Why Your Company Needs a Strong Social Media Policy

With nearly five billion people on social media, it’s clear that having an active online presence for your company is a good idea. Every company can benefit from a social media strategy. That’s why your company needs a strong social media policy.

Another element to consider is a social media policy. A clearly defined set of rules to guide your employees on how to use social media can make a large difference for your company.

Your Company Needs a Strong Social Media Policy

No matter your business’s size, a strong social media policy is important. You can think of it as a code of conduct, and every business owner and HR director should be familiar with how it works.

Small businesses can benefit from having social media guidelines, such as by showing employees how to:

• Handle difficult customer situations online.
• Post their own content about the company.

Corporate social media accounts can be even trickier since there are often many more employees to manage. That can make it difficult to monitor social media and mitigate issues. However, if you have a policy in place, you can provide your team with best practices and reduce the chances that someone will post something that does not match up with your company’s image.

What to Include in Your Social Media Policy

If you are in the process of developing a social media policy for your company, there are many things to consider. What should be included in a social media policy?

Roles — Official and Unofficial Accounts

Each company should have an official account, but employees may create unofficial accounts, thinking that they are helping to promote the brand. An employee should only create a separate business account if they have been authorized to do so by the company, as that page reflects the company’s image and may drive traffic there.

That could cause people to think that the views expressed on that page belong to the company, whereas they belong to the individual employee.

Anything posted on official social media accounts should align with the brand and be approved by the person in charge of your marketing efforts. If your employees post anything about the company on their personal sites, there should be a disclaimer of some sort: “The views expressed on my account are my personal opinions and may not reflect my employer’s views.”

Acceptable Conduct and Content

All corporate social media accounts should have guidelines on what is considered okay to do and post online. That will ensure that all content created supports your brand image and reputation. If any posts online do not support this, you risk confusing or, worse, alienating your customers, which can impact your bottom line.

Conduct guidelines are helpful so that your team members know how to act. It is best to ask your employees to always be professional online and only say things that are within the company’s best interest. You can also include a point person to whom they may contact for questions about appropriate social media conduct.

Procedure for Conflict or Crisis

What do your employees do if they notice conflict around your brand online? They may spring into action, but it is best to provide a playbook so that they do not damage the brand more. A simple document that outlines acceptable responses to conflicts or crises on social media that relate to your business can:

• Help employees know what to say.
• Alleviate stress if they feel like they should have responded differently.
• Promote a cohesive brand image without implicating your business.

Regulations, Legal Restrictions, and Sensitive Information

Sensitive information about your business or its customers should never be disclosed on social media. Your social media policy should make this clear to avoid mishaps. For instance, if you are taking on a new client but have a non-disclosure agreement in place, your employees are forbidden from posting about this client’s work online.

If you have any other legal restrictions or regulations in your business, it is also important to add them to the policy. For instance, if you work in a regulated industry, such as wine and spirits, you will not be able to post content for those below age 21. Any rules or regulations you have should be clear so that your employees do not say or do the wrong thing by accident.

Invitation to Participate

As a business, you should welcome your employees to post on the company’s social media pages, blogs, and forums. Just keep in mind that what your employees say reflects your business, so it is important to have a few social media guidelines for employees in a PDF on what types of responses they should post.

Invite your employees to participate on social media, with the caveat that the content should be positive, relevant, and not damaging to the brand or business in any way. It should also not include any private information that the employee is not authorized to disclose (e.g., customer information, upcoming product launches, etc.).

What to Avoid

While it is essential to have a social media policy in place, there are a few things you cannot ask your employees to do.

“Big Brother” Policies

First, you want to encourage your employees to interact with your business online and share content. However, you want to avoid overseeing their every move. It is okay to provide general guidelines on what your employees can post and ask them to use disclaimers.

However, employees should not have to provide every post on their personal account to you for approval first just because they are an employee. Give your employees rein to post as they wish within reasonable guidelines.

Illegal Requirements

Everything you ask of your employees should be legal. You cannot ask your employees to pretend to be customers and engage with your brand online, for instance. Make sure that your company’s social media policy is both clear and legal to prevent issues down the line.

Invasion of Privacy

Employees have the right to post on their personal accounts. There is no need to monitor every personal account or ask about private details you found on your employee’s Facebook page. Stay within your legal rights, provide an easy-to-understand social media policy, and trust your employees.

Develop your small business or corporate social media policy today.

A good business law attorney can and should look over your social media policy to ensure that it is within legal guidelines. We are happy to help you connect with a world-class business law firm.  Fill out our contact form to get started.