Your Ideas needed! What would a verified member acct look like!?
One idea, I have long percolated on is a verified member acct. In the upcoming weeks, we will be announcing more information about a verified member system. The key feature will be member email confirmation to unlock participation in some parts of the site.
Since day one, listeners have had to verify their email ids in order to sign up. From there, with experience and trust built up in the community, they can apply for the Verified Listener badge after completing a mock chat with a member of the VL team. For context, prior to becoming Verified, a listener must reach the below milestones:
A. Have 50+ Chats
B. Have 1100+ Cheers (Novice Level 4)
C. Have 1+ positive written reviews
We want to bring a similar program to the member side for the following reasons -
-allow members to build trust and reputation in the community
-allow trusted members to help with quality assurance around the site
-allow members to show their level of commitment to their personal growth journeys and our community
So my question to all of you is……
What could this look like? We will be asking members to verify their emails, but beyond this, what baseline criteria would a member have to reach to become verified" ???
Some examples of possible criteria are -
-50 chats with listeners
-10 upvotes on the forum
-X number growth points
-zero mutes, warnings, behavior points
-------> Please share your feedback in this thread. And vote on some criteria options here. I want use a form for this to ensure I capture all of the ideas and feedback in one structured place.
**id love to hear from as many members as possible. Listeners, you are welcome to give feedback, but I encoueage you to put on your member hat. We want this program to represent and enhance the member experience.
I completely agree! The amount of accounts I have had attacking me and being really inappropriate that return on another account when I block them, is unbelievable. We need to protect our listeners in addition to our members!
@determinedocean3012
@bestdime2473 @hollowman84
I have deleted comments that were unrelated to this topic and are inappropriate to bring up in the forums. If there are concerns about specific accounts, it's best to talk to the community manages about that.
@AffyAvo I understand. I was already flagging my comments anyways and wanted them deleted because I recognize that they were out of place and should not appear in a forum, should not be visible for just anyone to see. So I am glad that the comments were deleted and I apologize for posting them in the first place.
@hollowman84 Thanks for understanding! I think we've all been upsaid and said something we wish we could take back. In a forum at least that's possible to take out for future readers 
This message is to everyone arguing in this forum
We all have our differences and opinion's, but let's keep them on a netural level in this forum to avoid anymore conflict. Let's keep it on the subject/topic it was meant for. Thank you Everyone have an amazing day and don't let other's bring you down.
I would never have found or joined this community if it had any sort of real life verification. Anonymity is why I feel comfortable being here.
There are so many other options to solve this problem! Here are a few to consider before forcing verification. Delete problem accounts behind the scenes like online dating sites do. Have a report user feature to only penalize the bad ones rather that penalize everyone. Use email verification and only allow one account per email address. Couch surfing added optional verification and their enrollment and use plummeted, and that was a trust-based community. Many other industries with free online membership have solved this before. Verification reduces your trust in us, opposite why I came in the first place.
@onwardforevenmore @laura @affyavo
After reading your post I agree that yours are better ideas for verification thsn real-ID verification methods.
@onwardforevenmore
I'm for this guy's ideas--make it more difficult to create an account here. Better yet, I think making more requirements to become a listener would be a good idea as well. I've heard stories of people getting listeners that were unsupportive, giving unsolicited feedback and the like.
Yes please to do it, i want a verified badge
@Laura
I'll post some ideas over the next few days.
Maybe you could make it so that only one account can be made on a single device?
Hi People,
I am new to this site and yes, the anonymity is why I joined. If I had to give personal data (in this era of massive data breaches) I would not have joined. I was saddened to see that there are trolls on this site and wonder about the type of gratification they could possibly recieve by attacking someone seeking help. The thought that there are people who derive pleasure from this type of activity makes me depressed and question where our society is headed.
I have no solution other than to leave it anonymous which will protect the victim, block the culprits as they come to light. Perhaps the mediators can review and block them across the site? They can make new accounts quickly but, they can be blocked even quicker. Frustrate them and eventually they will go away...like a skin tag...
If you really want to see how many accounts they have, don't read the entire post - it will just bring you down. Once you know the comment is disparaging, send them a totally unrelated response and immediately block them. Soon, if they are persistent, they will come at you again under a different account referencing your comment (make it a really bizarre one that invites ridicule). Keep repeating the process and have some fun with your remarks (hint: keep them clean and completely off topic as that what upsets these types the most). Eventually, even a rock would move on.
Cheers,
Steve