A new directory gets a few links a day. A successful one gets hundreds. Without a routine, the review queue grows, good submitters wait for days and spam slips through. Here is a workflow that scales.
1. Give moderators their own accounts
Never share the admin login. Create a staff account for each moderator under Admin › Users and tick only the permissions they need under Security and access › Staff permissions: usually links.manage for the review queue and reports, and links.categories for one senior moderator. Every action is then recorded in the activity log with a name.
2. Decide what is auto-approved
In Directory settings › Submissions, auto-approval can be off, on for members, or on for everyone. A good middle ground: links from signed-in members are approved automatically, guest links wait. Edits always go back to review, so an approved link cannot be swapped for spam later.
3. Work the queue in batches
- Filter by type or category and approve similar links together with the bulk buttons.
- Reject with a reason. The member gets an email and sees the reason in their panel, which reduces repeat mistakes.
- Twice a day is enough for most directories; set a target such as "no link waits longer than 12 hours".
4. Let filters do the boring work
Blocked words, the daily limit per person, duplicate detection and the captcha stop most junk before it reaches the queue. Review your blocked word list monthly — spammers change their wording.
5. Handle reports quickly
Visitor reports are your early warning system. Set a threshold that hides a link automatically after a few open reports, then review the Reports page daily: dismiss, hide or delete.
6. Keep the directory fresh
Run the Link Health Checker hourly with cron so expired invites disappear without anyone lifting a finger. A directory full of dead links loses visitors faster than one with a slow queue.
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