the discussion might not make complete sense.

I hope this helps, I'm interested to see what other Community Managers suggest!

MOliveira

Hi @Kirstie Macfarlane thank you for that. One related question: how about former members of your team who had a strong presence in the community before but have since moved on? It makes sense to want to keep their posts and make other members of one’s community aware that these are people who spoke for the team before but no longer have active profiles. How do you or anyone else here in the Vanilla community manage this?

Kirstie Macfarlane

Hi @MOliveira - good question.

In that case I would likely spoof into that account and change the username to something generic like "Vanilla Team" (as if it were a joint staff account) or "Former Vanilla Staff" so the content is preserved as "Company Generated Content" but no longer under a particular person.

hannahhowle

https://success.vanillaforums.com/discussion/comment/8914#Comment_8914

@MOliveira you could also consider using roles & ranks to display a "Former Employee" label next to the user's username. To do this, you would move the user into a "Former Employee" role. Then, you can create a Rank with the Criteria: Must have role of Former Employee and theme the rank label however you'd like. See example below:

LiselotteP

I use the former employee role :)

and for other Community members, after 1 year of no login, I give them an Alumni role, that way, we delete the user account from our SSO, but not the content on Community

Quick Links

Upcoming Events

How the Rules of SEO Are Being Rewritten in 2025
Generative Engine Optimization? AIOs? The end of search as we know it? 2025 promises to be a long, strange year for SEO. If you’re wondering how to survive it, you’re not alone. Learn more about the key trends driving change in search, which ones teams will need to adapt to, and which ones are just scary acronyms you’re…
HLV Connect: Open Session
⭐️ Got something cool to share? Have a victory in your community and want to show off your accomplishments with fellow community builders? 🙋 Got questions? Bring your community, tactical and random questions and get answers from peers and Vanilla experts! 🗓 Join me and @paddykelly, and a group of your peers for our next…