By 
The digital world is now a huge part of everyday life for most people in the world today. Although we might typically associate social media as something to browse in our spare time, it’s also become a vital tool for businesses. Small business owners and managers will need to let their employees know how they’d like to be represented on these social platforms and provide guidelines on what they can and can’t do.
We’ve teamed up with United Carlton, who provide print management software solutions, to bring you this comprehensive guide on what your social media policy should cover.
Two types of policy
There are two different types of social media policy to cover, and you’ll need to make your employees aware of them. You’ll require a social media policy for your brand and another for your employees – they are similar in structure but targeted differently. It’s vital that any social media policy you have in place as a business is enforced with strict measures so that your company is never in a vulnerable position. We’re in a digital world that is constantly changing this is a good incentive for business owners to continuously review their policies and make any necessary changes that will continue to have the best interests of the company at heart.
The rules explained
This section will cover your company’s code of conduct and detail the expectations that you have for your employees in terms of how they represent themselves online. On personal social media, if a person has tagged their workplace in their profile, and are not private, they are representing the company to the wider public. This means that you need to restrict the use of profanities and stay away from controversial topics that could impact the company.
It is also key that you let your employees know that they will need to act with confidentiality regarding the information they are handling whilst working at the company. Some information should not be discussed on social media.
Social media platforms related to the business, such as the company Twitter, LinkedIn or Facebook page need to be handled carefully, so it’s important to outline your brand guidelines. How do you want your company represented? This includes how you want your employees to respond to any mentions of your brand – whether these are positive or negative comments. It’s also important to outline how you want your staff to talk about your services or your products.
Employee responsibilities
Different social channels will come with their own roles and responsibilities. These can vary depending on the platform, as each will have their own specific needs. Depending on the skillset and training you give to the teams on social media channels, you might require someone who can approve messages, deal with security and legal concerns and create content that will be posted. It’s important to outline who can and can’t use the social media channels in the business.
Legal risks explained
In order to ensure that you are acting according to legal regulations, it’s important to address any potential legal risks in your social media policy. When it comes to social media, you need to make sure that you’re crediting your source with any content you are using, an example of this would be repurposing an image for your own business gain. It also needs to be discussed about what can and can’t be shared – making sure that everything gets approved by a senior staff member.
When it comes to a personal account of an employee where they find themselves commenting on something that relates to your business, they must highlight that the views they publish are their own and not those of the company they are working for.
Managing your security
With the world of business becoming increasingly digital focused, cyber risks are becoming more of an issue. This means that companies must be aware and know how to handle any potential threats. To reduce the threat of phishing scams and even ransomware attacks companies must create secure passwords, avoid phishing emails, spam, scams and any malware threats and know how to respond in the event of a breach.
It’s vital for businesses to establish boundaries with employees regarding social media use and look at reviewing their policy in order to create trusted relationships. This will ensure that your business is not negatively impacted by social media.
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