The decision to use social media for your business can be straightforward and pain-free when corporate policies are established, communicated, and reviewed with employees. As Douglas MacMillan, writer for Bloomberg Businessweek, wrote, “To prevent information leaks and other liabilities, companies are drafting guidelines for social media interaction. A rule of thumb: Don’t be stupid.”
Digital Analyst, Brian Solis, suggests, “Policies and guidelines must be clear and explicit in intentions and implementation and leave nothing to chance.” Guidelines can include statements about: not violating company’s privacy; remembering at all times that the employee is representative of the company; using common sense and courtesy; sticking to area of expertise in opinions and comments; being appropriate and polite at all times.
While large companies may find it helpful to hire a consultant to draft their social media policy, small businesses may find many good resources online which can then be adapted for their company. One such document was created by Todd Defren entitled, Top 10 Guidelines of Corporate Social Media Policy. The template available as a pdf, can be used to copy and paste as you see fit for your company.
Additional Resources for social media policies:
6 Terrific Examples of Social Media Policies for Employees target=”_blank”
Social Media Governance: Empowerment with Accountability
Blogging and Social Media Policy Sample
Sample Social Networking Policy
What advice do you have for developing a social media policy?
image credit: Matsuyuki’s photostream
