To think there are way too many engagement farming threads on MN nowadays? s?

[MrMurphysComeuppance]

Do you know what an engagement farming thread is, and what the classic signs are to spot one? If not then you are probably being taken in on a daily basis on this forum by 'posters' who are not genuine about problems and dilemmas that are not real.

The site is absolutely awash with them. It's been a big issue for the last year or so and it really is getting ridiculous now. These 'posters' often start threads that can run for days and days with pages of responses, but after the initial OP and maybe one or two quick follow up posts, the 'OP' is nowhere to be seen. And they are always (or almost always) a first time poster/brand new user name. Even if they have posted on one or two other threads that day (very rare and only done occasionally to make the account look more genuine) they never have a proper posting history. There is a very good reason for this, which I can explain if anyone is interested.

Now I've been here a really long time and I name change often these days, for privacy reasons, but there is NO WAY I name change for every single thread I start and NO WAY I use a new name each and every time for my one thread only, without ever engaging on anyone else's threads using that same user name. Who on earth has time for that? That's just not normal forum behaviour. And yet that is what is happening on here, multiple times a day, across several accounts that only exist to generate fake threads and therefore traffic.

I can spot them a mile off now, they are so formulaic and predictable, but it really irritates me that so many posters are so gullible and get caught up in these long debates, giving their time and advice where is no genuine OP at the heart of it. You are being taken for suckers.

I can give you a detailed breakdown of what to look for in a probable engagement farming thread (or rage bait as they are often called, although they are often not always designed to get people in a rage, often just to spark long conversations and polarise opinion on a subject.)

MN is full of actual, intelligent human beings who are more than capable of starting interesting conversations by themselves. Or at least it used to be. Do we really need people/bots creating accounts then name changing several times a day to churn out fake thread after fake thread just to keep the clicks coming? It has massively dumbed down the site and no-one seems to care. Certainly the people who run the site don't seem to care, and why would they, when key strokes and clicks mean ££££?

It's increasingly difficult to confront the 'OPs' on the threads themselves without being accused of troll hunting and you can't start a thread about a thread, so I can't link to specific examples on this thread. But what I can do is explain how to spot a the very obvious engagement farming threads, so at least you can be more aware of when you are being sucked into one.

I agree and would be interested in your thoughts on what to look out for.

I don’t even know what engagement farming is!

This thread could even be engagement farming 😂

While I do agree, you are not going to get many people seeing past the fact you have called them suckers and that mn usesd to be full of intelligent people. Lots of people here are tired and just looking for ways to pass the time while a small child is asleep on them.

I also hate these threads- do you know WHY they appear, OP? Surely MN doesnt need to engagement farm as they have enough genuine users?

I do agree, and maybe MN do need to engagement farm as their new threads are way down on what they used to be.

There is a very good reason for this, which I can explain if anyone is interested.

you wrote six long paragraphs and you didn't explain in that time, @MrMurphysComeuppance ? Help me make it make sense.

Do we really need people/bots creating accounts then name changing several times a day to churn out fake thread after fake thread just to keep the clicks coming?

Absolutely not. We don't need this. But do the advertisers know this, or are they just being sent broad engagement stats? if the latter, then why would anyone at HQ change it? You need to dig deeper to find the mechanics of why anyone would change anything

It has massively dumbed down the site and no-one seems to care.

I care, others care, but how do we make anyone who runs things, care?

And what solution do you propose - people having to provide photo ID through verifiers , akin to adult sites?! There'd be a riot here, very few would want to provide that level of data.

Worse, it's a bit like trying to expand a motorway to a sixth lane, or a seventh lane, but stil seeing people drive at 50mph in lane 3 and 4

The answer doesn't necessarily lie in making changes, it lies in enforcing the rules we actually have.

Have to admit that if it’s a particularly contentious thread that runs on for many pages, I tend to look and see if the OP has returned before reading. Quite often they haven’t and it ends up becoming a bun fight between just a few posters which quickly gets tedious.

Clue 1: It's usually a dilemma of some sort. Often about disagreements with the in laws, family members or colleagues, inheritance dilemmas, child rearing differences of opinion, something they overheard that they shouldn't have and how it puts them in some very complicated awkward situation, weddings and whether or not someone can or should be excluded..... anything when there is a strong argument for both sides and it's guaranteed to divide opinion and lead to pages and pages of debate about how to proceed.

A typical example would be 'AIBU to not want MIL to stay at our house for a whole week over Christmas now FIL has died and she's lonely, when for the last 20 years we've invited her every year and she's never come because she'd rather stay with DH's brother and his wife who are richer and have a nicer house. But they are going on a cruise for Christmas and she won't go because she hates boats. So if we don't have her here she'll be alone but she only wants to come here because her usual arrangement is not an option. Also, for context, she's always been an absolute cow to me and paid very little attention to our children but now she's saying she'll be dead soon and wants to have at least one 'family Christmas' with us. DH thinks I am being unkind to not want to invite her.'

You can see how this can split into two distinct factions and rumble on for pages.

But it's rarely about anything really serious, or really distressing. That would tip too close into actual troll territory. Their aim is not to reel people in emotionally, or to troll in the traditional sense, simply to start as many long running threads as possible.

I thought engagement threads were about romance scammers.

Best I go now. 😂🙄🙄

A thread like that is fairly harmless and could actually help someone else. Nobody has to participate.

I don’t think the majority of posters do have a small child hence the fake posts to generate content.

You should have called this post Fake Threads instead of calling it a name that sounds invented and a term that most people have never heard of.

I misread the title and thought you were complaining about the number of threads about farming. Was coming to say I've not seen that many agricultural posts. Now read it properly. I'm still going to say I've not seen many agricultural posts.

I got told off for using the term “ engagement farming” in a meeting.

Took me a while to realise that their real objection was that they’ve not heard of it. Quite why they couldn’t just tell me that I don’t know…. I also thought it was a well-known term.

I also have no idea whether OP is engagement farming or not…😂

Also I am getting thoroughly sick of wordy AI composed posts with lots of unnecessary description added to make them seem more genuine. I wish posters could be more succinct.
Mumsnet need to tighten this up or members will leave in droves.

My brain thought this was about a new trend for people getting engaged on farms 🤦🏻‍♀️ in my defence my twins have had sickness bugs the last two nights so I’m quite sleep deprived.

Very interested in your thoughts. My husband told me a lot of these posts are bots as well.

The paranoia on this thread!

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/amibeingunreasonable/5588843-i-feel-like-im-competing-with-another-woman-for-my-own-husbands-attention-and-i-dont-know-if-im-being-unreasonable?utmcampaign=thread&utmmedium=appshare

I think this is an example.

Read up on the dead internet theory.

I've not heard of the term engagement farming before.

Isn't it usually called a post-and-run?

Why? Engagement farming is well-known business strategy.

edit - I’m reminded of my neighbour telling me I was a conspiracy theorist when I told her about an ad campaign I saw at a mainline station.