Social Media Policy

Implementing a social media policy should be a priority for all companies

Many companies are wary of allowing access to social sites in the workplace. This appears to be borne of 3 primary fears:

1. It will provide a distraction that will have an impact on day to day business operations
2. It is a potential security risk
3. It could result in the company being brought into disrepute by inappropriate comments

Whilst there are elements of truth in all of these assertions, banning access to the sites does not resolve the perceived problem, as it can prove very difficult to stop members of staff using their smart phones to access the social web. It is entirely conceivable that a ban could result in provoking the very behaviours it is trying to suppress.

Define a strategy, implement a policy

Given that social media is not going to go away, and in fact is going to become a significant marketing channel, then companies must plan to make use of it and therefore manage the perceived exposures that might result.

The first step is to ensure that there is clear understanding of what social technologies can do for your business. Establish which social platforms are being used by your customers, your prospects, your suppliers, and your competitors. Decide which platforms it is therefore appropriate to exploit for your business, and define your strategy.

The main elements of your strategy should include:

• Defining stakeholders
• Agreeing objectives, expected outcomes and measures to ensure you are on track
• Agreeing roles and responsibilities and appointing key contributors
• Developing and implementing a policy covering permitted use, exceptions and required etiquette (This may be an extension of terms of employment)
• Educating all members of staff

How to get started

This is a very big topic area and it is fraught with pitfalls. There are an endless supply of resources and an ever increasing number of experts to help you implement one or another component of social media. To be successful however, you really need to understand this as an end to end process, identify the products and tools that are right for your business and implement an operation plan.

We can help you with all of this by providing bespoke in-house training and education, helping you to devise your strategy, managing the implementation and supporting you every step of the way. Contact us now for more information or for an initial discussion.