Admin Vs Moderator: What Do They Do In A Facebook Group? A Comprehensive Guide

Quite often, the roles of an admin vs moderator are intertwined.

And we usually end up asking ourselves, “What exactly is the difference between a Facebook admin and Facebook moderator?”

Especially, if we are new to this.

But, you can now leave all your worries behind.

In this ultimate guide, I’m going to clear all your doubts.

As you read ahead, you’ll know about:

• Who is a Facebook admin and Facebook moderator and the difference between them 
• How to add/remove admin and moderator in a Facebook group
• Roles and responsibilities of each of them
• Possible reasons of clashes between Facebook group admin vs moderator
• Some great admin-moderator relationships to swear by

So, let’s begin.

What is the difference between Admin and Moderator in a Facebook group?

An admin is the creator of a Facebook group who has control over all the group settings. And a moderator is someone who helps the admin in keeping a tab on the group activity, ensuring things are functioning properly.

Below I have touch upon who exactly an admin and moderator is followed by explaining how they are different from each other.

What is an Admin on Facebook? 

An admin is someone who owns a Facebook group. Also known as administrators, they have control over everything in the group and manage all the settings. An admin may either create a Facebook group himself/herself or may be assigned as the admin of the group by some other admin.

Who is a Moderator on Facebook?

A moderator is next in line (or below) to the administrator (in terms of hierarchy) in a Facebook group. It is the admin who chooses a moderator and delegates roles and responsibilities to him/her. He/she may look after group posts, member requests, group activity, and is responsible for the efficient functioning of the Facebook group.

Here’s a table for quick glance at admin vs moderator roles that I have explained below in the next section.

Admin Vs Moderator Roles and Access

Before I go on to explain the roles of admin vs moderator in a Facebook group, let me shed light on how to add an admin  on Facebook.

How to add Administrator to Facebook group?

Step 1. You automatically become a Facebook group admin when you create a new Facebook group. It is only when that admin offers you to become an admin of his/her Facebook group, will you be able to become one.

Step 2. To make someone admin in your Facebook group, go to the members list and find the member you’d like to make an admin

Step 3. Click on the three dots against their name

Step 4. Select ‘Make Admin’

Step 5. The person will be notified of the same. Once they accept the invitation, they will become an admin of the Facebook group and will be able to take relevant actions for managing it.

In case you can’t add admin to Facebook group, check if the person you want to add as admin is a member of the group. If they are not, add them as a member first, and then follow the above steps.

A quick question –

Can a Facebook group have no admin?
Ideally, a Facebook group has an admin right from the time the group came into being. However, if that and all other admins quit from their role, the FB group will not have an admin. In such a scenario, any of the existing group moderators can claim the role of the admin. 

How to become a Moderator in a Facebook group?

Step 1. There is just one way to become a moderator in a Facebook group, i.e. when the admin of that Facebook group asks you to.

Step 2. If you are an admin, go to the members list in your Facebook group and find the member you’d like to make moderator

Step 3. Click on the three dots against their name

Step 4. Select ‘Make Moderator’

Step 5. The person will be notified of the same. Once they accept the invitation, they will become a moderator of the Facebook group and will be able to take relevant actions for moderating it.

To remove an admin or moderator from your group, go to the ‘members’ tab, click on the three dots menu against the name of the admin/moderator you want to remove, and select ‘remove’.

Next, let me tell you why it is important for both of them to coexist.

Why are both admin and moderator important in a Facebook group?

To put it simply, neither of the two can exist individually.

I’ll explain how.

Admin is the owner of the group who handles every single thing, including adding a moderator. He/she may or may not choose to do so.

As a Facebook group starts to grow, it becomes difficult for the admin alone to take care of everything from creating content to removing spam.

That’s when a moderator comes in. While the admin looks after everything, he/she can add a moderator who is a helping hand and takes care of a few of the things, thereby reducing the workload.

It’s all about teamwork. The better the two of them coordinate, the better they will be able to share the workload, and in turn, manage the Facebook group better.

Now, let’s have a look at the roles of admin vs moderator separately.

What are the roles of an Admin of a Facebook group?

I did a poll in our community of power admins, Growth and Monetisation for Facebook Group Admins, to understand all things they care of, in their respective communities.

And woah! They certainly do pretty much everything.

Check it out.

And the comments too.

From the above poll, I can easily conclude that the duties of an admin of a Facebook group are all of the following:

1. Create announcements
2. Update group cover photo
3. Manage group settings
4. Scrutinize member profiles and accept/decline member requests
5. Create and schedule new posts
6. Encourage members to follow group rules
7. Reach out to brands for collaboration
8. Approve and decline members’ posts
9. Look out for spam
10. Welcome new members
11. Host competitions, challenges, and live videos
12. Like and comment on every post
13. Add/remove admins and moderators
14. Find other relevant groups and reach out to admins of those groups for collaboration to grow business or group size

I know what you’re thinking…

Why have I marked all of these Admin responsibilities in 2 different colors?

That’s because ideally, the responsibilities of an admin are the ones marked in green color here.

And the ones in red color, although taken care of by the admin currently, can be handled by the moderator.

In fact, the power admins of our community agreed to it when I asked them:

What does a Moderator do in a Facebook group?

See this poll below.

Aren’t the points mentioned in this poll similar to the ones I mentioned above?

Yes my friend, you’re right in thinking that:

When your moderator is already taking care of these things, why should you?

That said, when you as an admin let your moderator take charge completely of these things in your Facebook group, you can focus on some other vital things (the ones I’ve mentioned below) and take your Facebook group to the next level.

Check out the important things that an admin should double down on below.

• Focus on building a stronger relationship with the key opinion leaders in his/her community.
• Track the right metrics to understand the growth of the community daily, weekly and monthly and drive it with the moderator team.
• Figure out growth hacks and opportunities to expand the community and revenue coming from the community.
• Understand conversation and consumer insights from the community and work with the moderator team to create highly engaging content on the same.
• Try out new Facebook group features and third party tools to see what tools/he or she can use to manage the group better.
• Experiment with other channels like WhatsApp, Instagram, and Telegram to engage their members even more or segment them better.

To reiterate the responsibilities of a moderator:

What does a Moderator do in a Facebook group?

1. Delete spammy posts and comments
2. Respond to group members’ queries
3. Approve and decline posts
4. Scrutinize member profiles and approving/declining member requests
5. Respond to members who reach out personally
6. Help in organising contests and competitions
7. Increase participation in the contests and competitions
8. Pin and unpin group posts
9. Create and schedule new posts
10. Welcome new members

Moderators certainly can take the burden off your shoulders.

But, if you are still the lone wolf out there, start your hunt for a moderator for your Facebook group.

The right moderator is the one who has the same set of values as you and is equally passionate and affectionate towards the community.

While this is just one thing to look at, there are a few other factors that cannot be avoided, when choosing a Facebook group moderator.

To know all about it, check out this blog which is an A to Z guide for choosing the best Facebook group moderators.

You’ll not only come to know about the traits to look for in a person but also learn how to address the concerns of your moderators.

That said, let me tell you about the possible reasons for rifts between an admin and a moderator and how to tackle them.

These 4 things cause clashes between admin and moderator

1. When the moderator does not adhere to the group rules himself/herself

You must reach out to the moderator personally and tell them about their conduct kindly.

Post this, the moderator should take accountability of his/her actions.

If the same problem persists, you must remove them (after 3 reminders maximum) as they clearly are not the right fit for managing the group activities.

2. When the admin goes missing from the group for a long time

In case of emergencies or other personal commitments, it’s your responsibility to communicate about your absence to the moderator and politely ask them to take charge when you’re not there.

If you have a good bond and they’ve been around for long, they won’t mind.

Trust me, ghosting is a big no no! It’s kinda a deal-breaker.

Even if you come back with a strong reason, chances are your moderator might second guess your intentions.

3. When the moderator fails to perform his/her responsibilities consistently

Again, I’d say, reach out to the moderator personally. Understand what they’ve been upto and what’s going on in their life. In case they’ve some personal issues going on, give them sometime. Let them take a break.

Or if they feel burdened with the responsibilities, try reducing the workload.

If they still don’t work, it’s time to start hunting for a new moderator.

4. When the admin micromanages the moderators’ work

When you closely observe your moderators work or constantly remind them about it, it is considered to be micromanagement.

Since they are aware about their responsibilities and are dedicated enough, you should cut them some slack and let them be. Understand that no one wants to be poked every now and then and if they have any questions, they will surely reach out.

Micromanagement not only demotivates people but also kills their urge to work. So, make sure to be the cool, friendly, and fun-loving admin!

When you do that, you foster a culture of belonging and togetherness in your professional relationship too.

Let me share with you a few examples of the best admin-moderator relationships I’ve come across till date.

Top 3 Admin-Moderator relationships that will leave you inspired

1. The one where they call themselves ‘Facebook family’

Nazia Parveen, admin of Jhatpat Recipes, has a team of 5 moderators who work hard day in and day out to help manage her 4.8 lac member community.

All 6 of them are closely connected over a Whatsapp group and keep each other updated if anyone is not available at a certain point in time. And, the others happily take over their responsibilities.

“Whatever I earn from the brand collaborations, whether cash or kind, I divide it equally amongst my family of moderators,” tells Nazia, who is extremely grateful to them for their efforts.

2. The one where they have mutual trust and respect between them

Akansha Bansal, Admin of Parenting Mom Style, has a full-time moderator, Dr Neeru Bhutta, as her helping hand.

Dr. Neeru is quite passionate, self-driven and motivated. Akansha never felt the need to track her work and neither has she asked for any daily or monthly reports because Dr. Neeru is very proactive.

She pitches ideas and pushes Akansha to experiment with different things in the group. Not only that, she also connects with brands for monetisation and carries out the initial conversation.

Akansha says, “There is mutual trust between me and Dr. Neeru. Although it took some time initially to build that, it’s great now. She makes my life easier.”

3. The one where managing a Facebook group is a cakewalk

Abhilasha and Anuja, admins of Maharastrian Ladies Association, along with 3 other Facebook groups, have a team of 6 moderators.

They have a fixed set of responsibilities that they carry out extremely well.

While 4 of the moderators are responsible for approving posts and responding to member requests, the other 2 help Abhilasha and Anuja in conducting online activities and social work.

“We owe it to the moderators for taking good care of our groups and standing with us always,” says the sister duo.

All 8 of them are connected via a WhatsApp group where they share all important updates and discuss things that require immediate attention.

Abhilasha and Anuja pay each of their moderators on a monthly basis.

“It’s a token of appreciation for the time and efforts they invest in maintaining our groups,” tell the sisters.

Heart-touching right?

Such is the connection between Facebook groups admins and moderators out there. While these are just 3 examples, there are so many more such inspiring stories that we are yet to tap into.

Remember that it is the compassion and togetherness that will take you miles.🙌🏻

Stronger together. Always! 💪🏻

That’s about it.

Now, I’d really like you to share your inspiring story or learnings with us in the comments below.

Or you can even share it in our Facebook group, Growth and Monetisation for Facebook Group Admins, where thousands of admins are discussing this and so much more every single day. 😊

Simran Grover

Creating value in the lives of others with my content, little by little.✨

Working at Convosight, I do more than just wrangle commas. I’m passionate about innovating new ways to create super valuable and actionable content about Communities and Community Marketing at large, and sharing it with the right audience.
I also happen to manage a global community of power admins on Facebook, and that’s where most of my learnings come from.

Do check out my latest blogs and feel free to share them! 💛