We’d love your thoughts on how we introduce @mentions

[ProjectTeam]

Hi everyone,

We are getting ready to introduce @mentions to the Beyond Blue Forums.

@Mentions will let members tag another member in a post (for example @ExampleMember). This can help keep conversations clearer, especially when a few people are participating in the same discussion.

Before we roll the feature out, we want to make sure it is introduced in a way that feels safe, respectful, and supportive for the community. To help with that, we have drafted some guidelines and FAQs about how @mentions should be used, and we would really value your feedback on those.

We would love your thoughts by Friday 13 March.

Here is a short summary of the key points from the draft FAQs and Forums Guidelines.

• @Mentions are designed to help conversations flow.
  They are there to help keep discussions clear when several members are taking part.
• Replying to mentions is optional.
  If someone mentions you, it is simply an invitation to reply. There is no expectation to respond, and it is always okay to step back.
• Mentions send notifications.
  You will receive a notification on the Forums when you are mentioned. You will also receive an email notification unless you have adjusted or turned @mention email notifications off in your settings.
• They should not be used to pressure anyone.
  This includes repeatedly tagging someone or trying to hurry a response.
• They should not be used to pull people into discussions.
  In particular, @mentions should not be used to bring specific members into conversations in the PTSD and trauma or Suicidal thoughts and self-harm topics.
• Please do not @mention moderators.
  The moderation team’s account (Sophie_M) should not be tagged. If you need moderator help, please use the Report Post button or email modsupport@beyondblue.org.au
• Community Champions can be mentioned, but there is no expectation they will reply.
  They are part of the community like everyone else.
• Moderators can step in if @mentions are misused.
  This might include editing or removing posts, issuing warnings, or limiting access to the feature to help keep the Forums safe and supportive.

If you would like more detail, you can also read:

• The full draft FAQs
• The draft Forums Guidelines update

You do not need to read the full guidelines and FAQs to provide feedback. Feedback on the points above is just as helpful.

What we would love your feedback on

We are keen to hear your thoughts on:

• Does this guidance feel clear and reasonable?
• Is anything missing or confusing?
• Do you have any concerns about how @mentions might affect your experience on the Forums?
• Is there anything that would help this feature be introduced more smoothly?

How to share your thoughts

You can reply to this post with your feedback. Short or long responses are both welcome.

If you can, please share your thoughts by Friday 13 March so we can review everything together.

If you would rather share something privately, you are also welcome to contact the moderation team at modsupport@beyondblue.org.au

What happens next

We will use the feedback you provide to refine the FAQs and guidelines ahead of launching the @mentions feature.

Thanks for being part of the Beyond Blue Forums. Your perspectives really do help shape how the Forums work.

Project Team
Beyond Blue

[Ggrand]

Hi Project team,

Thank you so much for helping me to understand more about this new @ addition to the forums…I appreciate you all so much….

I think it will be a trail and error sort of thing until we all get comfortable with it…I’m not good with changes so please have patience with me…

Also am I right in thinking that the @button, when pressed on,  takes us directly to that particular post?…

Grandy..

[Rustyswingset]

perhaps there could be some sort of automatic filtering that detects any sort of spam or unkind/inappropriate messages? People can be assholes, and having a safe space invaded isn't great. (I don't know if there's any history of this happening here, but it's happened on other websites so i think it's best to be safe)

[ProjectTeam]

Hi Grandy,

Thank you for your kind words. We really appreciate you sharing how you’re feeling.

Change can be challenging for many of us, and you’re not alone in that. We are trying to make changes to the Forums more regularly, but keep each change small. Our hope is that this makes it easier for people to adjust at their own pace.

With @mentions, you don’t need to use the feature at all if you don’t want to. Others may choose to mention you in their posts, but responding is completely up to you, just as it is now.

One difference you may notice is that, by default, you will receive an email notification if someone mentions you. You’ll be able to turn these emails off completely, or change how often you receive them, if you prefer.

So you can choose how much or how little you engage with this feature, and your Forums experience can stay much the same if that feels more comfortable.

To answer your question, when you are mentioned you’ll be able to get to that post in the same way you do now when there are new replies. You can click through from the email notification, or from the notification you’ll see in your Forums notification feed.

Please don’t worry about needing to get comfortable with this straight away. Take your time, and we’ll be patient too.

[ProjectTeam]

Hi Rustyswingset,

A warm welcome to the Forums, and thank you for taking the time to share this.

Keeping the Forums a safe and supportive space is really important to us, so your suggestion is a great one. We do already have protections like this in place.

When a member starts a new discussion or replies to a post, what they write is automatically checked against our community guidelines. This helps us manage things that aren’t appropriate for the Forums, as well as topics we can’t safely discuss here, such as medication names and methods of self‑harm.

In most cases, posts appear very quickly. You may just need to refresh the page after a minute or so to see your post.

Sometimes a post is held briefly so one of our moderators can review it. This is usually so they can make a small edit to help keep the community safe and within guidelines. In rare situations, a post may not be able to be published at all, and if that happens we’ll always let the member know via email.

In addition to this, every post has a “Report post” button. This allows any member to flag something for a moderator to review if it feels unkind, inappropriate, or concerning. It’s an important way the community helps us look out for one another.

Alongside these tools, our moderation team actively looks after the community and steps in where needed. This helps us respond quickly and protect the sense of safety here.

If you’d like to learn more, we have a short explainer on how moderation works here: How are the Forums moderated?

You can also read more about our community guidelines here: Forums guidelines.

Thanks again for your thoughtful feedback, and welcome. If you have any other ideas or suggestions, the How can we improve the Forums? discussion is always open.

[white knight]

Thanks project team

Following your explanations and the fact that the older I get the less changes I like (LOL) I'm warming to the concept.

Cheers

TonyWK 

[Happylife]

Thanks Team, this is a wonderful idea...

Take care

Happylife