4 Tips For Creating a Company Social Media Policy
By Shelby Ballou
Businesses of every kind have a book of policies and procedures that outline things like communications, employee discipline, and more. However, many of these businesses don’t have any rules in place for social media use. Here are some tips for Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and everything in between.
1. Establish your voice.
Some companies tend to be silly and witty on social media, posting memes and cracking jokes like there’s no tomorrow. Usually, this is a reflection of their brand. However, if you’re part of an engineering company or a doctor’s office, that voice won’t work. Companies need to establish the right tone for them. A good mix of content usually encompasses posts about industry news, community contributions, and employee achievements.
2. Decide which social media outlets to use.
It used to be standard procedure to join every social media outlet possible. That’s not the case now, though. Every social media channel has a different audience. Companies with visual products and a younger demographic would probably succeed on Instagram. Twitter, on the other hand, is more information-driven than image-driven.
3. Be clear with your employees.
Be transparent about what an employee can and cannot publish, but don’t restrict them so much that you/they are worried about every single thing they post. For example, employees should know whether or not they can post their workplace on social media and if it’s okay to upload photos of them drinking a beer at their favorite brewery. But complaining about work issues, harassing clients, or posting about work projects should all be prohibited.
4. Ask for employee feedback.
Meet with your employees to talk through the policy so everyone understands it. You should focus strongly on younger employees, since they’ve spent most of their lives using social media. If you’re not clear about the rules, your employees will feel uncertain about what they can or can’t do.
[Original post here.]
