All social media content posted to official accounts is considered an official communication, and therefore a federal record. Please see our section regarding operations to learn more about managing an official social media account for the U.S. Included are guidelines, resources, tips and frequently asked questions.
Social Media Policy Tools For Employee Advocacy
This section should establish who can speak for your brand on social media — and who can’t. When you’ve got big product news or a message to share, it’s great to have your whole team on board. For example, the cybersecurity firm Action1 has instructions in its social media to be on the alert for phishing schemes. “Especially on LinkedIn, where attackers might pretend to be recruiters,” says VP of Product Strategy Peter Barnett. To define a purpose, think about the capabilities of each channel and how your brand has chosen to use them. For example, Instagram is a predominately visual channel, whereas LinkedIn is predominately used for sharing opinions, insights and information.
We like to see policies with a lot of common sense and human-speak, as opposed to full of “legalese.” This policy hits the mark. However, innovative companies increasingly prioritize employee advocacy, seeing both employee retention and bottom-line advantages. A recent case study showed tech leader Salesforce activated about a third of its 73,000-person employee base as brand advocates, resulting in a 2,000% ROI on its social ambassador program. I see that Nordstrom advises employees to consult HR with further questions. But I’d prefer to see them include a little more detail in the policy itself.
Add a social media style guide to your corporate social media policy that explains how employees are expected to represent the brand online. A social media policy template typically begins with a statement that recognizes the right of employees to use social networks. The following paragraph may be a narrative that describes how online comments carry the potential to damage your nonprofit’s reputation. Every social media post or share becomes part of a brand’s online legacy. To ensure that this legacy remains consistent with the brand’s values, guidelines for posting content and sharing are vital.
They therefore need to be accessible to everyone, easy to use and genuinely useful, containing lots of examples for best practice. Companies must implement clear social media guidelines to protect reputations, ensure employee behavior aligns with professional standards, and comply with legal regulations regarding online conduct. Remind employees that these rules apply to their personal and professional social media accounts, and outline the consequences of failing to abide by these standards. Adidas is notorious for its strong mission statement and inspirational marketing campaigns, and its social media guidelines reflect that. It reminds employees that they are responsible for the content they post on social media and goes out of its way to even provide examples. Another great thing about their guidelines is that it assumes right from the get-go that employees are always online, so Adidas encourages them to talk about their work.
#2 Advanced Template (view/download)
By highlighting the dos and don’ts, you can keep things above board and avoid any legal headaches down the road. In general, your time in field and the resources provided to you in your field placement are to be used for field related matters. Before using social media communication tools on behalf of your agency, be sure to seek approval of any messages or posts. Be careful not to endorse or promote a product, cause or position without prior approval. If you have personal sites, it is best to maintain them on your own time using your own computer. Managing friend requests and maintaining privacy settings is critical regardless of whether you use social media for personal and/or professional reasons.
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For non-profits trying to make the most of social media, the choice of management tools can be overwhelming. Which one will save you the most time and effort, if you’re a non-profit struggling with resources and people power? In this e-book, we compare the most popular social media management platforms in depth, so you can make an informed decision. These guidelines are intended to complement existing university policy.
Coca-Cola doesn’t have a social media policy in the traditional form, but rather “responsible social media principles” it promises to abide by. This likely could have been avoided if a social media policy had been established. Some of you may be worried that enforcing strict rules in a social media policy stifles creativity or restricts freedom of speech. Establish the rules around social media use at your organization and prevent misuse by employees.
A social media guideline is a document that lays down some general rules of conduct on social media. The purpose of social media guidelines is to teach your team how to use social platforms responsibly. Guidelines will turn your team into natural champions of your brand. Its guidelines are essential for any organization looking to maintain a consistent and professional online presence. These guidelines serve as a roadmap for employees, helping them understand how to represent the company on various social platforms.
If you have defined a brand tone of voice, think about how you use that on social media and write a short summary for how to write social copy in the brand voice. If you don’t yet have a formalised brand tone of voice, this article will help. Also list any emergency procedures you have in place in case of leaked information or a PR crisis. Note what employees should do if they encounter anything negative while they’re monitoring and posting on social media, so they feel empowered to act if there’s a problem. In this article, you’ll find a simple guide to what social media guidelines are, why they’re important and how to create your own.