Whether your brand runs an online marketplace, dating app, gaming community, or social media platform, you know that user experience is everything. 

Positive experiences will keep your users coming back, while abusive and offensive content will drive them away — and if it’s severe or frequent enough, you could even receive bad press or negative word-of-mouth. 

It’s vital to remove harmful content before it impacts your users and damages your brand, but that’s often easier said than done. 

To make the process more efficient, many organizations choose to outsource content moderation, which enables better cost containment, increased scalability, better resource allocation, and more. 

But what should you look for in a content moderation outsourcing partner? 

Here are the top seven considerations to keep in mind as you evaluate your options:

1. Alignment with Your Business Needs

When it comes to content moderation, industry- and platform-specific experience matters. 

Look for a provider that has extensive experience in moderating within your specific industry and has worked with businesses similar to yours. Moderating a dating app, for example, is very different from moderating a gaming platform, and will require a different approach. It’s best if your provider understands the ins and outs of your platform type. 

Additionally, consider the types of user-generated content that need moderation (blog posts, images, videos, comments, user profiles, etc.) and the platforms where that content is hosted. A solid partner will have the necessary capabilities and experience to work with the platforms and content types that matter most for your brand.

2. Scalability and Future-Proofing

Your current business needs shouldn’t be your only consideration — what about your future needs? Your content volume may grow unexpectedly, especially if you launch new features or experience a sudden surge in users.

Look for a partner that can handle your current volume of content and scale up in the future as needed, without compromising on quality.

3. Contract Style

Especially with a growing platform, getting stuck in a rigid contract is the last thing you want. 

As your needs change, will your provider accommodate quickly and easily, or will you have to battle mountains of red tape and frequent change orders? 

Look for a contract with built-in flexibility that allows you to scale up and down easily.

4. Technology

Technology — including AI tools like natural language processing (NLP), computer vision, user behavior analysis, and sentiment analysis — can augment the work of human moderators to make your content moderation workflow more accurate and efficient.

What kind of technology does the provider offer, and are their AI solutions balanced with human input to ensure the best possible outcomes?

5. Multilingual Support

To cultivate an inclusive online space, content moderation must be effective no matter what language it’s in. 

Look for a provider that offers multilingual content moderation services in your target languages. If a provider doesn't currently have capabilities / talent on hand to support moderation in a particular language, will they work with you to expand their capabilities and hire new talent to meet your needs?

Depending on your global expansion plans, also consider languages you may need support for in the future.

6. Data Security

Protecting your users’ data is paramount for maintaining their trust. The Cisco 2024 Data Privacy Benchmark Study found that 94% of organizations say their customers would not buy from them if they didn’t protect data properly. 

As with any partnership, it’s vital to vet a prospective partner’s data security and privacy policies — as your outsourcing provider, they’ll have access to sensitive user data. 

Does the provider in question have clear policies? Are they compliant with all applicable regulations? How will they protect your users’ personal information from data breaches and unauthorized access? Are their employees trained on how to appropriately handle user data? 

The right provider will provide transparent, up-to-date information to answer these questions.

7. Employee Wellness

Reviewing offensive and disturbing content on a daily basis can take a toll on moderators’ mental health, resulting in burnout and high turnover that tanks efficiency.

Look for a provider who:

• Takes steps to minimize moderators’ exposure to harmful content (e.g. using AI to screen images)
• Maintains a company culture that supports mental health and wellness
• Has a high employee retention rate (which often reflects the employer’s commitment to preventing burnout)

Happier employees are more productive, so it pays to partner with an outsourcing provider that values their moderators as people. 

Outsource Smarter

Your organization’s content moderation can either frustrate your users or drive brand loyalty and trust. 

It’s vital to choose an outsourcing partner that works well for your business needs, optimizes your content moderation process, effortlessly scales with you even during periods of rapid growth, and most importantly, helps create a safer, more enjoyable experience for your users.

At SupportNinja, we know how challenging — and important — it is to moderate user-generated content at scale. Our content moderation experts will help you safeguard your platform or online community according to your unique guidelines.